Why most DE&I strategies fail – and how to get it right

Diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) strategies often fail, not because they lack ambition, but because they operate in isolation, entirely separate from organisational culture, disconnected from the communities an organisation serves, or because they are treated as a standalone set of activities that don’t respond to the real needs of an organisation, its employees or customers. To create lasting, meaningful change, DE&I strategies must be aligned with the lived realities of an organisation’s employees, the communities around it, and the realities of how an organisation operates.

In fact, rooting a DE&I strategy in purpose and values is the easiest way to ensure that it not only becomes part of business-as-usual, but one where every employee has a vested interest in ensuring its success. 

Why culture and community matter

A 2023 McKinsey Diversity Matters Even More report found that leadership diversity is not only linked to financial outperformance but also to a more holistic impact, including generating stronger social and community outcomes, more satisfied workforces, and greater transparency. The report specifically highlights several examples of companies aligning DE&I to community values to great success, including:

• IHG Hotels & Resorts: which centred inclusion at both local and global levels.

• Air New Zealand: which chose to advance DE&I priorities hand in hand with local community partnerships as well as evidencing that diverse leadership (a key priority of their strategy) directly improved social and community impact. 

Both examples illustrate exactly how community-aligned DE&I strategies can enhance authenticity, customer trust, and local impact.

Deloitte offers similar evidence. Kavitha Prabhakar, Chief Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Officer for Deloitte US, explained in a 2023 interview with Fairy God Boss that DEI is not an add-on and must be embedded into the organisation’s culture and daily operations for it to work. In the interview she states that Deloitte has enhanced its programmes and leadership development to ensure that “DEI remains interwoven in the fabric of our organization [sic].” 

This directly confirms Deloitte’s stance that DE&I requires cultural integration and that it cannot be effective if it’s isolated. For it to work, it must be part of the cultural norms that shape behaviours, processes, and leadership expectations.

As if to reinforce the message, there are multiple additional reports and other studies that show that a DE&I strategy is only effective when embedded in:

• Organisational culture (belonging, authenticity, fairness, leadership behaviour)

• Internal community (employee networks, identity safety, shared values)

• External community (local context, customer identity, social impact)

Where DE&I strategies fail

A DE&I strategy cannot succeed if it contradicts the real, everyday experiences of employees or doesn’t seem to align with the values that an organisation claims to uphold. This misalignment breeds cynicism, and what might be impressive commitments on paper often fall flat when behaviours, systems, or processes fail to reflect them, ultimately being seen as either performative, unrealistic or even objectionable.

A theoretical example of this might be an organisation that chooses to prioritise ‘the recruitment and retention of women’ as one of its core strategic commitments but has historically always attracted more female applicants than male, recruiting and retaining a disproportionate number of women [over male applicants]. This type of commitment may be driven more by what we think our DE&I priorities should be based on a societal or cultural minoritisation of women, rather than responding to the reality of what an organisation truly needs to focus its attention on. 

We know that even well-intentioned commitments like these can ultimately be counterproductive and potentially drive feelings of apathy, exclusion, unfairness or claims of disadvantage across the wider workforce because they ultimately aren’t designed to respond to the actual needs of an organisation, but rather the assumed needs based on industry. 

When culture and community are put at the heart of an organisation’s DE&I work:

• inclusion becomes everyone’s responsibility, not just a priority for HR,

• change is reinforced by everyday behaviours rather than isolated initiatives or activities, and

• internal and external communities recognise that your commitments are genuine, not performative.

Alignment ultimately allows your strategy to move from just words on a page to responding to the real needs of employees and customers.

Understanding your culture

So, how can an organisation find out what its culture is really like?  

Let’s start by accepting that every organisation has two cultures. The first is the culture that you might describe in value statements or annual reports, and the second is the culture that your employees (and/or customers) are actually experiencing day-to-day. It’s the second that really shapes the success of any proposed DE&I activity.

Understanding an organisation’s true culture often involves an element of discomfort, as well as a willingness on the part of an organisation to actively listen and accept feedback. However, none of this would be possible if an organisation struggles to identify who its communities are or how it can engage with them in a way that generates honest feedback. 

When we talk about ‘our community’, we’re often automatically thinking about those people outside of the organisation: either our customers or clients or the community that we serve or represent. As a result, we can sometimes forget that any organisation’s most immediately accessible community includes their employees.

In addition to our internal community, we also have our external communities which could include our customers or clients, but might also extend to our local neighbourhoods, industry networks or partners, or charitable or advocacy groups. Aligning an organisation’s DE&I strategy with the external community ensures that the commitments and activities being created reflect the needs, identities, and lived experiences of those you aim to serve – not just based on assumptions made at a boardroom table.

