Inclusion Allies Coaliton’s (IAC) Reaction to SHRM’s Decision to Revert to I&D

Last week, SHRM, the Society for Human Resource Management, announced a shift in its focus from Inclusion, Equity, and Diversity to just Inclusion and Diversity, or “I&D” with the intent to embed the activities and values of equity under the umbrella of equity. In their decision, SHRM states “While we shift to I&D, our commitment to advancing equity remains steadfast.” They state that by “emphasizing inclusion first,” their goal is to “address the current shortcomings of DEI programs, which have led to societal backlash and increasing polarization.”

For the  Inclusion Allies Coalition, a non-profit 501C-3 for organizations and practitioners committed to education and advocacy of DEI, this decision is materially important to our members and our mission. It would be difficult to find a group of professionals who are more keenly aware of the definitions of “diversity and inclusion” or “equity,” or “belonging”, or how their meaning has been mischaracterized  to sow doubt about the importance and efficacy of DEI in practice or policy . In this environment, shifting language away from politicized terms is a pragmatic solution to the current challenge, as long as the actual work is still being done.

For example, many practitioners have made the decision to rebrand their “equity” work under the name of “culture development,” “Inclusive Leadership,” “Belonging,” or other titles, because that’s what the systems they are working with can bear right now.  There are also many organizations who use terms like DIB (Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging) or other monikers, but still do equity work.

Though SHRM does not explicitly state it, we hope that the decision to “emphasize inclusion first” was motivated by a desire to circumvent this “cancel DEI” dynamic and not because “equity” is a less important or valuable concept or practice – it is not.

Equity is the foundation on which many diversity, inclusion, and belonging initiatives stand. From our perspective, it focuses on ensuring fairness and creating equal opportunities for all individuals, regardless of their background or identity. It involves identifying and addressing systemic barriers that may prevent certain groups from fully participating or accessing resources It also compensates for the inequities caused by the assumption that a merit-based performance management system is, by itself, devoid of bias.      

To paraphrase our colleagues at Hacking HR, “While other HR groups remove equity from what matters, we plan on doubling down on it.”

In its communication announcing the shift, SHRM also references DEI’s “current shortcomings” without providing context or an explanation of those shortcomings. Given the attacks on the term and the baseless claims that DEI  is an entitlement meant to advantage historically marginalized groups at the expense of straight, cis, white people, or naming it as the culprit of systemic fails such as Boeing’s culture and quality challenges, this sort of vague reference is unhelpful. It accidentally contributes to the dog-pile behavior many DEI organizations and practitioners are tirelessly working to circumvent, often at significant energetic and financial expense.

We are not all the same, nor do we each have equal access to the power and advantages that some of us inherited. Focusing on inclusion alone won’t address or shift the status quo. Only equity – and a courageous heart – will do that.

The Inclusion Allies Coalition is well-aware of the impact of the anti-DEI attacks on DEI professionals and the work we do, and that some reframing is necessary as we look to the future. We have launched a social media campaign, Diversity Matters. Equity Matters. Inclusion Matters with weekly posts on the benefits of D, E and I and are putting together a Multicultural, Multigenerational Working Group on Reframing DEI which will look deeply into DEI Stakeholders as well as the Public Perception of D, E and I, and come forward with a plan of action for moving forward.

Until then, we encourage everyone to do whatever is necessary to pursue DI and E under whatever brand or reframing is necessary.