From Compliance to Commitment: Positioning Organizations to Develop Authentic DEI Initiatives

Following the 2020 social justice uprising, many organizations have created and/or expanded their efforts to develop diversity, equity, and inclusion programs and initiatives, without much large-scale success. To implement these programs and initiatives, organizations have hired executive coaches and consultants to help them implement a top-down approach to create effective and sustainable DEI programs; however, sustainable efforts must focus on the intentional inclusion of historically underrepresented communities while drawing on established best practices of organizations that remain successful within this longitudinal agenda. Specifically, this course will provide scholars-practitioners with an overview of relevant social science research and organizational development literature that can inform organizational approaches to the multidimensional corporate workforce of the 21st century. In addition, it will provide case studies of organizations within the technology and financial services industries that have been traditionally ahead of the curve in creating and sustaining diverse and equitable environments before Black Lives Matter, COVID-19, and the overwhelming adoption of remote work. Lastly, this course will provide practitioners insights to qualitative methods, as they are a critical piece in allowing practitioners to assess the authentic needs of their stakeholders (leadership, employees, and consumers) and developing tailored strategies for the environment that plans to implement them