How Do We Talk About Reality Without DEI?

We recently wrote a book about how people, leaders, and organizations can apply scientific findings toward improving diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). That’s what every one of the 216 pages of the book is about. Yet… we seriously considered leaving those words out of the title. We debated, discussed, and reconsidered.

Why? Because many of the people whom we hope our work will reach face legal and political pressure to avoid using exactly those words. Anti-DEI bills have already made it through state legislatures in Texas and Florida. This means that public institutions have eliminated titles, positions, curriculum, and programming around DEI. A book with “DEI” in the title is likely to face a similar fate.

These words are not the problem, but misconceptions about their meanings might be.

What does DEI mean anyway?

Diversity is simply difference. The term “diversity” is an indicator of the extent to which there is variability within a team, unit, or organization along a variety of dimensions. This can include differences with regard to gender, age, and race or ethnicity, as well as differences with regard to personality, experience, or job title. When it comes to organizations, diversity is really about how different or similar people are to each other.

Inclusion is about how people feel. People who feel included see themselves as valued, heard, and welcomed. People who feel excluded see themselves as outsiders without value or importance. In the case of organizations, inclusion reflects the extent to which people feel that their unique perspective is appreciated.

Equity is about fairness. To have equity means to acknowledge that people are starting from different places and may have different needs. For organizations, equity means working to ensure that everyone has access to the same opportunities.

The goal of DEI programs is to promote these ideals, yet some have come to understand DEI to mean precisely the opposite. Anti-DEI discourse suggests that these programs are about unfair and illegal decision-making that favors one group above another. In fact, any such effort would be entirely contradictory to the notions of diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Why should people and organizations care about DEI?

There are at least three reasons—realistic, economic, and moral—why such efforts are imperative. The first reason is based on data that convincingly demonstrate the reality of diversity in the American workforce; the reality is that our country is diverse, as are all organizational stakeholders.

The second reason is that differences can benefit organizations when people feel that their unique perspectives are valued and included. In fact, research suggests that the “business case” for diversity depends on the extent to which people feel included. Diversity can lead to increases in innovation, sales, and return on investment, but only when people feel included.

The third reason is based on principles of social responsibility. Equity is a core component of morality, or in other words, fairness is a central feature of ethical HR practice. Organizations can work toward their corporate social responsibility goals by promoting fairness.

Conclusion

So, where do we go from here? Once we acknowledge that the problem is not the terms themselves but rather how they have been construed, then we can start to target such misunderstandings as the issue. We can call it difference, belongingness, and fairness, or we can refer to the realistic, moral, and financial considerations of the 21st-century workforce. Whatever terms we use, we have to talk about DEI.