On the outside, Brian McGrath appears to be a typical lawyer. Male, white, suit, briefcase. The thing is, not everything about a person is visible. And when it comes to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), assumptions can be damaging. 

McGrath and four other panelists spoke about DEI and workplace belonging at From Day One’s Manhattan conference in a session moderated by Kadia Tubman, managing editor for DEI at Insider. 

Until you get to know him, you wouldn’t realize that McGrath is in an interracial gay marriage. Like many in underrepresented groups, he’s been in work places where he hasn’t felt like he could truly be himself. Which is why he was so passionate about building a diverse firm of 120 lawyers where he’s a partner at Hinshaw & Culbertson, but also creating an environment where they feel like they belong.

When he goes to work, he feels free to be who he is, and so do others. It’s important to work on DEI initiatives at your organization, but it’s another thing entirely for employees to feel they truly belong. How can leaders bridge that gap?

“We can't let the pace and press of business get in the way of something as important as DEI, because at the end of the day, if you fail in DEI, you're going to be less successful in the business,” McGrath said.

That’s not just talk: there are actual numbers behind McGrath’s point. This data is what DEI departments must share with the rest of the company. “We have almost zero attrition, which in a law firm world in the last four years is almost unheard of,” McGrath said. “We have lost less than a handful of attorneys in four years, because we are diverse, because we have bought into belonging.”

McGrath continues, “If you get to know your colleagues, you can laugh with your colleagues, you can bring your whole selves to the office, and together, you spot issues and develop better work products.”

Leveling the Playing Field

One important aspect of DEI is giving each employee what they need to succeed. And if they feel valued and successful in the workplace, there will be a sense of belonging. 

Panelist Corey Smith, head of diversity & inclusion at LVMH, says that one person may need Excel training, but others may need help with pivot tables. But equity is even more than that.

“Getting someone communication skills training, that's equity, but you know what,” Smith said. “So are gender neutral bathrooms, and lactation rooms. All of those things create, ultimately, an environment that is belonging, because I know that my individual needs are going to be taken care of when I show up to work.”

At a quarterly meeting with regional presidents, Smith put up a slide of two images of their brand ambassador, rapper Jay Z. On one side was young Jay Z looking clean cut, and on the other side was a more recent photo with grown out hair in freeform dreadlocks. 

“I said, which one of these two images would you rather do business with?” he said. “I reminded them that at the same time, we have employees with dreads that feel as if they can't show up to work because of their hair.”

Point is, you can’t judge a book by its cover, otherwise you can’t create a sense of belonging in the workplace. He added: “I can show up, and I can contribute and I can have value. And I can make this organization more profitable, if you will allow me to be me.”

Progress Over Perfection

It’s important to keep things in perspective. DEI is still in its beginning stages, so many are still figuring out how to accomplish it.

“We’re in some new space here. And we have to be open to where we’re going in order for us to get different results,” said panelist Gemma Toner, CEO and founder of TONE Networks.

The important thing is to get to a place where people feel comfortable taking risks. “When it comes to being your authentic self, it does take courage,” Toner said. Change must start at the top. Company leaders need to be willing to make changes, which can be hard.

“It is easier to not take risks. It's easier to do the same program. It's easier to do the same thing year after year. And, you know, logically if you’re not where you want to be, then you would stop doing it, but it's very hard to make that change.” Leaders need to be willing to take risks and work on new initiatives to get to a different place.

Share the Data

Despite the importance of DEI in the workplace, it has to make business sense as well. Collecting the data and sharing it with leadership is imperative for showing them that DEI has value in every way.

Panelist Ezinne Okoro, global chief inclusion and diversity officer at Wunderman Thompson, said we must understand the data points and how to best utilize them to build a strategy that will lead to better DEIB outcomes.

“A CFO can’t come to a meeting without the numbers that show how the business is doing,” she said. DEI must be woven into the fabric of the business, because it’s best for the employees. 

If data isn’t shared, and workplace belonging isn’t integrated, you run the risk of losing people. As Okoro says, people are your biggest asset. Retention is the biggest piece of that. Talking to your people is essential, but the environment of the conversation is also important. “You have to have belonging to allow for that type of conversation where someone can be vulnerable.” 

Panelist Natoya Brown, senior vice president of people experience at Universal Music Group, agreed. Honesty, authenticity, and intentionality are paramount, she says. 

“Belonging is an output of all of the investment, and all of the considerations that we take about each individual employee and ultimately, how they work together as a team,” said Brown. 

Carrie Snider is a Phoenix, Ariz.-based journalist and marketing copywriter.