Over the past two decades, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) training has gained remarkable traction and continues. In today's society, leaders, founders, and executives are making it a top priority to foster equality within their organizations. Why? Aside from the obvious ethical impact, they've come to realize the multitude of benefits that a diverse work culture brings: enhanced decision-making, amplified collaboration, and heightened innovation.
While many forward-thinking companies have seamlessly integrated DEI training into their organizational fabric, some still face resistance and pushback from their teams. This resistance, unfortunately, creates a divide among employees, impeding individual career growth and hampering the overall progress of the company.
If your organization is experiencing resistance to DEI training, fear not. In this insightful guide, our team of DEI experts delves into the most common reasons employees resist DEI training and provides practical suggestions to help your team overcome them.
Why Are Employees Resisting Diversity and Inclusion Training?
Discovering the reasons behind employee resistance to DEI training is the pivotal first step for your team to foster a culture of understanding and inclusion. Below are a few of the most common reasons employees may be pushing back your DEI efforts.
Lack of Awareness
If employees are resisting DEI training, it may be because of a lack of understanding of what DEI training actually is and why it's critical in the workplace. If the impact of these efforts are not properly communicated, employees may feel that these training sessions are more of an inconvenience rather than something that is vitally essential to their work.
To address employee reservations stemming from a lack of understanding, it is crucial to incorporate explicit content on implicit biases and generalized stereotypes into your training curriculum. By providing your team with comprehensive education on the significance of diversity, equity, and inclusion, you empower them to not only lend support but also genuinely embrace the DEI initiatives put forth by leadership.
Perceived Threat to Status or Privilege
Resistance from individuals belonging to the majority group can arise due to concerns that DEI training and initiatives might undermine their current status or privileges. This resistance is particularly challenging to address because when employees perceive that company-wide DEI initiatives could impede their career progression or power, they are more likely to be vocal in their opposition and resist the proposed changes.
Fear of Change
The idea of change can be unsettling for some individuals, especially when it's in a workplace setting. DEI training often confronts difficult subjects and questions deep-rooted beliefs. Employees may resist these training courses out of fear of the unknown or what may become the new normal. After all, DEI training is designed to change the way individuals perceive others and to open the minds of employees to become more accepting, tolerant, and empathetic.
For those employees who prefer the status quo over adopting new organizational principles, it’s important to discuss the true value of what these courses provide. By demonstrating how DEI courses not only benefit minorities, but all individuals involved, people will be more willing to venture into the unknown and embrace new ways of thinking.
Resistance to Change in Workplace Behavior
Implementing DEI training is not a one-time event but rather an ongoing and dynamic process that requires dedication from every employee. Some individuals may perceive these efforts as disruptions to their accustomed work patterns or as challenges to their established ways of operating. Employees who resist change in the workplace may show reluctance in adopting new DEI practices and may become closed off when confronted with the need to challenge ingrained thoughts and beliefs, thus hindering collaboration and growth among their teammates.
Misperceptions of Diversity and Inclusion Training
When DEI training came into the picture, it was often viewed as obligatory surveys or training sessions that took place once a year. Put simply, many viewed these training sessions as just a checkbox exercise for senior management to say that they were doing their part in creating a diverse and inclusive work environment.
Today's DEI training courses are innovatively designed to spark real change both at an organizational and individual level. This continuous practice is not just a training course, it is a tool used to drive outcomes and instill deep-rooted change within organizations. In order for leadership to combat misconceptions of DEI training, it's essential that the goals and desired outcomes are clearly communicated from the very beginning. By having definitive objectives top of mind, employees will see the importance of DEI initiatives and be more motivated to implement these practices.
How to Overcome Resistance to DEI Training in the Workplace
Overcoming resistance to DEI training in the workplace requires a thoughtful approach. Here are five ways to address resistance and promote engagement.
Turn Your Senior Leadership Team Into DEI Advocates
When looking to gain DEI support across the organization, you must first set the tone at the top. When senior leaders are actively participating and endorsing DEI training, it sends a powerful message to all employees. This alignment across all senior executives also demonstrates the urgency and importance of your DEI initiatives, which will ultimately show how these principles are an integral part of your company’s mission and culture.
Clearly Communicate Your DEI Game Plan
To successfully implement a strategic DEI plan, effective communication plays a crucial role. By clearly conveying the benefits and objectives of the training sessions at individual, team, and organizational levels, you enable your employees to grasp the profound impact these courses can have. It is essential to emphasize that the advantages of DEI training extend beyond just career development. Encouragingly, it can also enrich individuals' personal lives by fostering improved relationships, enhancing communication skills, and nurturing superior interpersonal connections.
Conduct Continuous Training
DEI training should be a continuous priority for your organization. In order to maintain employee engagement and participation, make sure your DEI training is not only interesting, but engaging as well. By using real life scenarios, your employees will be better able to apply their learnings to everyday workplace challenges and gain a greater understanding of DEI training in general. Select a training course that is customizable to the unique needs of your team. Once the training has been completed, encourage team members to discuss their opinions and learnings from the course.
Ask For Feedback
A valuable approach to gauge the effectiveness of your DEI training courses is by actively seeking feedback from your employees. Establishing a safe and non-judgmental space where all team members feel comfortable expressing their thoughts and opinions about the training is paramount. Initiate an open dialogue by inviting your employees to share how the training sessions can be more impactful and how the lessons learned apply both within and beyond the workplace. By actively listening to your employees' feedback, you can continually refine and improve the program by emphasizing what is effective and discarding what is not.
Track Progress and Performance
Without the ability to measure progress, you will never be able to drive meaningful impact and create lasting change within your organization. The same holds true for your DEI initiatives. Your DEI training course should incorporate regular assessments that enable you to track the progress of your employees. These assessments provide valuable insights that allow you to customize future training and personalize the experience at an individual level. By leveraging this feedback, you can continuously refine and enhance your DEI program, ensuring its effectiveness and aligning with your organization's specific needs.
Overcoming DEI Resistance: Setting Your Team Up for Success
To address resistance to diversity and inclusion training, organizations should strive to foster a supportive and inclusive culture, clearly communicate the purpose and benefits of the training, provide opportunities for dialogue and engagement, and emphasize the positive impact that diversity and inclusion can have on both individual employees and the organization as a whole.
Ready to start your journey to a more inclusive work culture? Now is the perfect time to start. At RW3 CultureWizard, our team specializes in crafting customized training courses that create lasting change. We're proud to offer the largest library of specialized DEI training courses designed to provide your team with the practical skills they need to make a significant impact. Take the first step to a more inclusive work culture by contacting one of our diversity and inclusion experts today.
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