Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) are the foundation of D&I engagement for many companies and with good reason: they build community, broadly distribute inclusion learning, and lift up the voices of historically marginalized people. For their many contributions, we have designed our ERG program to drive meaningful distribution back to ERG leaders in the form of career and leadership skill building.
I’ve always felt that program design has a major part to play in this – from guidance on building an organization around a sound mission and business plan, to empowering groups to own their marketing, budget, and feedback loop – being an ERG leader in a program with structure can create the right atmosphere to practice incremental business ownership in a low-risk environment. In a recent meeting with ERG leaders, I asked how they approached incorporating their work in the ERGs with their development. I mistakenly expecting they would point to one or two of the very intentional components listed above. Instead, as one leader summarized, “I consider this work more of an enrichment experience, rather than development.”
He, and others, went on to detail many of the same lessons I took away from my experience as an ERG leader. How meeting regularly with other leaders not only creates a forum to share practices but gives people an opportunity to just know someone they wouldn’t otherwise know, in a deeply multi-dimensional way. How creating and communicating their mission with members helps leaders develop greater compassion for others in their community across the spectrum of their perspectives, needs, and experiences. How gathering and inspiring volunteers’ hones people leadership and team-building skills that you can’t truly practice until you start doing it.
I really appreciate how “enrichment” separates out some of the hard-skills, business-minded development from what ERGs do. While these opportunities abound, this concept focuses on growth in a way that connects more authentically to the passion that drives many ERG leaders to join in the first place. It inspired me to look back on a list of reflected lessons learned from my time as an ERG leader that I’ll begin to share in segments, here.
For any current (or former) ERG or Affinity group leaders, members, or sponsors: What lessons have you learned from your time with these groups? How has it enriched your personal experience?