Navigating the DE&I Backlash: Taking a Scientific Approach for Lasting Progress

I know I’m not the only one who is seeing all of this backlash against DE&I saturating LinkedIn, the news, and virtually every corner of the internet. And I’ll be the one to say it, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) initiatives have a lot to do with it.

Initiatives have gotten such a bad reputation in many organizations, often due to their lack of effectiveness and sustainability. 

Chances are, you've witnessed it firsthand: a company hastily implements a DE&I initiative they heard about from some giant like Google, only to see it flounder due to inadequate planning and testing or simply the fact that it wasn’t actually what their employees needed. The result? A squandering of valuable time and resources for minimal long-term impact.

In this post, we'll delve into a more strategic approach to DE&I initiatives, drawing inspiration from The Lean Startup methodology. By sidestepping the pitfalls of haphazardly crafted DE&I programs, we aim to pave a path towards genuine progress and lasting change.

Where we've gone wrong:

“Don’t program a rocket which will fail.”

—Eric Ries

Eric Ries describes in his book, The Lean Startup, the reason why so many startups fail.

According to Ries, the majority of startups fail because they’ve based their products or solutions on the assumption that people are actually going to want and need them.

Entrepreneurs spend months, and, in worst cases, even years, building and perfecting solutions based solely on market research and strategy.

Their solutions have a whole lot of vision to them with a whole lot more untested assumption.

They disregard collecting input from prospective customers as to whether their solution was even remotely interesting to them and then spend what money they have on a grandiose launch, just to find out that their solution is not as well received as they initially had anticipated it to be.

Customers or users express their indifference through not purchasing the product or service, and the startup fails because it ran out of money.

This phenomenon is quite the same with corporate DE&I initiatives.

Decision makers may think they know their organization’s challenges like the back of their hand, either based on their own experience in the working culture or through the arbitrary data collected in employee engagement surveys.

They use what they think they know to develop solutions in order to address those challenges, and if they are convincing enough to get buy-in and permission from the leadership team, they start rolling out their solutions through some type of campaign expecting everyone in the organization to jump on board.

While some initiatives may gain initial traction in the short run, most result in little to no change in the long term. When they’re unable to show any substantial results, they’re denied a budget in the future and are unable to carry on with any future DE&I efforts.

A more effective approach to getting this right:

Eric Reis offers a more scientific approach that significantly enhances the likelihood of success in DE&I endeavors.

Okay, we're not actually talking about science here but you get the idea. Here, is his methodology applied to DE&I.

Identifying the Problem:

Before diving into any project, it's crucial to pinpoint the core issue or opportunity by closely observing the workplace environment, including employee behaviors, needs, and pain points, and identifying emerging patterns or trends. Once potential issues or opportunities are recognized, validating their existence and severity is necessary. This involves engaging with employees through interviews, surveys, or feedback collection to assess the significance of the problem and determine their active pursuit of a solution. All insights gathered during this process should be used to develop a single refined problem statement, ensuring a clear understanding of the core issue and facilitating the development of a focused solution.

Formulating a Hypothesis:

Using Lean methodology, the next step is to brainstorm potential solutions. Consider utilizing brainstorming techniques, design thinking principles, or other creative methods to generate several innovative solutions. The goal is to encourage diverse thinking and explore multiple ideas or hypotheses for potential solutions. The result should be a single defined hypothesis that clearly articulates how a specific intervention or solution can effectively address the identified DE&I problem outlined in step 1.

Identifying Key Metrics:

The subsequent step involves determining key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure the progress and success of your goal tied to your hypothesis. Break down your goal into specific and measurable objectives, then search for indicators that are specific, quantifiable, and directly tied to your DE&I goal. When selecting metrics, ensure they are available and reliable. Consider any gaps in data collection and reporting processes and work towards enhancing data collection methods to ensure accurate and dependable measurements.

Building the Minimum Viable Product:

Once a clear problem/opportunity and a well-defined hypothesis with the most promising intervention, along with specific key performance indicators, are established, it's time to construct a minimum viable product (MVP). An MVP is an inexpensive and basic version of a solution that can be developed and tested quickly. Create a small-scale initiative or pilot program that encompasses the essential elements of your DE&I solution, such as targeted training sessions or mentorship programs focused on specific underrepresented minorities.

Testing and Gathering Feedback:

After developing the Minimum Viable Product, rapidly test it using the quantifiable metrics previously defined to determine its success or failure. Gather feedback from participants during and after implementation through observation, surveys, interviews, and focus groups to gain insights into their experiences and suggestions for improvement. This feedback will provide valuable insights on how to iterate and refine your approach and enable a deeper understanding of the solution's effectiveness.

Measure and Analyze Results:

Review the established metrics and evaluate the impact of your MVP. Determine whether the intervention has successfully achieved the desired outcomes in terms of diversity, equity, or inclusion. This evaluation process also involves examining the validity of your initial hypothesis and determining its accuracy based on the observed results.

Learning and Pivoting:

Based on the insights gained from testing and analysis, decide whether to pivot, persevere, or iterate on your DE&I initiative. A pivot involves making a significant change in your strategy, product direction, or segment you are targeting based on feedback and insights gained from testing and experimentation. Perseverance refers to continuing the existing strategy without significant changes, while iteration involves making incremental improvements to the solution based on feedback and data.

Scaling and Deploying:

Once the effectiveness of a solution has been confirmed, proceed with scaling it across the entire organization. Create a plan to implement the refined solution, closely monitoring its impact, and making necessary adjustments accordingly.

Fostering Continuous Improvement:

Regularly review and update your DE&I initiative based on new insights, evolving circumstances, and emerging best practices. Establish an ongoing feedback loop with employees to evaluate the effectiveness of the solution continuously.

Conclusion

The current backlash against DE&I initiatives underscores the need for a more strategic and effective approach in fostering diversity, equity, and inclusion in organizations. Initiatives are failing due to inadequate planning, lack of testing, and a disconnect between the proposed solutions and the actual needs of employees. Eric Ries's Lean Startup methodology offers valuable insights into how organizations can navigate these challenges and achieve genuine progress in their DE&I efforts.

By following a systematic process that begins with identifying the core problem or opportunity, formulating a hypothesis, and defining key metrics, organizations can develop a clear understanding of their DE&I goals and the strategies needed to achieve them. Building a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) allows for rapid testing and iteration, while gathering feedback from participants ensures that solutions are responsive to the needs of employees.

The process of learning and pivoting, driven by insights gleaned from thorough testing and analysis, offers organizations a valuable opportunity to refine their approaches and enhance their effectiveness. By scaling and deploying only the most effective solutions throughout the entire organization, and fostering a culture of continuous improvement, organizations can strengthen their commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.

By embracing a more scientific approach inspired by Eric Ries's methodology, organizations can overcome the pitfalls of traditional DE&I initiatives and pave the way for lasting change and progress. It's time to shift from haphazardly crafted programs to strategic and impactful solutions that truly meet the needs of employees and drive meaningful transformation in the workplace. Ready to unlock even more actionable insights and strategies to revolutionize your organization's approach to DE&I?

Join us at the Beyond Comfort Zones, Real-Talk DE&I Summit on March 8th, where we'll explore transformative strategies for authentic diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Don't miss out. Let's make a real impact together!

Register here!

Works Cited: Ries, E. (2017). The lean startup: How today’s entrepreneurs use continuous innovation to create radically successful businesses. Currency.