In this edition, Amira Barger, Executive Vice President and Head of DEI Communications & Advisory at Edelman, breaks down the current state of the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB) debate and shares best practices for positioning DEIB initiatives within companies. 

Amira is a scholar, multi-practitioner and thought leader who brings more than 18 years of experience in strategic communications that reach stakeholders, mobilize the community and inspire action. At Edelman, she provides senior DEIB and multicultural communications counsel to clients. She holds a BA in Marketing from Vanguard University, an MBA from LeTourneau University and DEI certifications from Cornell University, University of South Florida and SDS Global Enterprises. Amira is an active board member and volunteer and was recently named to CMO Alliance’s CMOs to Watch list for 2024, INvolve People’s Top 100 Executives list and Business Insider’s 30 under 40 in Healthcare Innovation. She also teaches at California State University, East Bay.  

🧩 BREAKING DOWN DEIB 

As Amira describes it, DEI (which some also refer to as DEIB) is about “working with individuals and institutions to bring the fullness of their identity, background and lived experiences into the places and spaces where they live and work.” DEIB focuses on helping people understand their behavior patterns and socialized biases, and change them when necessary. 

🤔 WHY IT MATTERS

The “business case” for DEIB is clear: the more diverse perspectives and variety of lived experiences there are in the workplace, the more innovative we are and the better our products and services are. 

But with the Supreme Court overturning affirmative action and the ouster of Harvard president Claudine Gay, DEIB has been facing increased scrutiny in the United States, leading some companies to go “under the radar” with their DEIB efforts. 

From Amira’s perspective, this backlash stems from a misunderstanding of what DEIB is (and for some, its association with left-leaning politics). And it could have real impacts — notably on the skills gap and the widening racial wealth gap in the U.S. The work of DEIB is not episodic, but rather requires ongoing effort to dismantle inequitable structures and realities for people.

✅ WHAT YOU CAN DO ABOUT IT

If you’re looking to more meaningfully integrate DEIB considerations into your business, here are a few of Amira’s recommendations and best practices:

Work closely with your company’s leaders to establish DEIB as a long-term strategic priority. Build a strong business case and get clear on your specific company’s “why” for DEIB initiatives. Make it clear that DEIB is an essential consideration for any 21st century company — not just a series of nice-to-have activities. This will also help make the department resilient to (increasingly common) layoffs. 

Consider the positioning of DEIB leaders. Often, DEIB is housed in the HR or People teams. Ideally, the head of DEIB has a direct line (and ideally reports) to the CEO.

Be data-informed. Companies should continuously audit and assess so they can implement data-informed DEIB initiatives. Start by analyzing workforce demographics, geographies and net promoter score, among other information. One of the methodologies Amira and her team use is the Global Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Benchmarks: Standards for Organizations Around the World, which includes 275 benchmarks across 15 categories for companies to assess their DEIB maturity level. 

Listen to employees and address their specific needs. Employees have lives outside of work, and viewing their needs more holistically is an important part of a company’s DEIB efforts. Invest in initiatives and benefits that directly respond to employee needs and support them in participating in the workforce. Amira surfaced the example of Synchrony, a financial company that offers a range of benefits tailored to expressed employee needs including remote work options, sabbaticals, summer camps for workers’ children and childcare reimbursement. She also mentioned 3M’s multi-year wellness strategy that views employee health across four pillars - mental, physical, financial and social - and their Be Well video series that featured tips and education from experts on financial security, health and different kinds of wellness.

Consider upskilling and reskilling as part of your DEIB strategy. Amira notes that many jobs at risk for automation are held by workers from underrepresented communities, which means that the advancement of AI could pose a threat to their livelihoods. Upskilling and reskilling therefore need to be part of DEIB conversations to mitigate the social impacts of large-scale layoffs.

Partner with external experts and organizations. Collaborating with experts and establishing community partnerships can help bring fresh insights to internal DEIB initiatives. Many community-based organizations and NGOs have years of experience with these issues, and are also in direct contact with the people whose perspectives can inform DEIB efforts that respond concretely to employee needs (and wants!).

Build community with other DEIB professionals. Sharing best practices helps practitioners be more innovative, but also helps them build a case in their companies for DEIB initiatives. Leaders often need to see something is successful first in order to implement it, and sharing resources with one another gives us the tools to showcase effective case studies.

Co-create. Instead of viewing DEIB efforts as a top-down approach, DEIB leaders should consider how they can hold space for co-creating initiatives with those impacted. For example, members of Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) might take the lead in designing their own programs and establishing better avenues for feedback.

Press forward. Amira emphasizes the need for practitioners to hold steadfast in their advocacy of DEIB efforts. She notes that reframing DEIB as a matter of inclusive benefits and fostering inclusivity when addressing concerns about perceived DEIB overreach can help others understand that DEIB is an issue that transcends political lines.

🤓 DIG DEEPER

• Global Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Benchmarks: Standards for Organizations Around the World and their five-step maturity model, which can be accessed by directly reaching out to the authors. 

• Intersectionality Matters! podcast hosted by Kimberlé Crenshaw, who coined the term “intersectionality” and is a leading scholar on critical race theory.

• Diversity Wins and Diversity Matters Even More reports from McKinsey

• The Diversity Advantage by Ruchika Tulshyan

• How to Be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi

👯HOW TO CONNECT WITH AMIRA

• Amira Barger on LinkedIn

• Amira’s monthly DEIB newsletter