An Employee Resource Group (ERG) is a volunteer group of like-minded colleagues who come together to create positive change for their wider workplace community. The Scholarly Kitchen brought this interesting topic to our attention in their article, “Guest Post — Driving Gender Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Scholarly Communications: The Power of an Active ERG.”
These groups can add tremendous value to the organization for attracting, keeping, and developing talent. More companies are leveraging their workforces to reach diverse customers and communities by using ERGs.
Onboarding is one of the areas where an ERG member’s contribution is easily identified. Studies show that the first 60 to 90 days of employment are a critical time for any new hire and they can be particularly challenging for members of traditionally underrepresented groups. That short window of time can mean the difference between whether an employee stays for the long run or leaves the organization before the year is out. ERGs can be leveraged to acclimate employees and engender a sense of loyalty and belonging to their new company.
Melody K. Smith
Sponsored by Data Harmony, a unit of Access Innovations, the world leader in indexing and making content findable.
