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.

ERGs are an important way to support your employees both personally and professionally. These communities can be especially crucial for underrepresented talent. Which is why it’s so essential to offer a people of color employee resource group, or even several.

Being seen and heard through an ERG can make employees feel like a valued part of your organization. It also expands their opportunities for skills development and networking.

For businesses that are remote, having a people of color employee resource group can play a particularly significant role in forming career-changing connections, bridging gaps between locations, and connecting employees from similar races and cultures. These relationships are more important than ever in an increasingly polarized world.

Beyond that, younger generations are growing more and more diverse. Roughly 48% of Gen Z identifies as non-white, compared to 75% of Baby Boomers. Businesses need to take this into account.

They must consider ways to support every employee to succeed at work and overcome the challenges unique to them. A people of color employee resource group can help do just that.

Benefits of a people of color employee resource group

So, what are the benefits of setting up a people of color employee resource group? This includes one or more groups designed to support Black, Indigenous, or other underrepresented talent within your business. The answer goes far beyond socializing:

Higher profitability

More diverse companies make more money. In fact, they have 2.5x the cash flow per employee.

That’s a huge difference that comes from the increased engagement and innovation that diverse teams bring. It can make a massive impact on a business’s ability to succeed.

More innovation 

When employees are all from the same background, it can quickly lead to groupthink and an inability to see things differently or suggest alternative ways of doing things. As a result, it’s harder to come up with creative solutions and product innovations to outperform your competitors.

Including employees from different cultures, races, and backgrounds in the conversation prevents an echo chamber from forming.

It not only fosters empathy among employees, but also allows them to see how people from other backgrounds live, work, and experience situations. Meaning they can consider how to make a product or service work for people from other backgrounds too. And therefore attract more customers.

Even if every team doesn’t have a strong mix of different employees, having a people of color employee resource group means there’s a always a brain trust they can turn to for a broader perspective.

Increased employee engagement

More diverse companies are happier and more welcoming. People feel more able to be themselves, so then they don’t waste energy hiding parts of who they are. They can just get on with their jobs.

They also feel appreciated at work and so put more effort in because they’re a part of the team. Not someone who’s just there to go through the motions.

A people of color employee resource group ensures your team members have a true place to feel at home within your organization.

Attract better candidates

When your company is racially and culturally diverse, people see the impact that this has on your organization.

They also see themselves represented in your teams, which makes them believe they’ll be welcomed.

Knowing they’ll have a community from day one in your people of color employee resource group can encourage more job-seekers to apply.

Appeal to the next generation

As mentioned in the introduction, almost half of Gen Z identifies as non-white. Millennials, meanwhile, are 19% more diverse than Baby Boomers.

So if you want to maintain a culture of innovation within your organization, supporting those who identify as people of color is pivotal. Otherwise, as Boomers age out of the workforce, you’re not going to attract the next generation into your business.

Boost employee career progression for everyone

When employees are supported by someone who’s faced the same challenges, they’re far more likely to succeed. Instead of trying to forge a path of their own without any support, they have one already mapped out to help them navigate. A lack of support can leave people with no idea where they want to go next, stalling their careers and potential to develop alongside your business.

For mentors, teaching is one of the best ways to learn. In addition to teaching them new leadership skills, it helps reinforce what they already know, cementing their knowledge.

A people of color employee resource group gives team members access to those who have gone before them, and gives the trailblazers a chance to make sure those channels stay open.

People of color employee resource group initiative ideas

Here are some employee initiatives that can help you get the most from your people of color employee resource group:

Mentoring 

Mentoring is one of the most powerful ways to support employee career development. Mentees get to learn from someone who’s been there. Which means they don’t waste time on the same pitfalls.

Different employees will face different barriers. For example, the microaggressions a Black female employee faces in the workplace will be different from what a white female employee experiences.

Having mentors from the same racial or cultural background can help people deal with challenging scenarios. It gives them the strength and confidence to handle setbacks that can be harder to face when someone feels like they’re navigating things alone.

Product feedback

When it’s time to work on a new product, or update an old one, who do you involve in the decision making?

Your people of color employee resource group can play a huge role in helping you avoid an echo chamber forming. It’s a community of active employees who want to grow in their careers, network with colleagues, and share their insights. They could very well come up with your next great innovation or initiative.

Networking opportunities

If you’re serious about breaking down barriers and helping employees grow, why not organize networking opportunities for members of your people of color employee resource group?

This could involve speakers who can discuss relevant topics and opportunities to network with their colleagues before or after the talk.

If you wanted to further expand their exposure, you could open it up to people from beyond your organization. This could help with future recruitment opportunities too by feeding your talent pipeline and clearly demonstrating your company culture to the outside world.

Conclusion 

Supporting your employees from different racial and cultural backgrounds with a people of color employee resource group boosts their career progression options while helping your business grow and become more profitable.

You can innovate faster and more effectively, while employees feel happier and more engaged because they’re valued and supported at work.

Grow your groups

Want help growing your people of color employee resource group? Workrowd can help you manage your employee groups so that you, and your team, get more from them.

Keep everything in one place so that employees can find information easily and get the support they need via their personalized dashboards. Plus, track your progress with our real-time analytics. Get in touch today to find out more and book your free demo.

If you want to remain competitive in today’s talent market, setting up an LGBTQ+ ERG can help. 28% of Gen Z adults identify as LGBTQ+.

Despite now being over a quarter of the working population of their generation, they earn less: 89 cents for every dollar earned by their peers. For those who are non-binary, the number drops further to 70 cents, and for transgender women it’s just 60 cents.

It follows then, that if businesses don’t take more steps to support a wider range of employees, they risk losing out on the most qualified, technologically savvy young talent.

