Chief diversity officer is becoming a large part of business planning and corporate identities in recent years. Companies want to avoid discrimination lawsuits and aren’t entirely sure which method they should take to help fix what causes them. So chief diversity officers swoop in and can correct almost any situation: or avoid the worse outcomes.
What Is the Role of a Chief Diversity Officer?
These are the top things a diversity officer’s job entails and what they mean for any given company.
Goes Over Where The Company’s Going Wrong
No company is perfect. The issue is hiring practices, or there’s a problem with how some employees are treated in the office: a diversity officer is there to catch the issues. However, many people may overlook microaggressions or may not notice unequal footing in the office, people who are discriminated against the notice. It’s the job of a diversity officer to see as well, and long before a company is forced to go to court over the situation.
Creates Strategies to Change Issues
Once they’ve noticed what’s wrong, a diversity officer’s next job is to consider what can be corrected. They’ll have to create a plan that will allow the company to grow and change its ways without having to go too drastically and cause pushback from employees. This is often carried out in many small pieces, culminating in a better workplace for everyone involved. Although many may not see these small and gradual changes as necessary, this method ensures that people truly understand what the office is doing for them.
Flexible and Looks For Results
Although they’re pouring a lot of work into these results, a chief diversity officer will understand that not everything happens immediately. Instead, it’s a good idea to look for gradual results. There’s a rush to get everything corrected before any discrimination cases come out. Still, people don’t have switches that can automatically get flipped and change their way of thinking. Instead, it’s vital to remember that staggering improvement is how this will usually work out. Over time several things will culminate into a far better working environment. It’s not immediate.
Understands Where The Victims Are Coming From
Listening to victims is an essential thing that you can do. Understanding what they feel is happening, and knowing that it’s necessary to help them, can drastically change the outcomes of a case. Although it can be challenging for some higher-ups in a company to understand what it’s like for workers: chief diversity officers come from understanding. Whether it’s through an educational background, or their own personal lived experiences, understanding the victim is their most tangible way to ensure all employees have space within the company.
Keeps The Company Accountable
If the company makes a misstep or fails to take actions that could better the livelihood of its employees, the diversity officer is one of the few people in a position to call them out for it. An employee lower on the rungs might get ignored, or called reactionary, for saying a situation is unfair. For the chief diversity officer: it’s their job.