Facebook recently published its 2020 Diversity metrics report. Incidentally, FB has been publishing its report since 2014 – a time when companies firmly believed that diversity metrics are purely for board rooms discussion only. The journey from just board room data to annual diversity reports is certainly a great leap, but surprisingly it didn’t take a long time for organizations.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) goals and objectives are now leadership commitments. Organizations have begun to invest heavily in DEI goals. These include hiring for diversity positions, boot camp sessions, training programs, flexible work options, childcare support, extended medical care, and mental health support care benefits. The leadership team understands that DEI is no longer just a mere number representation, but a strong culture case.

McKinsey’s report states that about $8 billion a year is spent on diversity training in the United States alone. The percent of diversity agenda annual spending is growing at a faster pace. For example, in recent years, companies have been keen on hiring diverse talent, which increases the overall representation, but there is an equal attrition rate that questions the DEI policies.

To make real progress on DEI, analyzing the data metrics is critical.

Here are some key outcomes:

Diversity dimensions’ metrics: The organization will be able to monitor and understand the intersectional diversity of its employees.

Representation metrics: In most organizations, the diverse representation gets skewed above the managerial level.

Talent life cycle metrics: These reveal the entire talent life cycle in an organization– from hiring, promotion, to retention rates.

Employee benefit policies metrics: These are used for analyzing employees utilizing flexible work arrangements and various benefits, and performance ratings.

Inclusion commitment metrics: The accountability for diversity and inclusion should be from the CEO and the board of directors, cascading to the managerial level through scorecards/KRAs.

A well-structured diversity and inclusion metrics help prioritize initiatives, identify risk areas, assign accountability with responsibility and the overall structure. Organizations should regularly review their diversity and inclusion metrics to strategize the changes needed, as and when their diversity and inclusion initiatives and programs mature.