At the same time, they risk turning off older employees who want to work for a forward-thinking and inclusive organization as well.

How to set up (and maintain) your LGBTQ+ ERG

Now that you know why an LGBTQ+ ERG is important, let’s explore what you need to know when setting up your group. And how to ensure you get the most from it.

Choose the right leader

Leaders play a huge role in the culture of any group. Getting the right people in place is a crucial first step. 

Consider who would be the best leader for your LGBTQ+ ERG and seek input from group members to decide. That way, the people in the group get to choose who they want running things.

Welcome allies

Welcoming allies can be good for team dynamics, but be sure to hold space for just identifying members of your LGBTQ+ ERG on certain occasions. You don’t want to feel like allies are taking over the conversation when it shouldn’t be about them.

This is where your effective leader can come in. They can create a respectful atmosphere when asking allies to step back or deciding who is involved in different initiatives.

Include remote employees

It’s really important to include remote employees in any ERG that you set up. If you’re going to have remote employees, you need to make them feel as much a part of your organization as anyone working full-time from an office.

Otherwise, they’ll feel disconnected and disengaged from your company and mission, so they’ll either quiet quit or leave altogether.

Remote employees can be some of your most productive if you support them in the right ways. Of course, that includes with employee resource groups.

You also want to find ways to bridge gaps between different office locations and ensure everyone feels able to participate in your LGBTQ+ ERG.

Consider different schedules when organizing events

Activities after work aren’t suitable for everyone. They might have families or other responsibilities to attend to, or simply be too drained after the workday.

Be sure to organize your LGBTQ+ ERG activities at different times throughout the day and different days of the week so that you can include everyone.

Keep talking about it

Employee resource groups aren’t the sort of thing where you launch them then never talk about them again. Sometimes announcements get missed or simply forgotten about if an employee is busy.

If you want to show employees your LGBTQ+ ERG is a priority, you should plug it regularly. This shows it’s an active, engaging part of your organization that you value and believe makes a difference to their lives.

Talk about it in:

• Employee onboarding
• All-hands meetings
• Internal communications like intranets or Workrowd
• Slack/Teams chats and emails
• HR documents and policies to show it’s integral to business operations
• Internal and external social media to show what it has achieved

When discussing your LGBTQ+ ERG, be sure to share the benefits to employees of being a part of the community. In particular, share the perks beyond just socialization.

Use it for career growth acceleration

LGBTQ+ employees sometimes struggle to get the support they need to grow to the next stage of their careers. Your LGBTQ+ ERG can play a pivotal role in this by connecting them with experienced colleagues to show them the ropes and help them navigate workplace politics.

Don’t just hope for this to happen organically, though.

Introverted or self-conscious employees are unlikely to actively ask for help but could benefit just as much—and benefit your organization just as much! Especially if they’re from an underrepresented group.

As Susan Cain explores in her bestselling book Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking, there are plenty of benefits to encouraging less outgoing employees and they have just as much to share.

Supporting every employee to excel gives your business the upper hand. The best ideas don’t always come from the most vocal people. Those who speak less are often the most observant, which means they may have ideas no one else had considered because they come from a different angle.

You never know unless you give them a chance. Your LGBTQ+ ERG could be the supportive space they need to find their voice and be heard.

Celebrate achievements

To really show you value your LGBTQ+ ERG, be sure to celebrate its achievements. This could come in the form of posts on your company LinkedIn page, a shoutout in a company newsletter, or even a press release sent to local media outlets.

It doesn’t matter how you do it or what you’re celebrating—it can be big or small, internal or external.

What matters is that you’re clearly showing how much you value every one of your employees and what they do for your organization—and each other.

Conclusion 

Your LGBTQ+ ERG can be a huge asset to your organization and a supportive tool for your LGBTQ+ employees.

It can also help your business be more inclusive and empower employees to be their full selves at work. That means they can be more productive and spend less time masking.

Try Workrowd

Want to make your employee groups even better? Try Workrowd. It’s your one-stop-shop for employee initiatives. Keep everything in one place so employees never have to go searching for what’s coming up or what to do ever again. Whether they want to grow their network or advance their career, you can make it easier for them.

And with automated analytics built in, you’ll be able to track your ROI from day one. Get in touch today to book your free demo.

Nearly 30% of the US population has some type of disability, which makes offering a disability employee resource group more important than ever.

The dictionary defines a disability as:

noun (plural disabilities) 

1. A physical or mental condition that limits a person’s movements, senses, or activities.

2. A disadvantage or handicap, especially one imposed or recognized by the law.

If someone has what the dictionary refers to as a disability, it will inevitably impact their ability to work, too.

That’s why having a disability employee resource group can make such a huge difference to your employees’ productivity and your company culture.

It shows your team that you really do support everyone and you’re committed to helping them overcome workplace barriers—whatever they may be and whatever may be causing them.

It’s also a strong way to show current and future employees that you’re committed to creating a diverse, welcoming work environment where people’s differences are celebrated, rather than used as a way to create divides.

What are the benefits of a disability employee resource group?

There are lots of benefits to supporting your disabled employees with an ERG. Here are some of them:

Highlight needed accommodations

For a business to be truly inclusive, it has to consider everyone’s needs.

Yet so many seem to think they’re disabled-friendly without an elevator for employees to use. They’re not just for wheelchair users. If you’re on a high floor, if your employees have a lung condition like asthma, or even if they’re just tired, an elevator is a lifeline that can save them wasting energy that will chip away at their ability to do their jobs.

And make no mistake—it does have an impact.

I’ve had to traipse upstairs to an office before because the elevator was out. As an unfit asthmatic, I needed my inhaler at the top because the old building had incredibly steep stairs. I couldn’t start working right away, or even get up to make a hot drink because I literally couldn’t breathe.

