It’s hard to look at the DEI news and not come away discouraged. 

Since the turn of the new year, there have been reports of:

• Cutbacks to DEI staff and budgets,  
• Growing risk of DEI programs falling out of compliance with fast changing laws, and 
• Corporate decisions to modify or discontinue DEI initiatives in response to direct legal challenges.  

One prominent DEI storyline from 2023 has also made its way into the 2024 DEI headlines: DEI programs fail to produce results, waste time and money, do more harm than good.

Missing from these negative DEI storylines is attention to what is working. APQC research shows that some organizations are making real progress towards their DEI goals. We studied these organizations and found that they take a different approach to DEI than most. We’ve distilled this best-in-class approach into a framework for making progress with DEI.

As outlined in APQC’s DEI framework, the DEI best-in-class organizations are significantly more likely to: 

• Gain awareness to recognize and understand the work experiences of all employees; 
• Dedicate resources including budgets, staffing, and decision-making authority to make organizational changes; 
• Share responsibility for achieving DEI goals by giving everyone a role to play; 
• Develop capabilities that allow everyone to do their part in driving DEI; 
• Change behaviors in ways that eliminate inequities and drive greater representation and belonging; and 
• Report DEI performance through robust measures that hold everyone accountable for doing their part when it comes to DEI goals. 

Our report Taking Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion From Empty Slogans to Lasting Change describes these six areas of focus and presents specific actions that the DEI best-in-class take related to each—actions such as establishing an executive diversity council, making DEI goals part of manager performance plans, and auditing HR processes to support DEI.

The challenges described in recent negative DEI headlines are real. For the best-in-class, DEI is as an explicit part of the business strategy making it less likely to be cut in tough financial times or in moments where DEI becomes less politically expedient. Organizations seeking to sustain their DEI work can use the practices of the DEI best-in-class as a guide for making true progress towards providing a diverse, equitable, and inclusive work experience. 

Learn more about the survey and case study research behind APQC’s DEI Framework.

Download the Executive Summary today.

APQC members can download the Full Report