The Next Frontier of Diversity Metrics: Life Cycle Analysis

Employers today are more likely to publicly release human capital data, especially financial services companies that will need to comply, once in final form, with Securities and Exchange Commission’s
rulemaking²  and employers voluntarily sharing Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) reports. ESG reports generally include the participation rate of women and people of color in their workforce, on
the Board, in entry level jobs, or other relevant lenses. Usually, participation rates are reported enterprise wide, globally for gender and domestically for race/ethnicity, and often report progress over time. Employer’s commitments to human capital disclosures are not synonymous with enhancing or directing diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) efforts to eliminate employment barriers. Rather, employers should leverage diagnostic methods to develop insights into root cause concerns within the workforce and employment phases.

Diagnostic analytics provide a deeper level of understanding why underrepresentation may be occurring, or why it is enduring. This knowledge can inform employers with identifying and developing programmatic interventions to prevent the perpetuation of underrepresentation in the workforce and, thus, effectively enhancing DEIA efforts.