That could’ve easily been avoided if the company had been willing to make accommodations like remote working. Or even just working from a cafe around the corner.

Having a disability employee resource group ensures needs like these get both a face and a voice. With dedicated advocates, issues are more likely to get addressed sooner rather than later. Which in turn saves everyone time and energy and reduces any impacts to productivity.

Gather feedback on your current practices

It’s not just that, though. It’s things like insisting employees stay at their desks all day without considering the benefits of walking meetings or taking a five-minute break. 

The longer we stay sitting at a desk, the worse it is for our mood, physical health, and productivity. That’s true whether we’re disabled or not.

The members of your disability employee resource group can offer feedback on plans to make your business more accessible to existing and future disabled employees. This could come in the form of:

• Remote and/or hybrid working policies
• Flexible working hours
• Meeting buffers
• Meeting length caps
• Providing meeting agendas in advance

There are so, so many more things you could do. And the thing is, making your business more accessible for folks who have disabilities doesn’t have a downside. Everyone becomes disabled eventually, whether that’s through chronic illness, injury, or age.

What works for disabled people will also work for, and likely benefit, those who don’t have a disability.

For example, working parents can benefit from flexible working hours. This also opens your talent pool up to even more potential candidates.

Beyond that, you get to benefit from the extra skills people have when they’ve got children or a long-term health condition. With your disability employee resource group to support them, everyone on your team will be set up to thrive from day one.

Get their insights on new products, updates and innovations

Sometimes a product simply isn’t as inclusive as you think.

As an example, if to close the trunk on a car you have to reach the top of it and slam it down, how is that suitable for shorter drivers? Or for wheelchair users (many of whom can and do still drive)? How about for people who don’t have the strength in their arms/hands?

Little things like this affect how usable your product is. They’re things that your team may not consider if your designers are all from the same backgrounds.

Including a wider variety of people helps avoid these pitfalls. And you get a wider customer base as a result, meaning you make more money.

Connect colleagues

Working with a disability can be tough and isolating. A disability employee resource group enables colleagues with similar conditions to find each other, listen, and offer support.

For new employees who may feel intimidated or not want to ask their boss about what accommodations they can access, they can also speak to fellow ERG members to find out what support is available to them. 

What do you need to know when setting up your disability employee resource group?

Here are some important things you should consider when setting up your disability employee resource group:

Create a knowledge base

Alongside information like group etiquette and contacts, your disability employee resource group should also include documentation around:

• Employee group contacts, like the group leader
• Who to contact at work if they have a suggestion/request/need help
• Union representation
• Internal support that’s available, like therapy
• External support like organizations offering advice on different conditions

The more information you include in your disability employee resource group, the more members will know about where and how to get support. This will save them time, energy, and stress that would otherwise impact their workload and mental health.

Consider the language you use

What some disabled people find offensive, others don’t. For instance, some people dislike the term “people with disabilities”, while others prefer it. There’s no right or wrong answer here, so long as you listen to your employees and follow their lead.

You could create a guide to include in your HR/onboarding documentation and/or in your disability employee resource group to explain the type of language you use to talk about disabilities.

This can be a useful reference for people to ensure they don’t step on toes or unintentionally upset colleagues. It also removes the need to ask awkward questions because the answers are already there.

Remember not everyone will want to disclose their health issues

Some people, particularly those with invisible illnesses or who are neurodiverse, may not want to share their health conditions with the organization they work for.

They may not want to share this information with their colleagues either, for fear of discrimination.

And it’s a valid concern. According to the Business Disability Forum:

• 40% of people with disabilities have felt “put down” or patronized at work
• 38% of people with disabilities have been harassed, bullied, or discriminated against at work

Those are numbers from 2023. In the 2020s, society should be doing far better than this. Your disability employee resource group can help drive the change.

Conclusion 

Employee resource groups of all kinds can benefit your organization not just by making it more inclusive, but more profitable, too.

By supporting employees with disabilities you improve the wellbeing and productivity of all employees, simply by taking steps to make their lives easier. A disability employee resource group sets everyone up for success.

Want to make your employee groups even better?

Workrowd helps you organize your employee groups so that they’re simple to use and employees want to be a part of them.

You can keep all your initiatives in one place so that employees never miss out on the next great opportunity to grow their career or network.

Plus, with automated feedback surveys and real-time analytics, you never have to wonder whether your ERGs are adding value. Get in touch today to find out more.

An employee resource group for women is one of the most common ERGs companies create. 

But why?

And how should you go about setting up—and supporting—yours? If you’re considering starting an employee resource group for women in your organization, you’ve come to the right place.

Why you need an employee resource group for women

The potential benefits of an employee resource group for women aren’t just about attracting more female candidates to work for your organization. It can also increase the number of female leaders in your business, which helps you innovate—and therefore make more money.

Women’s experiences at work are different from men’s, from navigating women’s health to gender discrimination. Providing support through initiatives like ERGs and mentoring helps female employees navigate these common challenges.

It can also offer you key insights into how your female employees feel.

For example, King Games, the company behind the Candy Crush Saga games, conducted a survey and found that non-male employees often lacked confidence to grow their careers and felt out of place.

Supporting these employees resulted in a 6% increase in female hires in a year.

How to start and support your employee resource group for women

Now that we’ve discussed why an employee resource group for women is important, let’s look at the key elements you need to set up and manage yours:

Find the right leaders

The right leader for any ERG is important. You want your women’s group leaders to be able to connect with other female employees and explain the benefits of joining.

You need someone who can create a respectful, safe space where women can talk about the problems that they face.

For example, they may wish to discuss women’s health, menopause, or pregnancy. They should be able to do this openly and honestly, without judgement.

