Here鈥檚 how DEIB programs can become essential business drivers that lead to stronger business results.
Does purpose drive profit?
逸遊娛樂城庐 research has found that when companies embrace their purpose and have clear communication from their leaders about how purpose is connected to performance, companies have better performance.
Cisco, No. 2 on the Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work For庐 List in 2024, draws a direct line between its purpose and its business performance.
鈥淲e know that when we show up authentically in our purpose 鈥� it builds trust with our customers,鈥� says Gloria Goins, chief diversity, equity, and inclusion officer at Cisco. Goins shared how purpose and diversity, equity, inclusion & belonging (DEIB) programs at Cisco are driving stronger business performance at the 2024 For All Summit鈩� in New Orleans.
鈥淎t Cisco, our North Star is: How do we take our purpose and use it as a differentiator in the global marketplace?鈥� Goins says. 鈥淗ow do we make sure it distinguishes Cisco from every other company on the planet?鈥�
Connecting DEIB and purpose
Why does Cisco connect its purpose with efforts to improve DEIB across the organization?
The answer is part of Cisco鈥檚 (ESG).
鈥淥ur vision at Cisco is to be the global leader in building diverse, equitable, accessible, and resilient communities to accelerate business growth and to fulfill our purpose of powering an inclusive future for all,鈥� Goins says. 鈥淗ow are we going to do that? By embedding DEI in every single thing we do.鈥�
In this way, DEIB is an unavoidable component of purpose, and a clear business priority with a measurable impact.
DEIB as a business strategy
For DEIB to have staying power within an organization, it must operate like any other business unit.
Goins says DEIB leaders should cultivate four skills:
- Deep expertise for diversity and inclusion work. 鈥淒EI is a profession and a practice,鈥� Goins says. 鈥淵our lived experience is part of it, but it is a profession with art, science, scholarship and pedagogy.鈥�
- Business acumen. 鈥淚 tell my team all the time: 鈥榃e can鈥檛 be business partners to the business if we don鈥檛 have basic business acumen,鈥欌�� Goins says. That means going to earnings calls and taking trainings to understand how the business operates.
- Knowledge of the organization鈥檚 mission and industry. You have to know how the business defines value, what goals it has in the market and how you want to differentiate yourself from competitors, Goins says.
- The ability to create business results. It鈥檚 not enough to be strategic, knowledgeable, or have subject matter expertise, Goins says. DEIB professionals must also know how to execute, measure, and drive change 鈥� and connect those results to revenue.
Highlighting DEIB with customers
How can purpose and DEIB be used to increase revenue? It has to be embedded in everything a company does, and Cisco works hard to ensure customer-facing teams are comfortable and empowered to talk about these issues.
鈥淲e know that 78% of our customers care about DEI, they care about ESG,鈥� Goins says. 鈥淗ow do we partner with our customers, our partners, our suppliers, to make DEI not only a business priority for us, but share that expertise to make it a business priority for them?鈥�
There are three roles Cisco鈥檚 DEIB can serve with customers, Goins says.
- Champion. Cisco can advocate for practices that customers and others can adopt to improve inclusion and belonging, such as the 鈥淧roximity Initiative鈥� it developed.
- Convener. The DEIB team might be just one of a group of voices bringing together expertise both inside and outside the organization to answer a customer鈥檚 questions.
- Catalyst. The team can lean in to solve tough problems around the world through initiatives like Cisco鈥檚
