With the complexity of issues facing both DEI and Sustainability, would it not make common sense for more collaboration, as both have long-term goals to achieve results?
The past few months I’ve had clients asking about the viability of moving their Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) function under Sustainability. While these are conversations, it’s a perceptible shift, significant enough to spark my curiosity.
I spoke with the heads of DEI and Corporate Sustainability to gain their perspective.
Diversity experts recognize how diversity should play a significant role in sustainability, leveraging a diverse community to problem solve, as one element. While there’s some overlap, the complexity and challenges are too big to easily combine functions.
I found that for Corporate Sustainability professionals, sustainability is both environmental and people; aligning Sustainability with Organizational Purpose is increasingly overseen by Boards. Some firms now firmly tether compensation to sustainability goals, a noticeable shift: Unilever, Apple and Danone all link compensation to sustainability.
The same is increasingly true for DEI.
According to the WSJ:
“More companies are putting money behind those pledges by tying executive compensation to specific [Diversity] goals. Starbucks Corp. said it would give top executives more shares if the coffee chain’s managerial ranks grow more diverse over three years. McDonald’s Corp. in February gave executives annual incentives to increase the share of women and racial minorities in leadership roles by 2025. In March, Nike Inc. said it would — for the first time — tie some executive pay to five-year goals for improving racial and gender diversity in its workforce and leadership positions.”
With the complexity of issues facing both DEI and Sustainability, would it not make common sense for more collaboration, as both have long-term goals to achieve results?
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