After collecting data for more than 10 years, trying to determine a metric or two, I asked myself: What is the value of the service we provide at Diversity MBA? More importantly, who gives a hoot and why?
There are so many organizations claiming to rank the best in class, or that just put out a list with no relevance. The reality is that there are only two organizations that truly measure diversity and inclusion strategy. Yet there is one organization that measures how companies develop, manage and advance talent and leadership; that would be…Diversity MBA, with our inclusive leadership survey.
For the past decade, Diversity MBA has watched the trends on how corporate America advanced women and people of color. We gained insights on the systems, methods and beliefs companies invested in to build their diversity and inclusion strategies. One outcome of all of this is that we began to understand the gaps and opportunities organizations have to build stronger cultures. We watched companies move the needle and drive change as they transformed their businesses. We saw cultures collapse and rebuild with new champions. Equally important, we developed real time metrics that measure inclusive diversity.
While this has been great, I must caution that sustaining progress and continuing to move the needle is a challenge. Diversity MBA’s leadership index survey measures how companies recruit, retain and develop talent; programs that support the development of inclusive cultures; and accountability systems to support behaviors of change. We now can answer the questions of who, what, when, where and how change is occurring within organizations.
So why should large organizations benchmark when they boast that they have all of the resources to develop their own talent; well, they may, but insights are needed on how competitors are managing and leveraging existing resources to drive change and impact. Also companies need to know what the best-in-class companies are doing.
At the end of the day, it is a business imperative that companies make the right decisions with the right information to ensure they are engaging the right people. Diversity MBA is proud to contribute to this process.