A leader who can establish rules and norms will play an essential role in the tone of your employee resource group for women.

Compensate them accordingly

Make sure you thank group leaders for their additional time and energy in some way.

Running a community is no easy task. It requires a certain type of person, and you need to keep them motivated to run their group. Offering them incentives will keep them active and engaged in all aspects of their job.

This could be by augmenting their pay, adjusting their workloads to ensure they have the bandwidth to manage an ERG (without burning out), connecting them to development opportunities, or other ways to recognize their achievements.

Establish the basics

Make it clear where your employee resource group for women stands on including trans women, non-binary people, male allies, etc.

What you decide will affect who joins, the activities you do, and how people—internally and externally—perceive your business.

Identify your executive sponsor

Executive sponsors validate your employee resource group for women. They can also help mentor group leaders by teaching them the tenets of leadership if they don’t know them already.

On top of that, they can help with getting buy-in from senior executives, for example to get ERGs involved in business innovation and keep you ahead of your competition.

Let’s not forget that businesses that are more diverse and have more female leaders are more innovative, more eco-friendly, and make more money.

Generate interest

There’s no point in creating an employee resource group for women if no one wants to join. 

Make sure there’s enough interest from employees to join your ERG and make it worthwhile, especially for those team members taking time from their days to run it.

Share the knowledge

Put everything leaders, sponsors, and members need to know about your employee resource group for women in one place. That way, if anyone needs to find past or present information, they know exactly where to look. It becomes a faster process for everyone.

Activity ideas for your employee resource group for women

When organizing events, keep in mind that different times will work for different people. Don’t always organize something in the evening, for example; consider lunchtimes or mornings, too.

Also, don’t orient everything around drinking. You don’t know who does or doesn’t drink, or for what reason. You don’t want to pave the way for awkward conversations about why someone doesn’t.

When I didn’t drink, I got asked why I had soda every time I went out. It got repetitive and frankly didn’t make me feel welcome; it made me feel judged. I have several teetotal friends who still experience this.

Also consider ways to engage your remote team members just as much as your office-based employees.

When remote employees are left out, it’s often because companies don’t consider creative ways to support them and try to fit old models into new ways of working.

Volunteering

The most powerful way to support a community is often not with money, but with time.

Listening to people; helping them do something they couldn’t do on their own; keeping them company so that they don’t feel alone. It doesn’t cost anything but time, but it can make a huge difference to someone’s day.

You could arrange for members of your employee resource group for women to volunteer at a women’s shelter. Or if your team is remote, either enable them to organize their own volunteering opportunities or work with an organization that can help you find opportunities in your team members’ locations.

Book club

When people love a book just like you did, it can form the basis for a strong friendship. 

I’ve had many friendships start from a mutual love of a book or TV show. It shows that you’re interested in similar things and share similar values.

The type of books your employee resource group for women recommends also help set the tone. Will they be focused on professional growth, popular reads, or spreading the word about lesser-known titles? Different types of people read different things and will be attracted to different types of book clubs.

Lunch and learns

Empowering members of your employee resource group for women with the chance to learn about new skills and topics is important. It can boost both engagement and productivity, while expanding your team’s abilities. Plus, scheduling things during their lunch hour means it won’t conflict with any personal commitments outside of work.

Everyone needs to eat lunch, so why not have it do double-duty? Members can catch up with each other, get some solid nutrition to power them through their afternoons, and learn something new to help them either in or outside of work (or both).

Topics could include new skills relevant to your industry, time management, wellness and mental health; the options are endless!

Mentoring

Mentoring for women in the workplace can lead to huge opportunities for growth and development, helping them navigate the challenges that being female in the workplace creates.

An employee resource group for women is the perfect place for team members to find mentors, as it will naturally attract people at different stages of their careers.

Conclusion 

Having an employee resource group for women shows that you understand the unique challenges women in the workplace face and want to help them navigate that terrain.

It comes with benefits beyond just socialization and belonging; it helps you grow your business, too.

Make groups smarter with Workrowd

It’s not easy to set up or run employee resource groups. Not if you want to do it right. 

Workrowd can help you get more from your employee groups through tools to collect feedback, share initiatives, connect employees, and more. Get in touch today to find out how we can team up to better support your employee resource group for women, along with your entire team.

Employee resource groups are an important part of making your team members happy and growing your business. But to ensure that both your business and your employees get the most from them, you need the right ERG leadership.

The right leaders will create an interesting, engaging community that leads to networking and growth opportunities for your employees, and a boost to your business.

The wrong ERG leadership will result in a non-existent community that’s inactive and unengaging. And nobody wants to be a part of that.

With that in mind, here are our top ERG leadership tips:

Pick active leaders

Back in the day, I was active in a lot of online forums. The ones that survived all had one thing in common: the leadership team was active and clearly cared about the site and its community. They kept things up to date, communicated any changes or issues, and spent time engaging with members, too.

The forums still needed active members as well, but there was a trickle-down effect. If the leaders stopped caring, so, too, did the members.

To run your employee resource groups, you need people who are interested, engaged, and good at rallying the troops.

If the group is for a particular subset of employees, ideally you want ERG leadership to be from a similar background. That way they can understand and empathize with the challenges the employees in that ERG face.

Choose someone who wants to do it

An important part of leadership is the enthusiasm to actually do it. If someone doesn’t want to take on an ERG leadership role, but they feel pressured into doing it, they likely won’t put the required effort in. As a result, your group will fall flat.

Someone who gets forced into ERG leadership, instead of doing it voluntarily, will feel resentful and stressed. It will lead to them either quiet quitting or leaving your organization completely. Which puts you in an even worse position than you were before pressuring them to lead the group.