Engaging with internal communities

A healthy internal community helps to create psychological safety and a sense of belonging that are prerequisites for any successful DE&I efforts, and, for many organisations, this involves establishing employee/business resource groups (ERGs/BRGs) or staff networks. These groups provide the ideal forums for employees to connect with each other, creating an environment where those who are seldom heard, minoritised or otherwise underrepresented can share their real lived experiences in a safe environment built on shared experiences, values or cultures. Whenever these networks are provided with the right support and guidance, they’re often the perfect platform for an organisation to hear directly from employees about their real lived experiences, their needs, concerns and expectations. 

However, even if organisations don’t benefit from having formal E/BRGs in place, there will undoubtedly be informal networks across the organisation that can be engaged with, including those who might identify as allies and are actively shaping the culture every day. 

Once we’ve identified who our communities are, an organisation will need to find ways to hear from them in a way that works for them by allowing employees to speak out about their feelings using sentiment surveys, listening circles, focus groups and storytelling in a psychologically safe environment, encouraging real honesty – free from fear of any negative consequences. Once we’ve found ways to listen to employees, we can answer these four key questions:

• Are people comfortable speaking up?

• Do leaders model inclusive behaviour?

• Are decisions and opportunities distributed fairly?

• Are policies inclusive in design and impact, not just intent?

5 tips for ensuring community and cultural insight 

When DE&I strategies are aligned with culture and community, it becomes something far more powerful than just a set of commitments or actions: it becomes the way you do business.

For those organisations who may be starting out on their journey, or who want to sense-check what they already have in place, here are five top tips for ensuring that culture and community remain an integral part of an organisation’s DE&I strategy:

1.    Embrace intersectionality in everything you do

People aren’t one-dimensional. They carry overlapping identities such as race, gender, disability, sexuality, age, socioeconomic background, and more. Each of these intersections shapes their individual experiences. An intersectional approach helps organisations:

• Avoid “one-size-fits-all” solutions

• Understand complexity in employee experiences

• Design policies and processes that reflect real lives, not idealised ones

• Ensure meaningful inclusion, not checkbox diversity.

2.    Listen to data, stories and feedback – then act on it

Data provides direction; stories give depth; and feedback creates accountability.

Your alignment work should integrate:

• Quantitative data: representation, progression, turnover, pay equity, engagement

• Qualitative insight: employee narratives, focus groups, lived experience testimony

• Community consultation: local needs assessments, impact evaluations, customer insight

The key is not just gathering feedback but closing the loop and showing people how their voices shape your decisions.

3.    Build systems and structures that sustain inclusive culture

Culture doesn’t happen by accident. It happens by design, and sustainable DE&I strategies include:

• Clear governance and accountability

• Inclusive leadership expectations

• Policies and processes assessed for equity

• Support and resourcing for employee networks

• Continuous learning and capability-building

These structures turn intention into practice and ensure your strategy survives leadership changes and fluctuating priorities.

4.    Use storytelling to embed inclusion into the everyday

Storytelling is one of the most powerful cultural tools available. It:

• Builds empathy

• Humanises experiences

• Connects people across differences

• Reinforces community values

• Provides visibility without tokenism

Authentic stories from employees, customers, and community partners can accelerate a move towards a more inclusive culture far faster than policies alone.

5.    Measure what matters

A strong DE&I strategy needs strong metrics, but those metrics must reflect culture, not just numbers, so remember to measure:

• Belonging and psychological safety

• Trust in leadership

• Representation at all levels

• Retention, progression, and pay equity

• Community impact and partnerships

• Behavioural and cultural change, not just outputs

Impact is not the number of events you put on; it’s the culture those events help to create.

Start with alignment, end with authenticity

Aligning your DE&I strategy to culture and community isn’t a one-time exercise. It’s an ongoing commitment that evolves with your people, business, and the wider world. When organisations take the time to align strategy with who they are and the communities they serve, they move from performative inclusion to authentic, sustainable cultural change. Inclusion becomes part of the identity of the organisation and not just something it does, but something it is.

Let’s work together

Our DE&I consultancy services include providing support with carrying out culture and process audits as well as with DE&I strategy development, and our methodology is specifically designed to ensure that culture and community inform an organisation’s approach to action-planning and creating DE&I objectives that work.

Our bespoke approach to strategy design empowers organisations to thrive, attract diverse talent, and foster a culture of innovation and collaboration, where every voice is amplified. Through our personalised methodologies, we strike a delicate balance between taking a global approach whilst understanding local goals and targeting for cross-cultural and intersectional inclusion.

Our consultants’ approach is underpinned by our diversity DIVE© model, which has been designed to help organisations develop diversity and inclusion strategies unique to their needs. 

For a personalised conversation about your organisation’s specific needs, get in touch to book a complimentary one-to-one call with one of our consultants.