2021 promises to be a critical year for organizations as they address systemic inequities, biases, and differential experiences in the workplace. In the spring of 2020, we heard countless corporate voices stand behind the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement, sharing messages from their CEOs, posting to corporate and personal social media pages, and declaring their commitment to fighting racial injustice. While 2020 offered the opportunity to reflect and explore equity in the workplace, 2021 is the year we expect these plans to turn into action as organizations start the journey to produce real results.
ExecOnline’s Role in Creating Lasting Change
Producing real results requires a continued commitment by employees at all levels of the organization, from interns to C-Suite leadership. At ExecOnline, we are working together to create substantial, lasting change not only within our own organization, but we’re also supporting our clients on their journeys. We are excited to share several initiatives, including:
1. The Creation of ExecOnline’s Employee Resource Groups (ERGs)
To continue our efforts to foster a more inclusive workplace where everyone feels heard, ExecOnline launched six ERGs, where individuals come together to share experiences and provide support to one another while carrying out their ERG’s specific mission.
“I am very excited for the launch of our ERGs at ExecOnline! It is imperative that organizations create safe spaces for their employees as well as providing opportunities to make the world a better place for ALL. The fact that everyone can share their varying experiences and backgrounds creates a truly diverse and inclusive atmosphere…and how fabulous of a world would that be?!” – Tiffany Tate, Senior Associate, Talent Acquisition
This month, we celebrated Black History Month with weekly spotlights from the members of our African American ERG. Check out some of the posts below highlighting the important figures in black history that inspire us and the incredible civil organizations that we encourage everyone to learn more about. Be sure to follow us on LinkedIn for upcoming spotlights from members of our Women’s ERG as we celebrate Women’s History Month.
2. Our Commitment to Democratize Leadership Development Opportunities Within Organizations Worldwide
ExecOnline pioneered the concept of “Development Equity” – or “equal access for underrepresented minorities and women to formalized, career-enhancing development opportunities.” A lack of development equity is what organizations must recognize, address, and overcome if they want to create lasting change and ExecOnline is committed to supporting organizations on this journey. Discover what Janaky Grant, Group CLO and CHRO at Olam International and longtime partner to ExecOnline, shared about her experience democratizing learning with ExecOnline’s Applied Experience Platform (AEP).
“AEP is clearly an enabler to achieving our vision of democratising learning in Olam allowing for guided learning pathways and playlists for building competence at scale. For years, access to ExecOnline programmes have been limited to only niche talent groups, filtered by manager approvals and nominations. AEP provides on-demand, seamless access to high-quality programs from Academia’s best brands, literally placing them at our learner’s fingertips.”– Janaky Grant, Group CLO and CHRO at Olam International
Reach out to us today to learn more about how ExecOnline can best support your organization’s D&I goals. Read more on ‘development equity’ from our CEO in his recent article with Forbes Business Council titled ‘Leadership Mobility: Why Succession Without Development Equity Will Never Diversify Leadership.’
3. The Launch of Our Development Equity Council
ExecOnline’s Development Equity Council is made up of Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officers and Chief Human Resources Officers from leading organizations worldwide. We are thrilled to be working together this year to better understand how to substantially increase the trajectory of women and underrepresented minorities into positions of leadership. Stay tuned as we share exciting insights, announcements, and more from the council!