September 2022 Summaries

Employee experience (EX) refers to the ways in which an employee's day-to-day experiences are shaped by their interactions with a business, its workplace culture, and company goals and priorities. EX is often overlooked but can have a significant impact on retention, engagement, and overall productivity. To measure EX, businesses can create intentional programs that identify issues, show empathy to employee pain points, collect feedback, study and make changes based on that feedback, and drive feedback loops to improve the experience. Effective EX strategies can lead to improved employee engagement and retention, stronger bottom lines, and a positive brand image. Businesses can maximize the impact of their EX program by understanding what they want to learn, creating targeted surveys with specific metrics such as eNPS, following best practices for survey creation and implementation, using dedicated EX software, and prioritizing employee experience. By doing so, businesses can create a cohesive picture of the employee journey and continually refine and explore with more feedback collection.

Discover how to upgrade your nonprofit organization’s virtual volunteer program with 4 tips to improve volunteer onboarding and management. Volunteering efforts are increasingly popular in the digital age, with virtual volunteering and remote volunteer management becoming more common. To effectively manage virtual volunteer opportunities, nonprofits need to perform acceptable background checks and interviews, provide plenty of interesting and accessible opportunities, leverage the right tools to streamline management, and ask for feedback from their volunteers. By following these best practices, nonprofits can improve volunteer retention, engagement, and satisfaction, ultimately achieving their goals with the help of dedicated volunteers.

There are numerous obstacles preventing justice-involved individuals from accessing gainful employment, including structural inequalities, technology and skill gaps, and the lack of social capital, which is a network of personal and professional relationships that can facilitate career growth and opportunity. The disparate impact on justice-involved people who have not been provided with access to these networks is a significant issue, as it excludes individuals from upward mobility and perpetuates economic exclusion. To support this population, organizations like Climb Hire are working to develop the networking and relationship-building skills needed for a career, and employers must take responsibility to open their candidate pools to justice-involved individuals, offering various avenues into their organizations, such as internships or apprenticeship programs. By doing so, they can harness untapped talent and bolster inclusion, creating a fairer future of work that values diversity and promotes economic mobility for all.

Glassdoor's Manager of Recruiting Operations, Emily Sung, shares that her team is optimizing the hiring process and working more efficiently by partnering with Checkr to hire more fairly and quickly. The company has evolved from a one-sided reviews platform to a two-way conversation space where employees can share their experiences and connect with peers, managers, or leadership. Glassdoor's hiring philosophy is based on growing conservatively and pivoting as necessary, while prioritizing fairness and equity in the hiring process. They use Checkr's pre-hire assessment tools and fully-integrated background check process to reduce time-to-hire and increase the chances of hiring underrepresented groups. By integrating Checkr within their Greenhouse ATS, Glassdoor can send out background checks simultaneously with offer letters, maximizing efficiency and minimizing candidate hoops to jump through.

Checkr has appointed Lindsey Scrase as its new Chief Revenue Officer, bringing nearly 20 years of leadership experience to the role. Scrase will lead Checkr's go-to-market strategy and drive customer acquisition and growth. With a background in leading Google Cloud's high-growth product-led growth organization, Scrase is well-equipped to scale Checkr's business. She joins Checkr with a strong track record of scaling technology businesses and a passion for empowering women and underrepresented groups in technology. As CRO, Scrase will help Checkr succeed during its period of rapid growth and innovation, building on the company's mission of creating a fairer future.

Three key takeaways from recent data on how digital workplaces can enhance Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) and support employee wellbeing are that remote and hybrid work models have improved the day-to-day for historically underrepresented groups such as people of color, women, and individuals with disabilities. These groups have reported benefits including reduced stress, increased autonomy, and a sense of belonging, which can foster authentic relationships and promote wellbeing. Additionally, flexible work arrangements can mitigate microaggressions and code-switching, allowing employees to express themselves without feeling the need to conform to a dominant culture, leading to improved mental and physical health outcomes.

### Understanding the Impact of Digital Workplace on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion` The shift to digital workplace models has raised concerns about how remote and hybrid work may negatively impact diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. Employers must be aware of three key issues: who can work from home, proximity bias in hybrid workplaces, and technology disparities that can exacerbate inequities. Higher-wage workers are more likely to have the ability to work from home, while lower-wage workers face barriers due to job requirements. Proximity bias can also occur when managers favor in-office employees, leading to unequal opportunities for promotions and special projects. Furthermore, technology disparities, such as limited broadband access, can further exclude certain groups from remote work opportunities. To mitigate these risks, employers must track data on promotion and salary growth, develop empathy and flexibility, and create sections geared towards remote and hybrid teams. By addressing these issues, companies can ensure that their DEI policies sustain through remote and hybrid work models.

Dr. Alexandra Samuel, a technology researcher and expert on remote and hybrid work, discusses the impact of these work arrangements on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). She notes that while some people may thrive in remote or hybrid environments, others are left behind due to lack of access to remote-friendly jobs, which tend to favor white, affluent, and highly educated individuals. Samuel argues that hybrid inclusion is critical for creating pathways of opportunity for marginalized groups, but warns that employers need to be prepared to invest time and effort into developing strategies for fair opportunities in a hybrid world. She emphasizes that the future of work and hybrid equity remains uncertain and will likely take years to develop, requiring organizations to adopt a learning approach and prioritize incremental progress over quick fixes.