Change leadership periodically

Changing ERG leadership periodically helps keep things fresh and fair. It can attract new members who may prefer different ways of doing things or initiatives instigated by new leaders that previous ones wouldn’t have done.

Rotation also stops leaders from burning out. That ensures they stay engaged with their day job, which should still be their main priority.

Get members to vote on and nominate new ERG leadership as well. This helps members stay engaged. They can also nominate people who may not otherwise put themselves forward but would be great at the job. Don’t forget how important it is that they actually want to lead, though!

Create a knowledge base

If you’re going to change ERG leadership periodically—or just want to make everyone’s lives easier—a knowledge base ensures anything someone within a group might need to know is easy to find.

It’s useful for new members or existing ones wanting to refresh their memory. It also reduces the stress for new leaders taking over. They don’t have to waste time finding information on organizing events, budgets, other important team members, etc.

Connect your groups

Employee resource groups shouldn’t operate in silos. They’re all individual communities but they should interact and share tips and advice. This advice can ensure that new ERG leadership stepping up doesn’t fall into the same challenges or traps. It provides crucial networking opportunities for people, too.

Get executives involved

Your executive sponsor not only legitimizes an ERG, but can also help with things like getting budget sign-off, planning/organizing events, recruiting new members, and getting groups involved in business decisions like new tools.

A women’s group, for example, can help you identify gendered language in product descriptions. Or accessibility features aimed more at men. (Car manufacturers, I’m looking at you. I am short. Cars are getting bigger. Make it so that I can close the trunk without practicing ballet stretches, please.)

It’s becoming increasingly obvious when certain people aren’t included in decision-making, like in the above car example. Sure, in some cars you can now open or close a car trunk with a swipe of your foot. But only if you’re tall enough. It’s not an accessibility feature if it isolates more than half the population.

That’s one of the reasons why employee resource groups are so powerful. It’s also why getting your senior leaders onboard is so crucial.

When they’re involved with ERGs and encourage employees to join, it has a ripple effect throughout your organization. It lifts everyone up and shows the power in their individual and collective voices and experiences.

Give them a budget

Your ERGs aren’t just casual social groups. They should be a core part of your business. So, like any other part of your business, they need a budget.

How much will depend on several factors, including:

• How many ERGs you have
• What they want to do (it can help to ask them to put together a plan)
• How many members they have
• What their objectives are
• Your business finances

ERGs can then use this budget for training, meetups, tools—whatever will benefit their members the most.

The right ERG leadership will be able to manage this budget and decide what to spend it on in a way that’s most beneficial to the group and your business.

Conclusion 

Leadership in any area is crucial, and your employee resource groups are no exception. Get the right ERG leadership in place and you’ll have engaging communities your employees want to be a part of.

Organize your employee groups with Workrowd

Need help organizing your employee groups to make your leaders’ lives easier? Workrowd is here to help. Our tools save ERG leadership time on tedious admin work so that they’ve got more time to spend on community building. Get in touch today to book your free demo and find out more.

So you understand why employee resource groups are important, but if your organization doesn’t yet have them, how do you start? Here are our top employee resource group best practices for those looking to launch their first ERGs:

Don’t treat them as a nice-to-have employee benefit

While employee benefits are nice to have, your ERGs aren’t one of those things.

It’s easier than ever for employee resource groups to get dismissed as simply nice-to-have DEI initiatives. This is especially true when you’re just starting them for the first time.

That’s why it’s important for you to ensure everyone, regardless of how long they’ve worked for you, knows they’re a core part of your business.

Including your ERGs in key decisions can help with reinforcing this and is one of the most effective employee resource group best practices. For example, if you’re a SaaS business working on a new tool, preview it with members of your disability ERG to get feedback. That will ensure you create something accessible for everyone.

Too often, accessibility is seen as optional, or added on simply because it makes able-bodied people’s lives easier.

But disability comes for us all one day.

Making it a core part of your business has no downside, and having an ERG for people with disabilities helps you get things right the first time.

Establish a formal process

A formal process ensures that if someone wants to set up an ERG, they know exactly what to do. It saves everyone a lot of time and confusion, and is one of the most fundamental employee resource group best practices.

It also helps make sure every group is paired with an active executive sponsor. This will help legitimize the group to employees and show that you’re serious about them being a valued part of your business.

Moreover, give them a decent budget that allows them to actually do things. This could include in-person meetups, online hangouts, speakers, etc. Their executive sponsor can help them acquire and manage this budget.

Hold them accountable

As well as a formal setup process, you also want to ensure they have goals so that they don’t fall into the trap of just being a social group.

Get them to set yearly goals, track their progress, and hold them accountable to achieving them. As with anything else, what gets measured gets managed, making this another one of the core employee resource group best practices.

Acknowledge leaders’ time

It takes time and energy to run a community; it’s an extra responsibility alongside someone’s job that could easily spiral into another part-time role.

You therefore want to acknowledge the time and energy ERG leaders spend organizing your groups. Adjust their workloads accordingly to ensure they have the capacity to actively support their ERG (and protect them from burnout).

You also want to connect them with development opportunities—like leadership training, for example—or other ways to thank them them like increasing their pay. Ensuring your group leaders feel appreciated is another important effort on the list of employee resource group best practices.

Publicize groups early and often

You’re never talking about things as often as you think. Whether it’s mentioning ERGs in job postings or internal communications, regularly reminding employees that those supports are there ensures the people whom the groups can benefit can find them and join them if they choose to.

Mentioning your groups publicly can also be a way to distinguish yourself from competitors and show what your company values are, too. It’s one of the employee resource group best practices that can really boost your employer brand.

