“Promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion is not just good for business; it’s the right thing to do, ensuring all individuals have opportunities to succeed and creating a more robust IT and cyber workforce,” he said.
But how do companies set meaningful DEI goals in IT? Here’s advice from IT leaders and DEI experts.
Take stock
“Setting and achieving DEI goals in IT is about creating a roadmap that reflects the world we live in,” said Greg Vickrey, a director with global technology research and advisory firm ISG. “It’s a mix of art and science — understanding the human element of the teams and backing it up with data.”
Vickrey advised organizations to begin with a complete audit, asking tough questions about the current diversity environment in IT. “This approach helps identify gaps in representation across different groups including race, gender, disability, veteran status, etc.,” he said.
As a research and development leader in the technology industry, Hema Ramaswamy, SVP of engineering at data intelligence platform Tracer, runs DEI initiatives like a technology project. She starts with the “why” and develops a concrete plan with goals, progress metrics, feedback, and improvements.
“At Tracer, we started off with a demographic survey with the goal of identifying the demographic characteristics and background that comprise our team and looking for areas of improvement,” she said. “Oftentimes, we hear about DEI [in terms of] gender, race, religion, sexual orientation, age, etc. However, at Tracer, our survey showed that the diverse educational background is where we needed to focus to be equitable and inclusive.”
