ERG’s Use ‘Black History Month’ To Celebrate Their Work


03/04/2019

When companies join ERGs, they can deliver better growth by tapping into underused talents.


Dailycsr.com – 04 March 2019 – The best performance of the employee “resource groups” comes about when they reflect the “strengths and opportunities” found at the company. The “African-American Employee Network”, in short the AAEN, is led by Kimberly Clark’s employees, whereby it used the “Black History Month” this year for celebrating the employees leading as “mentors, innovators and thought leaders” besides recruiting more leader from across the company profile.
 
Like AAEN, “Employee Resource Groups”, in short ERGs, “voluntary organizations”, nurtures “career development” amid “diverse backgrounds” and perspectives and includes “consumer insights” to serve as a facilitating platform to promote “advance talent and business goals”. Elaina Ford is a “Global Marketing Capabilities Leader” who is also an ex-president at AAEN Roswell who currently an “AAEN Strategic Advisor”. In Ford’s words:
“It’s powerful for senior leaders, and the company at large, to see thoughtful, strategic programs and communications executed by volunteer ERG member. It shows a real intention to impact change”.
 
ERGs and companies come together in partnerships ensuing communication as well as delivering long-term results in business which includes “diversity, inclusion and talent retention”. In fact, at Kimberly-Clark, ERGs become instrumental in providing “consumer insights, cultural understanding and community connections”.
 
In an attempt to understand the scenario and to “create opportunities” to increase diversity in upper management levels, from years ago, AAEN had collaborated with the team if “Global Diversity & Inclusion”. Thanks to this joint venture, the solutions began to accelerate while new programs emerged addressing “career development, recruitment and retention”.
 
Furthermore, the “Kimberly-Clark Corporation” informed that:
“AAEN and the company launched the Leadership & Development Symposium in 2016 in response to the study that paired mid-level professionals with professional development, personal coaching, and importantly, candid conversations with senior leaders, including the current CEO”.
 
The concept of accountability circles were brought, wherein five to six people, coming from the “same career level”, came together for “career mentoring and goal setting” for peers, as an attempt to invoke “a sense of community amongst the AAEN group”. Moreover, in the past year, the symposium saw a growth as it coalesced into the “first ever Multi-Cultural Leadership & Development Symposium” of Kimberly-Clark, as it included other ERGs like “the Latin American Network for Diversity and Focus Asia”.
 
The “Kimberly-Clark Professional Business Transformation Leader and the 2018 Multi-Cultural Leadership & Development Symposium Chair”, Traneil Clark Morgan said:
“ERGs are a place to showcase your talents. If we can tap into the underutilized talents in the organization, not only will we grow personally and professionally, but we will unleash creativity, connections and new solutions that only a diverse workforce can provide”.
 
 
 
 
References:
3blmedia.com