If you want to get the most from your resource groups, each of them needs an ERG executive sponsor.
An ERG executive sponsor can increase the group’s impact by ten times. Turning it into a pivotal way to amplify your business results and differentiate yourself from competitors. And that’s as both an employer and a business.
ERG leaders are 2x more likely to feel that their role exposes them to senior leaders and opportunities to grow their external reputations. They’re 3x more likely to feel their role enables them to affect business results. And 1.5x more likely to feel it leads to them being included on interesting or challenging projects.
These are all key factors when it comes to building both employees’ personal brands and their loyalty to your business. It also boosts the likelihood that they’ll keep their internal and industry knowledge within your organization, rather than leaving for a better pay package somewhere else.
So rather than just being social groups, your ERGs can accelerate your business. They can boost your bottom line, enhance team members’ productivity, and increase employee engagement. Pretty impressive if you ask me.
So let’s dive into the role of an ERG executive sponsor and why every group needs one.
What’s the role of an ERG executive sponsor?
An ERG executive sponsor bridges the gap between a resource group and the organization itself. They can help ensure that the group aligns with the business strategy so that both your business and your employees get the most from the ERG.
An ERG executive sponsor also operates as an advocate for the group. They help to attract new members, connect with other resource groups and stakeholders, and obtain resources and budget. They play a key role in ERG visibility within the organization.
Without an ERG executive sponsor, both leaders and employees can feel that these groups aren’t key value drivers for the business. So they get deprioritized because there’s no one to champion them.
As a result, getting any budget or tools allocated becomes more challenging.
Without someone to bridge the gap, it can also mean that the resource group’s goals are less likely to align with the business’s goals. Which further devalues its business impact, perceived importance, and ability to obtain budget. That means the ERG has less leverage to support employees with speakers, trainings, or other initiatives.
However, high-performing companies are 2.5x more likely to see their resource groups as a form of career advancement and leadership development for employees. So they really can make a huge difference if they’ve got someone to vouch for them.
What does an ERG executive sponsor do?
ERG executive sponsors support the interests of the resource group and communicate its usefulness to leadership.
They can also challenge the ERG to grow and develop more, coaching and motivating the team through challenges so that they can use them as learning opportunities and not permanent barriers.
The right ERG executive sponsor can also mentor the group’s leaders. This can help them avoid burnout as they juggle group responsibilities alongside their full-time roles.
Using their position within the organization, sponsors can help both ERG members and the business achieve goals. This reinforces their importance to other team members and helps drive group participation.
The more people who see an ERG helping the business achieve its goals and boosting employees’ career successes, the more who’ll want to be a part of the group, too. It’s a self-fulfilling prophecy.
As well as ensuring group goals tie in with wider organizational goals, sponsors need to actively advocate for the ERG to senior leaders and future members to encourage growth, engagement, and investment.
They should also lead by example and be active members of the group themselves. They can take initiative to provoke discussions and share learnings.
For example, sponsors can coach and mentor members and ERG leaders in workplace and leadership skills. That way they can better navigate the next steps in their career journeys.
How to be a successful ERG executive sponsor
Of course, to be successful in any role, it’s not just about what sponsors do, it’s about how they do it.
Being a successful ERG executive sponsor requires someone to actually want to do it. Their enthusiasm will have a ripple effect not just within the resource group, but across the organization.
When employees know the sponsor cares about the ERG, it encourages them to care, too. And makes them want to be a bigger part of that group.
It’s also important for an ERG executive sponsor to listen to group members. What do they need? A member may have ideas or suggestions no one else has considered that could help the sponsor, the group, or even the organization more broadly.
The best ideas don’t always come from the loudest places. That’s why it’s so important to make everyone within an ERG, and within an organization, feel valued.
Almost two-thirds of high-performing businesses expect executive sponsors to be coaches/mentors to ERG leaders. But why not take things a step further?
Executive sponsors typically have more industry experience than other group members. Putting that to use by sharing their learnings can be pivotal to supporting ERG members to not just survive, but thrive—now and in the future of their careers.
Sponsors should also always be on the lookout for ways to get more from and for ERGs, such as by using the right tools.
Workrowd, for example, can help you better manage and measure your employee initiatives, programs, and groups. That way, both you and your team members can maximize your success.
Conclusion
If you want to make meaningful change within your business and get more from your resource groups, an ERG executive sponsor who can provide mentorship and connections to your employees is the way to go. They act as your ERG advocates to everyone else within your organization. In doing so, they help your business and your employee groups grow faster.
Why not take things a step further by providing each ERG executive sponsor with the best possible tools to support their group?
Workrowd is your one-stop-shop for employee initiatives. Get in touch to find out more about how our platform can help you help your ERGs serve both people and profit.
