How to choose ethical, competent and credible practitioners to work with your organisation.
If you are looking for a diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) practitioner to help your organization become more inclusive and equitable, you might be overwhelmed by the number of options available. How do you know which one is the best fit for your needs and goals? How do you evaluate their expertise and ethics? How do you avoid wasting time and money on ineffective or harmful interventions?
In this blog post, we will share some insights from our experience as practitioners working with corporate organisations. We will also give you some tips on how to find and select practitioners who can deliver high-quality and impactful services for your organization.
Why Standards Matter in the DEI Industry
The DEI industry is relatively new and unregulated, which means that anyone can call themselves a DEI practitioner without any formal qualifications, credentials, or standards. This poses a risk for organizations that want to hire a DEI practitioner, as they might end up with someone who is inexperienced, incompetent, unethical, or even harmful.
Some of the common problems that I have seen or heard of in the DEI industry are:
- Practitioners who use outdated, inaccurate, or biased information and frameworks to inform their work
- Practitioners who impose their own agenda, ideology, or values on their clients without considering their context, needs, or goals
- Practitioners who use fear, guilt, shame, or blame to manipulate or coerce their clients into adopting certain behaviors or beliefs
- Practitioners who create a dependency or a cult-like relationship with their clients, rather than empowering them to become self-sufficient and autonomous
- Practitioners who exploit their clients' vulnerabilities or ignorance for their own financial gain or personal gratification
- Practitioners who cause harm or trauma to their clients or their stakeholders through insensitive, inappropriate, or unethical interventions
These problems not only damage the reputation and credibility of the DEI industry, but also undermine the trust and confidence of the organizations and individuals who seek its services. They also prevent the achievement of the ultimate goal of DEI work: to create more inclusive and equitable workplaces and societies for everyone.
How to Find and Select a DEI Practitioner for Your Organization
So how can you avoid these pitfalls and find a DEI practitioner who can help you achieve your DEI goals in an effective and ethical way? Here are some steps that I recommend:
1. Define your DEI goals and needs. Before you start looking for a DEI practitioner, you need to have a clear idea of what you want to achieve with their help. What are the specific challenges or opportunities that you want to address? What are the desired outcomes or impacts that you want to see? What are the resources and constraints that you have? Having a clear vision and scope for your DEI work will help you narrow down your options and communicate your expectations to potential practitioners.
2. Do your research. Once you have defined your goals and needs, you can start looking for potential practitioners who match them. You can use various sources of information, such as online directories, websites, social media platforms, podcasts, blogs, articles, books, referrals, testimonials, reviews, etc. to find out more about their background, experience, expertise, approach, values, ethics, etc. You can also ask them for samples of their work, such as reports, presentations, case studies, testimonials, etc. to see how they deliver their services and what results they have achieved.
3. Evaluate their fit. After you have done your research, you can compare and contrast the different practitioners that you have found and see how well they fit your goals and needs. You can use some criteria such as:
- Relevance: How relevant is their expertise and experience to your specific context and challenges?
- Credibility: How credible are their qualifications and credentials? Do they have any certifications or accreditations from reputable organizations or institutions?
- Effectiveness: How effective are their methods and tools? Do they use evidence-based practices and frameworks? Do they measure and report on their outcomes and impacts?
- Ethics: How ethical are their values and principles? Do they adhere to any professional codes of conduct or standards of practice? Do they respect your autonomy and agency?
- Rapport: How well do they communicate and interact with you? Do they listen to your needs and expectations? Do they tailor their services to your preferences and goals? Do they establish trust and rapport with you?
Based on these criteria, you can rank the practitioners according to their fit and select the ones that meet your requirements.
4. Interview them. The final step is to interview the practitioners that you have selected and ask them more detailed questions about their work. You can use this opportunity to clarify any doubts or concerns that you might have about their services. You can also ask them for references from previous clients that you can contact to get feedback on their performance and satisfaction. You can also negotiate the terms and conditions of their contract, such as the scope, duration, fees, deliverables, expectations, etc. and make sure that they are clear and fair for both parties.
By following these steps, you can find and select a DEI practitioner who can help you achieve your DEI goals in an effective and ethical way.
If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to contact us and schedule a credibility briefing meeting.