Likewise internally, regularly plug them in as many places as you can. For instance:

• Relevant Slack channels
• Onboarding materials
• All-hands meetings
• During events like Pride Month, Disability Pride Month, etc.
• Internal emails
• Intranet

To make it less repetitive, you can showcase the groups’ accomplishments. This further reinforces the fact that you don’t just see them as social groups.

Track engagement as well as enrollment

It doesn’t matter how many people are in a group if nobody has posted since 2019. You need active participants for them to make a difference.

So, when it comes to your metrics, be sure to look at how many people are engaging and how often. This will help you show where the demand and interest are. It’s one of the employee resource group best practices that is often overlooked, but which is very important.

Know when to decline applications

As hard as it may be, you don’t want to accept every application to start a new ERG. Sometimes, there isn’t enough interest, it has too much overlap with an existing group, or you already have too many.

If you have too many, it can lead to employees experiencing decision fatigue. They may either not join any at all or join lots and be less active in them because there are simply too many.

Give them the tools to succeed

ERGs are beneficial for employees whether they work remotely, in the office, or hybrid. So it’s important to find ways to make ERGs accessible to everyone within your organization.

Knowledge bases can also be useful, so new members and leaders don’t have to reinvent the wheel every time they want to plan an event or other initiative.

Depending on the size of your organization, hiring a coordinator or manager to support all of the groups is one of the employee resource group best practices you may want to consider.

Organize your ERGs with Workrowd

Another tool that will make ERG leaders’ and members’ lives better is Workrowd. You can keep everything employees need to know about your ERGs in one place, from what groups are available to upcoming events. So they never need to go fishing to look for what they want to know.

Get them working together 

Any good YouTuber will tell you that part of their secret to success is cross-collaboration. You’ll often find YouTuber A features YouTuber B on a video, then the following week, it’s the other way around.

Sometimes they have similar types of videos, sometimes they don’t. But this cross-promotion is key to any channel’s long-term success.

Your ERGs are the same. After all, they have similar goals: they want to support your business and employees. And sometimes cross-collaboration is the perfect way to do it.

For example, if you’re working on a new product or service, you could get members from each group to test it and provide feedback.

Or you could get them to collaborate on organizing a particular type of event.

There are so many things that you could do. Don’t forget to ask them for suggestions, too!

Conclusion

If they’re not already, ERGs should be a core part of your business. They can help you make better, more informed decisions as well as being a way to attract and retain talent.

Organize your ERGs with Workrowd

If you’re not sure where to start, don’t worry—that’s why we’re here! Workrowd can help you implement all of these employee resource group best practices and more.

From organizing all your employee initiatives in one place to maximize visibility, to tracking their performance so you’re always getting the best value for money and the best results, it’s all at your fingertips. Your employees will want to take part in ERGs and other programs and events more, and you’ll get more out of them as a result. Get in touch today to book your free demo.

All too often, employee resource groups get dismissed as nice-to-haves or solely DEI initiatives. But there’s so much more to why employee resource groups are important for organizations today.

Luckily, while some may question their impact, other companies fully recognize the value of these communities. In fact, 61% of employers even report that they plan to boost their ERGs’ budgets. Would businesses really put that much effort and money into ERGs if they were just a nice-to-have?

ERGs are so significant to businesses’ health that 90% of Fortune 500 companies have them. What’s more, 83% of staff who find their company’s ERGs “effective” or “very effective” report a positive inclusion score.

Employee resource groups can help inform and optimize your business decisions to be better, more inclusive, and more efficient. Which of course helps you become more profitable and expand faster. And every business wants that, right?

So let’s dig deeper into why employee resource groups are important, now more than ever.

Who ERGs benefit

While thriving ERGs benefit the whole organization, we most commonly see groups focused on the following communities:

• Women
• LGBTQIA+
• Disabilities
• Veterans
• Race and/or culture-based
  • Black
  • Latine
  • Pan-Asian
• Age-based
  • Multigenerational
  • Young professionals
• Parents
• Interfaith

Why employee resource groups are important

Employee resource groups really are pivotal to the health of businesses in the modern world. Let’s look at the benefits to understand why employee resource groups are important:

Make work about more than just work

All too often, it can feel like life is all about work and…nothing else. This can eat away at employees’ wellbeing, which then affects their ability to work.

78% of employees who feel like they belong at work rate their wellbeing positively. In fact, it’s the biggest driver of workplace engagement—91% of employees who feel they belong at work are also engaged.

Given how crucial employee engagement is, this alone is a compelling reason why employee resource groups are important.

Improve retention rates

When people feel like they belong, they’re less likely to want or need to leave. Retaining your star players is therefore also high on the list of why employee resource groups are important.

For example, Dell’s Women in Action ERG helped the company to boost retention rates among its female employees.

Attract more candidates

More than 3/4 of candidates now look for diversity when considering employers. So being loud and proud about your ERGs will help you attract more top candidates.

ERGs show what your business values, something that’s increasingly important among Millennial and Gen Z workers. 89% of employees now want to work for a company that shares their values. What’s more, 39% of Gen Z-ers and 34% of Millennials have declined roles that don’t align with their values.

Sharing details of your ERGs on social media, or even in job descriptions, helps you communicate your values to potential candidates. It then means that people who apply for roles are more qualified, weeding out those who would be the wrong fit for your business because their values don’t align.

Putting your values front and center is another reason why employee resource groups are important.

Elevate your onboarding

Starting a new job can be an intimidating time. ERGs are a great way to help new hires settle in.

You could set up a mentoring program, have a place where they can ask questions, or even organize an ERG specifically for newer employees. They can talk about their experiences and offer each other moral support to make those early days a little easier.

Become more innovative

Innovation is key to standing out in the modern world. It’s also a top reason why employee resource groups are important.

Prioritizing diversity in your business can help you generate new product ideas you may not have thought of otherwise.

