How to Get Started with DEIAB Data

CST’s Deepen Understanding series continues with our DEIAB (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Accessibility, Belonging) Client Executive Eve Mannix! In part four of “Understanding Employees’ Experiences through Data” Eve shares tips for an organization that is just getting started with DEIAB data.

What tips do you have for an organization that is just getting started with DEIAB data?

Start with the data you have. Remember that data are facts, so what facts are you already collecting? Check to see what is already available. For example, an employee survey may have data about the extent to which people feel like they belong. That can inform your approach to increasing inclusion. This can also provide background about where your organization started and where they are today.

Start small and focused. When you start out, avoid the urge to do too much in one survey. Know what questions are the most important and hold back from a lengthy, 100-question survey—try 10 questions instead! Fewer intentional data points are better than overloading employees with questions. Start off with what we call a pulse survey with a much smaller number of questions. A pulse survey allows you to test out questions and it also warms the employees up. It also prevents you from getting overwhelmed with too much data to analyze.

Start a plan. Doing the data analysis is a multi-step process. You need to know your priority questions and know how you want to cut the data – such as by department, identity or tenure. Many survey tools will give you a quick analysis, but will not quickly give you the data cut by identity group. From start to finish, the shortest time we would recommend is three months. Plan for longer if you have multiple data cuts. Don’t forget that the goals here are to let the data inform your approach to creating a culture of inclusion and to deepen your understanding of the employee experience. Keep your goals your central focus!