Using Lean to advance DEIA

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Kelly Thomas
Commercial Operations Leader & Women’s Network CoChair
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Boosting Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Accessibility (DEIA) with Lean Practices: A Roadmap

An Introduction to Lean Practices in DEIA

Hi there! I am Kelly Thomas, leading the commercial operations for Ge Digital. My principal role also includes co-chairing a women's network for our business. Today, I want to discuss how lean practices can bridge the gap between intention and impact in DEIA, and impact your organization positively. Lean, in alignment with DEIA, focuses on continuous improvements aiming at results.

Recognizing the DEIA Struggle in Business

Businesses have started acknowledging the importance of DEIA, demonstrating a 71% increase in the inclusion of the words 'diversity' and 'inclusion' in job titles since 2017. Reportedly, 95% of business leaders and 75% of employees applaud attributes of DEIA in their workplaces.

However, a potential gap arises as only 69% of these leaders and just 49% of the employees believe that their companies have taken initiatives beyond commitment. At times, an over-emphasis on policy, rather than supportive programming for DEIA, can lead to negligible or backfired impacts.

The most successful DEIA companies exhibit distinct attributes:

  • Leadership Diversity: Diverse leadership drives decision-making and holds accountability for progress.
  • Integration: DEIA is incorporated across all organization sectors, from talent acquisition to training and documentation.
  • Listening: Regularly engaging members through surveys and round tables to gain qualitative data.
  • Measurement: Ongoing assessment of what's working and what's not, including diversity reports and measuring program effectiveness.

Lean Practices in DEIA

Lean practices can help your organization become more disciplined, transparent, and measurable in its DEIA approach. This potential for impact inspires a focus on an operational system prioritizing people.

The four basic principles of Lean include:

  1. Delivering customer value.
  2. Empowering and respecting people throughout the process.
  3. Eliminating waste for efficiency.
  4. Steady improvement founded on data.

Lean Tools For DEIA: Daily Management And Standard Work

Among the several tools in the Lean toolkit, we find Daily Management and Standard Work notably effective.

Daily Management includes a regular cadence, visible critical metrics and action plans, and team-based techniques. In the DEIA context, organizations can benefit from an established operating rhythm to review metrics, a visible action plan, and routinely reviewing progress.

Standard Work, on the other hand, referred to as the best documented way of achieving a result, offers a start point, current state understanding, and improvement potential. It aids deeper understanding and maintenance of process expectations.

Efficacy of Lean Practices

In an organization, the implementation of Lean practices in DEIA can significantly lower attrition rates, having a positive business impact. It simultaneously enhances the overall sense of belonging and engagement.

Lean practices provide a structured approach to improve DEIA efforts effectively, integrating discipline, transparency, and measurement in the workplace. For more information on the practical application of Lean in DEIA contexts, feel free to reach out. Improve your DEIA efforts with Lean now!


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