For example, Procter & Gamble’s Hispanic and African Ancestry ERGs helped with product creation such as the Pantene Gold series.

And according to BCG, companies that have more diverse leadership generate 19% higher revenues than those with below-average leadership diversity.

Build psychological safety

Psychological safety is vital to a culture of innovation, productivity, and wellbeing. It enables your employees to experiment and try new things without worrying about the consequences to their careers.

As a result, they’ll take more risks, leading to greater innovation and more profits for your business.

In fact, research found that 2/3 of staff feel ERGs contribute to this feeling of psychological safety. Yet another reason why employee resource groups are important.

Boost trust in leadership and colleagues

Trust is another key element to psychological safety. 36% say that ERGs help employees trust leaders more and 31% feel they help them trust their coworkers more. This empowers everyone to achieve more in less time and makes for a more welcoming work environment.

Strengthen company culture

Your company culture is vital to your business success. 26% feel that ERGs helped them connect more to the company culture.

Moreover, 66% of employees believe ERGs help contribute to a strong community feeling, something which gets everyone in your business heading in the same direction, as opposed to working against each other. The more employees work against each other, the harder it is to achieve business goals and the slower everything—and everyone—moves.

Increasing collaboration and boosting company culture make two more points on the list of why employee resource groups are important.

Welcome underrepresented talent

Helping underrepresented talent feel welcomed and appreciated is more important than ever. Having access to ERGs where they can connect with others who share similar experiences and backgrounds shows them you see them, value them, and want to continue supporting them.

Increase revenue

When workplaces are racially diverse, they experience 11.1% higher revenue growth. Over time, that can quickly add up to a huge difference, adding yet another reason why employee resource groups are important.

Conclusion 

ERGs are no longer a nice-to-have employee benefit. The bigger your business, the more important it is to show candidates and team members that you’re serious about treating your employees like real people. Beyond that, it shows that you value what their individual experiences can bring to your business.

Organize your ERGs with Workrowd

If you want to benefit from all of these reasons why employee resource groups are important, Workrowd can help. With tools to help market, manage, and measure your ERGs, and all your other employee initiatives in one central hub, you maximize both engagement and your ROI. Get in touch today to book your free demo.

Recruiting and hiring underrepresented talent is one of the simplest ways to expand your internal knowledge, innovation, and creativity.

If everyone in your organization thinks alike, they’re far more likely to fall into the trap of groupthink. This can slam the breaks on innovation quicker than you can say “1984.”

Underrepresented talent can help you solve problems you didn’t know you had by spotting oversights in your products or services. For example, using lots of emojis on social media posts makes them clunky for someone using a screen reader to listen to, as the screen reader will describe every emoji. Many people who don’t know someone who’s partially sighted are unaware of this seemingly small thing.

How we see the world is influenced by our experiences. Which is why supporting underrepresented talent matters now more than ever. It future proofs your business from every angle.

It’s also going to be a key differentiator for attracting and retaining talent. Gen Z is the most racially diverse generation in the US—48% identify as non-white.

Meanwhile, people with disabilities are the most likely demographic to be unemployed. 7.2% of people in the US with a disability are unemployed.

So how do you support underrepresented talent pools like these in the current work climate?

Rethink your hiring practices

There are very small things you can do to even the playing field when it comes to hiring underrepresented talent. Or even attracting it in the first place.

For example, providing interview questions in advance. This allows candidates to prepare their thoughts so that you get the best-quality responses from them. 

Someone being able to think on their feet isn’t a reflection of their intelligence or abilities. It’s a skill in and of itself but not one that’s necessary for most roles.

Other simple strategies you can adopt include making sure your in-person venue is on the ground floor or includes a working elevator. Or removing candidates’ names, ages, and other demographic data from their resumes when reviewing them to avoid unconscious biases creeping in.

Have a formal mentorship program

You may hope that mentorship and knowledge transfer will happen organically without the need for a formal program. I’m here to tell you, as an introvert, it won’t.

Or, if it does, it will only benefit the loudest people in the room—not necessarily the most capable.

A formal mentorship program takes the burden off of employees asking someone to mentor them. You can use tools to connect employees to mentors, or host mentoring events for people to network.

The more you do to remove the barriers to entry, the more likely your mentorship program—and therefore your knowledge transfer and succession planning—is to be successful.

Members of Gen Z have vital technological knowledge and they’re changing the rules of work. 

But current employees and managers need to meet them halfway. They need to learn how Gen Z thinks while helping Gen Z navigate corporate politics and the world of work. Mentoring and employee groups are two of the most powerful ways to do this.

Start—and encourage—employee groups

Employee groups are key to fostering a sense of networking and belonging at work. They enable someone to feel like part of the gang, not an outsider who doesn’t fit in with their colleagues. 

And fitting in at work is key to people’s happiness and productivity. If they’re on the outside, regularly feeling left out by their teammates, they won’t be as invested in what they’re doing, so they’ll be less likely to put effort in. Then they’ll wind up quiet quitting or just leaving.

You could create groups for underrepresented talent to connect, Gen Z-ers, or even groups for common hobbies like writing or gym-going.

You don’t want to overwhelm employees with options. Then the groups may become too quiet or saturated, but you do want to give them some choices. Shared interests can be crucial foundations for getting to know colleagues and working with them better in the short- and long-term.

Using Workrowd, you can organize your employee groups and keep everything in one place. It’s the perfect tool to support knowledge-sharing, mentoring, and networking initiatives.

Collect feedback

You don’t know what you don’t know. Which is why it’s important to ask employees what they want and need from you.

Sending employee surveys is a crucial way to find out how employees, and in particular your underrepresented talent, really feel about work and what you could do better.

