Why Employee Resource Groups? Join Us and See Why.
Holistic has been the beneficiary of getting an up-close and personal look at many organizations over the past four years. We worked with all kinds of companies, nonprofits, organizations, corporations, start-ups, and over time, we’ve had the benefit of gathering insight from each of their experiences. So when we decided to set out to create a series of what we’ve learned types of activities, we are looking for a few topics where the breadth and depth of our viewpoints would be valuable. None were perhaps as compelling as the one that we chose, employee resource groups.
Employee resource groups started many many years ago in the 1960s primarily in an effort to voice the experiences of black employees around the nation. Many of the early employee resource groups were affinity groups and they were focused on increasing opportunities for particular populations
In the past five years, with the rise of diversity, equity, and inclusion-focused behavior and efforts, both at work in society, employee resource groups have become a particularly prevalent form of human interaction at many companies. They serve an essential purpose–they level the playing field, they create opportunity, they allow for the sharing and understanding of culture, they make our teams more diverse and inclusive, nail our companies better look out for the interest of those among us who share our backgrounds, our beliefs, our world views, our lived experiences.
Holistic has learned a lot about employee resource groups by watching and helping other organizations launch them. We’ve seen mistakes made, we’ve seen the industry in the market sort itself out, we’ve seen new questions emerge that weren’t being asked a few years ago, and we’ve seen some odd questions go away. Lisa Alvarado, our Managing Director, and I have put together eight lessons that we think are most relevant for those who are interested in employee resource groups. The workshop itself will be part educational, part collective discussion, part action-oriented training, and part open Q&A. Everyone and we mean EVERYONE is invited to join, whether or not you were a part of an ERG yourself, you are welcome. You can sign up here to participate. Feel free to send us your questions in advance, or just join us the day of and see what’s what.
We’re excited for the opportunity to share some of our findings with you. We’re looking forward to working with you in the future to make your companies, and our world a more vibrant and exciting place, for everyone.