9
O P I N I O N
Creating a DEI task force
Achieve greater business success and improve employee work satisfaction by actively working toward a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive company.
W e recently formed the D.H. Charles Engineering Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Task Force. We didn’t have to do it; employees weren’t clamoring for it, nor were there any issues or events that forced our hand. At DHC, we continually strive to better our workplace environment, so, naturally, we wanted to form this group to improve as individuals and as a company and to make the DHC work experience even better for our employees. We want to bring awareness to the importance of DEI in the workplace and integrate best practices for fostering a diverse and inclusive workforce into our culture. We are an approximately 30-person structural engineering firm that provides construction engineering services.
Andrew Schwarz PE, SE, LEED AP
The benefits of diversity in companies are well documented. In general, a more diverse workplace brings different perspectives to the table, which invariably increases performance. Having a diverse workforce brings a variety of experiences and talents to the table that can lead to more creativity and better results. When employees identify better with others, their communication improves, leading to more productivity. They usually can then more easily consider varied viewpoints and grow more sophisticated ways of getting the job done. From a profitability standpoint, companies with a more diverse workforce achieve a 15 percent to 35 percent
performance advantage (above the national median), over those companies without, per a McKinsey study titled “Why Diversity Matters.” For us, forming the committee was only the first step. After our initial meeting, we did some brainstorming and research to decide what we think needs to be done. We surveyed the company workforce and presented a plan to the company ownership/ leadership, which was approved wholeheartedly. Our plan is divided into short-term and long-term goals across the following categories: Education
See ANDREW SCHWARZ, page 10
THE ZWEIG LETTER APRIL 4, 2022, ISSUE 1435
Made with FlippingBook Annual report