Workplace culture has evolved from secure premises, well-decorated offices, breakout rooms, and basic codes of conduct to something bigger. Workplace culture goes beyond policies and perks. Employees want to be valued for more than their skills and contribution to the company; they want to be seen, acknowledged, supported, and valued.
With diverse teams and geographies in the workplace, employees need to have a safe space that meets their needs. Here’s where Employment Resource Groups (ERGS) can help. ERGs help people connect with others who share similar backgrounds, preferences, interests, or cultures where they can share their views, and contribute more to the overall workplace culture and growth.
At Great Place to Work®, we help companies get the pulse of employees through surveys and provide culture consulting to pave the way forward for ERGs. This article defines what ERGs are, their impact on workplace culture, and best practices for starting ERGs.
What Do Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) Mean?
Employee Resource Groups are groups that employees form based on shared interests, needs, traits, preferences, or other common factors. These groups can be based on gender identity, ethnicity, common interests, life stages, shared experiences, or any common factor that brings a group together.
The goal of forming an Employee Resource Group is to:
- Create a space for people with common interests to feel included and heard
- Offer support from others who are going through something similar
- Provide networking, learning, sharing, and growth opportunities
- Initiate and sustain positive changes in the company’s culture and policies
- Support like-minded individuals to grow professionally and develop leadership
Often, ERGs can act as a voice between employees and leadership, helping them understand each other’s viewpoints.
What Role Do Ergs Play in Improving Workplace Culture?
Imagine a company that has locations across the globe and employs people from different backgrounds, ages, interests, and cultures. While the company will benefit from diverse viewpoints and skill sets, it can also be challenging to build and maintain a positive workplace culture.
Having ERGs provide support to different groups of people and bridge the gap between leadership and employees becomes imperative. ERGs will provide support to employees, improve mutual understanding and acceptance across different groups, and with leadership.
ERGs provide crucial support by:
- Ensuring people have the support they need and feel as if they belong
- Encouraging people to share their points of view and develop trust
- Creating awareness of other cultures and promoting sensitivity
- Helping employees align with the values and goals of the company
ERGs can serve as the first stop for employees who feel judged or misunderstood, or who want to share their point of view with people who will listen, understand, and support them.
What Positive Impact Do Ergs Create on Workplace Culture?
ERGs are often seen as a forum for social interaction, but they are more than that. When an ERG functions well, it can impact the company’s overall culture. They can bridge gaps that arise from mismatches in language, culture, orientation, working methods, or approaches to work.
Here are some of the main ways ERGs positively impact workplace culture:
1. Ensures inclusivity
Employees do well in a company when they feel included and heard, and ERGs do that by providing them with a forum to share, learn, guide, and gain insights without judgment or prejudice. Forums like ERG bring together people facing similar life situations, providing support and resources to be heard and to resolve issues, if any.
2. Keeps employees engaged
A normal workday involves employees spending half their working hours at work, which means they need to be engaged beyond work to feel connected and develop a sense of belonging. ERGs help employees stay engaged and invested in the company’s growth by providing the right support.
3. Helps build leadership
Employee Resource Groups offer a robust platform for people to seek mentors in their profession and develop leadership skills. For example, a person who excels in technical skills can seek and receive support in people management skills to work towards a leadership position. Often, ERGs will also identify people who can be put on the leadership track and showcase this to the management.
4. Influences organizational changes
An organization is more than a combination of its history, culture, people, vision, mission, and purpose. And ERGs help build on the culture by consolidating input from various groups and presenting proposed changes to management. The influence of ERGs can transform a company from good to excellent by facilitating organizational-level change.
5. Strengthens collaboration
When there is mutual understanding and improved communication, the result is better collaboration across different teams and groups. For a company to be successful, it must have diverse teams that can work together, with skills that complement one another.
How to Establish and Run an Employee Resource Group?
Establishing an ERG requires a well thought-out plan that aligns with the company’s goals. Here’s how it can be done:
Step #1: Pinpoint the purpose of the ERG
The starting point should be the company and its employees to identify which groups to form based on the team’s composition.
Step #2: Get buy-in from leadership
ERGs need endorsement from the leadership to encourage people to join and work towards the established goals.
Step #3: Put together a team to drive the ERG
When an ERG is started, people are eager to participate, but over time, interest may wane. It is crucial to have a team that will keep the momentum going.
Step #4: Establish guidelines and rules
Each ERG will have a specific purpose, and it is important to establish guidelines to ensure that purpose is met.
Step #5: Invite participation and launch
The usual process for inviting participation is to share the information, and once the groups come together, they can be launched.
Step #6: Measure impact and tweak if needed
It is crucial to keep tracking if the ERG is serving the purpose for which it was established and to take corrective action if required.
What Are the Best Practices for Establishing and Running ERGs?
Since ERGs are usually set up to encourage and support certain groups within the organization, it is critical to run them well to ensure continued participation.
Here are some best practices to ensure the success of ERGs:
- ERGs must align with core organizational values and goals to run long-term
- Companies must allocate sufficient resources to ensure that ERGs function well
- Involving the leadership to encourage team members to participate and maximizes the impact
- Ensure that ERGs are created to support diversity and inclusion
- Measuring success metrics like employee engagement, talent retention, etc
Types of Employee Resources Groups
The type of ERGs created will depend on the company’s needs and the team’s demographics. Here are some types of typical ERGs.
#1. Based on identity
These are usually based on how people identify themselves or are classified. These include:
- Women leaders
- LGBTQ+
- Culture-based
#2. Based on interests
- Mental and physical wellness
- Social activities
- CSR groups
- Hobbies and extracurricular activities
#3. Career development
- Soft skill-based
- Mentoring programs
- Young executive boards
- Cross-functional training
#4. Life stage needs-based
- Young or new parents
- Retired military personnel
What Are the Main Benefits of Having Ergs in an Organization?
When well thought-out and well-run, ERGs have a long-lasting, positive impact on the organization’s culture and growth.
For employees, ERGs provide:
- A feeling of belonging and support
- Better networking opportunities
- A chance to plan and grow in their careers
For employers, ERGs help:
- Improve engagement, retention, and increased collaboration
- Enhance diversity and inclusion outcomes
- Robust growth fueled by diverse thought processes
The Best Way Forward for Establishing and Running ERGs
Employee Resource Groups have proven to be of strategic value in engaging employees, aligning them with organizational goals, and fostering an environment of growth. ERGs will continue to play a vital role in ensuring employees feel supported and heard.
However, before starting the ERG initiative, it is essential to determine the right approach by evaluating employees’ needs and what will work.
Here’s where a company like Great PlaceTo Work can help. Start with employee surveys to glean the pulse and leverage Great Place To Work’s culture consulting services to get it right the first time.
Want to know how we can help? Click here to connect with us.
Frequently Asked Questions
How to start an ERG?
The starting point is establishing the purpose of the ERG, evaluating employees’ needs, securing leadership support, creating teams, and launching the program.
What are the common examples of ERGs?
In most companies, there are ERGs focused on wellness initiatives, gender-based forums, common interests, ethnic and lifestyle groups, LGBTQ+ groups, and more.
How would ERGs encourage diversity and inclusion?
When people from different groups with diverse interests and needs receive the support they need and a safe space to share their thoughts, this helps build trust and understanding. With understanding comes acceptance, resulting in diversity and inclusion.
How do ERGs impact the company?
ERGs help people from diverse backgrounds work well together, support growth, and improve retention. When all these factors come together, there is better collaboration, transparent communication, improved productivity, and this can result in a better public image and greater customer centricity.
