Electric companies commit to further advancing diversity and inclusion

SAN DIEGO – In an effort to build a diverse workforce to better connect with customers, the electric utilities industry pledged to build upon its diversity and inclusion initiatives in the coming years during the Edison Electric Institute’s (EEI) annual convention this week.

“Throughout my chairmanship at EEI in the past year, one of my top priorities has been to work closely with our member companies to elevate our own understanding of diversity and inclusion and to make D&I [diversity and inclusion] a business imperative,” said outgoing EEI Chairman Pat Vincent-Collawn.

“A diverse workforce and a diversity of thought are critical to success in leading change and to delivering the energy solutions our customers expect,” she added during the convention’s opening general session.

The EEI Board of Directors endorsed a new D&I Commitment this week. Through this effort, EEI member companies will develop a three-year D&I plan that incorporates initiatives and metrics to improve overall D&I results and have pledged to take actions that support those initiatives.

EEI will create a D&I online resource center with information on best practices, strategies and projects. The organization will work with the Center for Energy Workforce Development (CEWD) to create additional tools and resources for member companies as well as support information sharing among member companies and industry partners through CEWD.

During the opening general session, Tony Byers, a D&I consultant and former head of D&I for Starbucks, and Vincent-Collawn discussed D&I in the electric utilities industry.

Vincent-Collawn established a focus on D&I during her time as chair and hosted the first EEI D&I forum in October.

“I was proud to host the first industry DNI forum last October, bringing together EEI member companies to identify best practices within our industry and others to outline measurable performance goals and to work toward cementing an industry commitment to diversity and inclusion,” Vincent-Collawn said.

Byers, in his presentation, emphasized the importance of going beyond having a diverse workforce by also creating an inclusive workplace environment. Research has shown that diverse workforces outperform monocultural ones, as long as they are managed well, Byers said.

Companies that do well in D&I, he said, are 45 percent more likely than their peers to grow their market share, in part because of the new ideas that D&I can bring.

Byers defined inclusion as “practicing behaviors to effect the ways in which people are involved, respected, valued and connected and to which individuals can bring their authentic self to the team and to the business.”

Byers and Vincent-Collawn continued the conversation in a breakout session titled “Diversity and Inclusion: A Business Imperative in Today’s Post Starbucks & #MeToo Environment.”

Vincent-Collawn asked Byers how companies can tell when they’ve achieved success in their D&I efforts.

Many companies stop at meeting metrics, Byers said, but should also ask their employees questions about inclusion and look at those answers across demographic lines. Those questions include whether employees feel like they can advance at a company and whether they receive feedback that will help them in their careers.