4 tips to start a diversity committee in your company

The diversity committee aims to make your company an even safer and more welcoming place, as well as suggesting internal changes aimed at diversity and inclusion.

Have you ever had that feeling of looking around and not seeming to fit in? Do you agree that it is extremely uncomfortable and should not happen, especially in your work environment? If you answered yes to all my questions, you may be interested in starting a diversity committee in your company.

What is a Diversity Committee?

First of all, let's understand what a committee is: a group of people who pursue a specific interest. Therefore, a diversity committee aims to create a plural environment in institutions, promoting diversity and inclusion.

It is the committee that brings relevant discussions and proposes changes in the atmosphere, structure and culture of the company, usually meeting regularly to think about diversity actions and monitor, analyze and promote what is being done within this agenda in the organization.

Who can join?

It sounds obvious, but this committee should be really diverse, that is, it should be composed of gender, race and ethnic groups, people with disabilities, members of the LGBTQIA+ community, and so forth. This is important to increase the sense of belonging and welcome of all, and to bring different views that can help to think of really effective solutions thought of by minorities, for minorities.

It is also essential that this committee has a leader, who helps in the distribution and organization of the tasks. And, if it is within your reality, it is nice to have one - or more - people leaders from other areas belonging to this team, to ensure that the actions raised in the committee will be applied and followed up in all departments of the company.

4 tips to start a diversity committee in your company

1- Review the current Diversity and Inclusion scenario

Before you start, you need to understand how the diversity of your organization is today. This is very important to start a committee and it will make it easier to begin the work of these people, to set goals, and even to follow up on the results.

To be able to analyze your indicators accurately, the ideal is to conduct a diversity census, which is basically a survey to collect this data and everyone should participate, even if anonymously.

This way, HR can be based on real numbers and it is easier to understand what the organization needs and where the starting point will be.

2- Work together with HR

HR should be an allied area of your committee and can be the key piece in its creation and implementation. Besides contributing to the reformulation of some processes and projects such as the implementation of diversity vacancies and career plans for various leaders, some indicators of the area can also be positively affected (turnover, employer branding, adherence to selection processes, etc.).

Here, it is literally "you scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours" situation, this partnership only has benefits to offer to everyone involved.

3- Set goals

Remember when I said that it is important to have a committee leader? This is where this piece fits in!

Besides contributing with the organization and distribution of tasks, the leadership must (along with the others) set goals and plan the necessary actions to achieve them. With the goals established, it is easier to monitor the development of each one, also facilitating the future analysis of the results and efficiency of the committee's efforts.

The HR can help at this moment of definition and monitoring of goals and actions, since it is essential that the committee is always aligned with the company's strategies.

4- Have diversity without overloading anyone

This is another one of the things that seems obvious, but it is common to happen and that is why we must pay close attention.

A really diverse committee makes all the difference so that all topics are discussed with priority. That is why it is important to seek - at least - one representative for each minority group, so that all collaborators can divide up the responsibilities and nobody feels overburdened.

But no pressure, okay? It is important that everyone involved feels invited to participate and share the responsibilities of being part of such an important committee!

How 99Hunters implemented a Diversity Committee

To be quite honest, here at 99Hunters everything happened very organically!

For a while, we had only one person who declared themselves diverse, and upon reaching person number three, the possibility of creating a group was raised, which came via WhatsApp at the time.

Back then, the idea was to discuss references they had in common and create a safe welcoming environment. It was something like this: "We have these points in common, let's strengthen each other! Let's occupy this space and discuss these issues we feel like in a joint and collective way", so, around here it was more of a process of identification, safety, and strengthening. 

Today this committee has grown and has more than three people. We implement the census survey even during onboarding (if the collaborating person feels comfortable sharing diversity and inclusion information with us) so that it is always up to date and so that all people feel welcome from the beginning.

We use this information to assign these new collaborators to groups in Slack (our internal communication tool), where they will be free to discuss professional and personal issues related to their own topics and different social clippings. Because beyond all this, the committee is also about getting along and welcoming people.

Before implementing any kind of action, it is important to make a prior analysis of your current scenario and count on good planning. Diversity is a theme that is definitely here to stay and every day it is becoming a competitive factor in productivity and business development.

Investing in the creation of a Diversity Committee is to promote awareness and appreciation of all collaborators, innovation, growth, and, above all, a welcoming, healthy, and balanced environment. It is not easy, but it can bring really positive results.