DEI and ESG messaging in a changed world

By now, internal and external communicators are familiar with navigating tricky messaging techniques around DEI and ESG.

Regine Nelson, internal communications and employee engagement lead at Couchbase, said during Ragan’s Employee Culture Communications Conference that communicators don’t have to change the policies themselves, but rather, how they communicate their impact.

“Some of DEI is rooted in the perception of exclusion, not the intention,” she said. “When we propose that DEI in particular is for minority groups as a whole, then we create unintended exclusionary practices and initiatives, and it creates a very bad brand and PR problem for ESG and DEI.”

As an example, Nelson points to the nursing field, where men are actually the underrepresented group. Men are not what most people think of when DEI is discussed, nor does it make headlines.

But there are some value-based practices businesses can look to in order to change the messaging, and the narrative, around these hot button issues.

Cultivate inclusivity

Offer employees a sense of resourceful empowerment. This begins with leaders and they can start by providing visible support and constant communication to employees, Nelson said.