Diversity and inclusion
Learn how Workplace can amplify existing D&I programmes and help you build more community and connection at work.
Diversity, the practice of hiring people with different identities, is widely recognised as being essential to the long-term success of any business. That's because diversity in the workplace means diversity in experiences and perspectives that can help you build better products and deliver better services for your customers. But hiring practices are just the first step. Creating a culture of belonging where employees of different backgrounds feel included is central to maintaining and nurturing a diverse workplace.
This is where inclusion comes in. Inclusion refers to valuing, leveraging and engaging differences to build a stronger work culture. Not every diverse organisation is inclusive and, when companies don't invest in inclusion, employee experience suffers.
But when they're working together, diversity and inclusion (D&I) can give everyone a voice, provide psychological safety and build community. It's about who gets to participate, how decisions are made and what kinds of people are in a position to influence outcomes.
Read on to find eight tips to help you leverage the community-building power of Workplace to create a culture of belonging on Workplace.
This guide contains tips from the "Building an Inclusive Workplace" guide. Download the complete playbook here.
Create social employee resource groupsCreate employee resource groups
Employee resource groups are a great way to connect people who share the same identity, and to build a system of support for people who might be under-represented in your organisation. Some examples from Facebook's own Workplace community include "Black@", "Women@", "LGBTQ@", "Differently Abled@", "Desis@" and many more.
![](https://scontent-iad3-2.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t39.2365-6/174776224_966098557530578_1302784683723613729_n.png?stp=dst-png_s1080x2048&_nc_cat=105&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=5f2048&_nc_ohc=RYL58OtLftEAb7_-YBP&_nc_ht=scontent-iad3-2.xx&oh=00_AfDgBzZ1vAxvWW_-R7KakK0MCGJuJrncFAQgUemn9OTkpw&oe=662F9E5D)
Share resources in your Knowledge Library
Knowledge Library is a central space for important resources such as employee handbooks and onboarding materials. Create a new category in your Knowledge Library for inclusion and wellness resources, and share it with the whole organisation. Here are a few ideas for what to include:
- Company D&I mission and strategy
- Links to training courses
- Guides for employees and people managers
- A list of D&I groups
- Mental health and wellness resources
- Workplace accessibility features and how to use them
- Links for further learning
Learn how to build your Knowledge Library in this guide.
![](https://scontent-iad3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t39.2365-6/118817241_335733590883019_4180120786147453698_n.png?stp=dst-png_p960x960&_nc_cat=108&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=5f2048&_nc_ohc=SvbDPIsQ5RwAb7NOsYx&_nc_ht=scontent-iad3-1.xx&oh=00_AfCYHzOPQmI2H6nDtLIkS3z39D3aHNY7WWdJpgajIbk4Kw&oe=662FB5FA)
Go Live to talk through D&I strategy
Have executives, D&I experts and employee resource group leads host inclusion strategy Q&As and use live video to broadcast the event to the entire organisation. These leaders can respond to employee questions in real time using the live Q&A feature, and you can encourage audience participation with comments, reactions and polls.
![](https://scontent-iad3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t39.2365-6/118789080_315751919514258_2329585452534378275_n.png?_nc_cat=110&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=5f2048&_nc_ohc=bppXvk9KMd0Ab5fyIXN&_nc_ht=scontent-iad3-1.xx&oh=00_AfClRHQWe4xRxxClYZCm_tI5ogplreUpJSBRqrgGJ-z0iA&oe=662FB4DE)
Celebrate diversity with internal campaigns
The Be the Ally campaign kit consists of a series of GIFs you can use to help define D&I-related terminology and promote your existing resources. Share a GIF in your company-wide discussion group and include links to relevant resources in the body of your post.
![](https://scontent-iad3-2.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t39.2365-6/118805008_1597864137051537_1716006251012744012_n.gif?_nc_cat=105&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=e280be&_nc_ohc=_tZ549PeEoQAb44FDaX&_nc_ht=scontent-iad3-2.xx&oh=00_AfCokS11MGRCMm0I8vs66c0jEZCRUwsyAch_VVKQaprUMg&oe=66440DB2)
Discover more campaign kits available to download here.
Make video content accessible with captionsMake video content accessible with captions
Remove barriers to video content by adding captions to all videos shared on Workplace. Captions are available for both live and pre-recorded videos. They can be turned on automatically, regenerated, translated and edited, or captions can be added manually using an .srt file. Learn how in the Workplace Help Centre.
Add name pronunciation to your profile
If you've ever had your name mispronounced, you know it can be a frustrating experience. It can make you feel excluded and undervalued, and correcting people can feel awkward for everyone involved.
Learning how to pronounce a person's name correctly shows respect, acknowledges heritage and identity, and drives belonging. To help people do this, Workplace lets you add your name pronunciation directly to your profile.
You can add your name pronunciation from the About tab in your profile.
![](https://scontent-iad3-2.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t39.2365-6/177872156_480098016533402_7764093135193710355_n.png?stp=dst-png_p180x540&_nc_cat=109&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=5f2048&_nc_ohc=XEJT0xlSbJUAb6wJsTl&_nc_ht=scontent-iad3-2.xx&oh=00_AfDoMwEhnA4fF8oVM-CS0HMnRzIMkWARJkb-e0HKXE7wrA&oe=662FB3D7)
Set a default emoji skin colour
Default emoji skin tones allow people to better express themselves and their identity in all of the interactions that they have on Workplace. Set yours by clicking on the gear icon in the emoji picker in chat, composer or comments. Once you've chosen a default skin tone, all human emojis will appear in the skin tone that you selected. You can still hover over the emoji to change to a different skin tone.
![](https://scontent-iad3-2.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t39.2365-6/179337358_320802279478443_4159057095978626473_n.png?stp=dst-png_s1080x2048&_nc_cat=109&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=5f2048&_nc_ohc=7s7UsLDsDvgAb5GLzYL&_nc_ht=scontent-iad3-2.xx&oh=00_AfAt7SdLVmszhmgHakfrm3A0Et0MDs5QTWRbJCqixeEc4Q&oe=662F903B)
Enable sharing pronouns in Workplace
To make the pronoun profile field available for employees in your Workplace, admins can go to Settings in the Admin Panel. Then, click on the Profile Fields tab and toggle on Pronouns under personal info.
Once you enable pronouns in your Workplace, all employees will have the option to add them to their profile. To help employees display their pronouns and to educate your community on why they’re important, check out this sample post.
BenefitsYou can learn more about pronouns and how people can share them on their profiles in this guide.
Benefits
- Encourage diverse opinions and ideas from your employees.
- Create a culture that welcomes differences.
- Develop a strong sense of community in your organisation.
- Encourage professional development and growth.
- Build more transparent communication around your diversity and inclusion efforts.
Other helpful resources
- Building an inclusive Workplace – the complete guide to building a Workplace D&I strategy.
- Workplace for recognition – make your employees feel valued and inclusive. Use Workplace to build a culture of recognition and care.
- