Training is a necessary component to any change initiative. And the topic of DEIB makes training that much more crucial. I believe training in this space is about creating “ah ha” moments rather than telling people what they have done wrong. Think about it…who wants to be reminded of all their faults and poor behavior. Ultimately we need people to WANT to learn and to change and to grow and to EVOLVE.

Some key points for your training to be successful are:

•Employees need to learn about each other, connect and engage.

•Focus training on positive actions employees can take. 

• Discuss how can employees positively affect an outcome.

•Workplace training on rules, regulation and what behaviors are prohibited should be a separate session.

•Think about pre and post-work.  Level-set definitions and base information so that the classroom gets used for the important stuff like dialogue and discussion!

•Importance vs. time devoted. Too often I hear companies saying, “We can only devote one or two hours to this session.” Well, if DEIB is as important as you say it is, doesn’t it deserve an appropriate amount of time to train??!!

Multiple sessions vs one long one. This helps work around the belief that there isn’t enough time. It also allows people to ruminate and consider what they learn, put it into action and then return for the next training session.

There is lots of discussion on whether or not training should be voluntary. Some points I think you should consider are:

•Employees should believe they are opting in.

•Deliver a clear and consistent communication plan that shares importance, expected outcomes and opportunity to be involved.

•Remind employees it is not voluntary to be inclusive at work.

•Consider what your competition doing?  And then ask, “Does it matter?”

•Training is centered around white people.  Ask your what marginalized employees need. This is overlooked almost 100% of the time but is a very valuable perspective.

Let me know what other strategies have worked for DEIB training.