A major shift is underway by progressive organizations regarding their affirmative action programs. These federal contractors have stopped taking the narrow approach that Affirmative Action Plans (AAPs) are only a federal requirement to be completed as a static, tactical project. Instead, they have realized the great opportunity AAPs provide to be a catalyst for a more holistic, strategic approach and a driver for improving analytics in their diversity and inclusion and other workforce-related programs.
These advanced affirmative action programs have “changed the conversation” with their leadership teams and are no longer just affirming AAP completion, but are strategic catalysts for providing insights and reporting on workforce trends, risks, and opportunities.
Our experts are seeing this shift across a variety of organizations and believe it will become the prevalent approach for affirmative action programs in just a few years. To assist organizations, we have compiled “9 Tools and Strategies to Take Your AA Program to the Next Level”, a short guidebook with the strategies and tools necessary to elevate your AAP to the next level. The guide covers:
- Attributes of next-level Affirmative Action Programs
- Foundational elements required
- Strategies to elevate your AAP
- Platforms and tools to reach new heights
More from the blog: ‘4 Key Components of an Affirmative Action Program’
The Power of a SaaS-Based Platform
Tightening labor markets and increasing competitiveness makes it a necessity to no longer waste the valuable data that AAPs contain and instead turn into a competitive differentiator. One of the critical enablers of this approach is Affirmity’s SaaS-based Platform which allows HR data to be shared between modules and supports the analysis and reporting of initiatives across diversity, affirmative action, and other workforce programs.
Investing in a SaaS-based workforce analytics platform will enable not only the diversity, compliance, and other HR teams, but also business leads throughout the organization to analyze workforce information. The goal is providing a platform for easy consumption of information and developing actionable insights. With availability of more flexible reporting capabilities, you can direct your audience to reporting that is tailored to their needs.
Below are key capabilities necessary to maximize the return on your workforce technology investment:
- Scalable to meet growth and future demands
- Responsive to changes in organization, market, and culture
- Pulls data from a variety of systems and aggregates for a view of employees at multiple levels throughout the talent lifecycle
- Plan, develop, analyze, and share relevant information all in one system
You might also like: ‘Avoiding Bias and Discrimination in Downsizing Decisions’
Benefitting From an Integrated Approach
A corollary trend we’re witnessing is an increasing number of organizations combining the management and operation of affirmative action and diversity programs to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of both programs. They are leveraging the wealth of applicant, hire, promotion, compensation, and separation data already collected for AAPs {How to Leverage Your AA Metrics Toward Corporate Diversity Goals | Affirmity blog} as a head start for the data necessary to manage their Diversity program.
To improve both programs, they are utilizing advanced software to create and track meaningful metrics, gauge progress against industry benchmarks, and inform management through interactive dashboards. The benefits are far-reaching to organizations that embrace these best practices and take their programs to the next level. They include:
- Increased collaboration
- Consistency of data utilized across both programs
- Greater visibility to all levels of the organization
- Faster identification of workforce demographic gaps and sources of issues
- Improved timeliness and relevance of insights to talent decision-makers
Elevating the affirmative action program beyond compliance supports the creation of a more dynamic culture, engaged workforce, and the many competitive benefits of a diverse and inclusive workplace.
Learn more on how Affirmity can help take your AAP to the next level and change the conversation with your senior leadership. Read our ebook, “9 Tools and Strategies to Take Your AA Program to the Next Level”or contact us to talk to an expert.
About the Author
Jeffery D. Lewis is co-managing director for Affirmity. He oversees professional services and sales for Affirmity’s affirmative action consulting services and diversity planning programs. He leads teams of consultants who deliver services spanning affirmative action, EEO compliance, and diversity planning. He also oversees a team of experts who specialize in evaluating allegations of discriminatory employment practices.