New research from the Center for Talent Innovation (CTI) in the US has demonstrated that creating a sense of belonging in the workplace is “a must” if companies want to recover from the current crisis. However, according to the latest CTI report, The Power of Belonging: What It Is and Why It Matters in Today’s Workplace, organisations need to work harder to create a sense ‘belonging’ for all groups – particularly minority women, and also LGBT and veteran employees.
According to CTI’s report, White men score higher than female employees and employees of other races or ethnicities when it comes to feeling that they belong in their workplace. Among those groups, Black and Asian women score the lowest, reveals the report. That means firms face a huge risk of losing all-important diverse talent.
In fact, a greater sense of belonging not only generates better engagement levels, but also increased loyalty and retention rates, confirms CTI’s report. Professionals who rate “belonging” higher in their workplace than those that don’t are far more to say they are very engaged at work (97% versus 54%). They are also very loyal to their organisation (93% versus 35%), and intend to stay at least two years (88% versus 61%). They are also more likely to recommend their company as a good place to work (71% versus 17%). A lack of belonging, on the other hand, is associated with negative outcomes. Those with lower belonging scores were over four times as likely to say they felt “stalled” in their careers compared to those that do sense a strong sense of workplace belonging (47% versus 11%).
VITAL FOR RECOVERY
Creating a sense of belonging is now increasingly vital if companies want to recover from the current crisis, confirm the report’s researchers. “To recover from our current global crises, companies need employees who are engaged, loyal, and proud to work for their companies,” stated Julia Taylor Kennedy, CTI Executive Vice President and Co-Lead Researcher on the report. “That’s what you get when employees feel they belong. Inaction on systemic racism and the disproportionate impacts of COVID will damage belonging at companies, when it’s needed most.”
A follow-up survey revealed stark differences of the COVID-19 crisis across racial groups in the trauma employees of colour are bringing into the workplace, confirmed CTI. Black professionals were more than five times as likely to have lost a family member as a result of COVID-19 as their White colleagues (11% versus 2%), and Latinx employees were four times as likely as their White colleagues to have lost a family member as a result of COVID (8% versus 2%). Asians in our sample were twice as likely as their White colleagues to have lost a family member to COVID (4% versus 2%). In addition, more than one in five Asian women (21%) have changed their behaviour outside of work to avoid racial harassment.
DISMANTLING BIAS
“There’s potential for real, systemic change right now, as the systems and structures that promote inequity get torn down and rebuilt,” according to Pooja Jain-Link, CTI’s Executive Vice President and Co-lead Researcher. “Belonging is crucial to the creation and forming of new systems. We need to feel like we belong to each other and belong to this new world.”
Adding to her comments, Lanaya Irvin, President of CTI stated: “Companies are being called upon to dismantle bias within their organisations, and that means they need to look inward at their corporate cultures to understand what makes it so hard for certain groups to advance. Belonging will become increasingly relevant in the aftermath of global pandemic, economic disruption and social unrest. This report gives corporate leaders a path forward toward creating inclusive cultures where all employees feel seen and heard and respected in their authentic identities and across lines of difference.”
The CTI survey of 3,711 college-educated professionals in February included 24 questions to calculate a ‘belonging score’ ranging from 0 to 10 across a broad range of demographics including gender, race/ethnicity, generation, LGBTQ identity, and status as a parent, veteran, or immigrant. Belonging was defined as being 1) seen for your unique contributions; 2) connected to your coworkers; 3) supported in your daily work and career development; and 4) proud of your organisation’s values and purpose. The report offers data-backed solutions for what organisations, leaders, managers, and colleagues can do to promote a workplace culture of belonging for all.
Click here for more information on CTI and the report.
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