Workrowd can help you automate your feedback surveys, so then you’ve got more time to act on the results. Want to find out more? Book your free demo today.

Don’t assume an “open-door policy” is the answer to everything

Just because you say you have an “open-door policy” that doesn’t mean employees will use it. This is especially true for underrepresented talent.

Some employees may feel too shy or intimidated, or afraid of repercussions if they say something controversial or personal.

Employees need a safe space to ask questions and hold leadership accountable. An employee listening platform where employees can post anonymously, or a regular automated survey, helps you collect this vital feedback to help you, and your leaders, improve.

Educate your workforce

There is nothing more powerful than education. If someone has never experienced something themselves, they have no idea what it’s like.

Educational programs, or even employees sharing their own challenges or experiences, helps the rest of your employees understand the struggles faced by people with different backgrounds to them. And therefore empathize more with them and other groups of underrepresented talent.

Conclusion 

Supporting underrepresented talent doesn’t require huge changes. It simply requires listening, maintaining an open culture between leadership and employees, and helping your underrepresented talent connect—to each other and your business.

Workrowd can help you keep the dialogue open between your employees and leaders through automated surveys. It can also help you manage your employee groups and other programs to keep your underrepresented talent engaged and connected. Get in touch today to find out more.

Back in 1987, just 2% of the workforce was older adults. That number is now 7%. The silver worker has become a major player in today’s workplaces.

Workers 55 and older are projected to make up more than 25% of the workforce by 2031. And according to the Pew Research Center, the average silver worker now works longer hours and gets paid more than ever. 

Around 11 million older workers are now employed in the US. Over 42% of these are in management, professional, and related occupations, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Which shows how their knowledge and experience remains relevant to the workforce.

Some of this increase is because we’re living longer. Some is because we’re in a cost of living crisis where extra money can go a long way (or not). And retirement age in many countries continues to increase. 

In the 1990s the average age of retirement was 60. It’s 66 today, and 41% of US workers expect to continue working in some way beyond 65.

So what can you do to support your silver worker population? Here are some tips:

Provide training to help them adjust to the evolving technical landscape

The world is changing faster than ever. Offering your silver worker cohort support through different training initiatives shows that you still value their contributions. And you want to help them adjust to what’s new. 

It also shows that you’re not going to write them off because they’re over a certain age.

Training could come in the form of books, webinars, coaching, mentoring, audiobooks—the list is almost endless.

Offer them opportunities to mentor

Your older employees have plenty of experiences and skills that they can share with your younger recruits. That’s true whether they’re new to your business or have been there a while. The average Boomer employee stays in a role for 8 years. So why not give these silver worker team members the chance to mentor?

In addition to benefitting your younger employees, mentoring helps your older employees grow their leadership skills. It also provides more purpose at work, which can help with employee engagement.

Help them connect in an ERG

You can create an ERG for just about any population or demographic, so why not start a silver worker group?

It allows people to discuss what’s on their minds, share memories, ask questions, and talk to people who understand where they’re coming from.

Workrowd can help you get more from your employee groups. You can keep everything in one place, so it’s easier for team members to find whatever they need, and enables them to connect with their colleagues. Book your free demo today to find out more.

Ensure you don’t have an ageism problem

It’s a sad fact that ageism still exists. I’ve spoken to many people over a certain age who won’t apply for new roles—and instead stay in jobs that make them unhappy—because they believe when they’re over the age of 50 (sometimes even 40!) that no one will want to hire them anymore. Even if they have decades of experience in their industry.

Given that the average age of CEOs in the FTSE100 is 55, this is pretty mind-boggling. But ageism does still exist. It’s why celebrities who age naturally get told they look “old” and precisely why most celebrities opt not to. It could ruin their careers.

There are subtle signs this is changing (mostly outside of Hollywood) with Boomers now being the fastest-growing demographic in the workplace. But it still requires people to keep their attitudes in check.

To show that you value the wisdom that comes with age, you could create a silver worker showcase on your organization’s social media. 

Or if they’re comfortable, consider helping them grow their own personal brands.

The more you can show that employees of a certain age are still valued parts of your workforce, the more likely you are to attract the silver worker demographic to your business and retain the ones who already work for you.

Update your pension plan

Census data found that almost half of adults aged between 55 and 66 have no personal retirement savings. The global average pension is also considerably below the 65-80% of earnings experts recommend to maintain someone’s living standards when they retire.

Saving for retirement is often one of those things that people put off because they think they can worry about it at a later date. Then a later date hits and they’re left with very little. If you don’t already have a 401(k) option for your employees, consider creating one with auto-enrollment. Similarly, if you do already have one, make sure it’s effective and up-to-date.

In the event auto-enrollment isn’t an option, periodically remind employees that they can opt in if they want to. Or consider having a company policy of auto-enrollment, especially for employees approaching silver worker status.

Provide flexible working options

Over a third of companies offer part-time, flexible, or phased retirement options, according to Mercer. 

For the silver worker who finds full-time work too much but isn’t yet ready to give it up entirely, this can be a really beneficial option for both the employee and your business. They get to stay in the workforce longer, giving them a sense of purpose and keeping them mentally agile. And you get the benefits of their years of experience in the workforce.

Conclusion 

Your silver workers are treasure troves of knowledge and experience. Their presence in the workplace is going to continue to grow, too, as people live longer, retirement ages go up, and the cost of living crisis continues. 

Providing support for your silver workers ensures that you retain all their great experience while balancing it with their changing needs.

If you’d like to really help your silver worker demographic, why not connect them in an ERG? Workrowd makes it simple for you to set up and manage your employee groups. Plus, you’ll get real-time analytics you can segment to see what really matters to a silver worker within your organization. Get in touch to find out more.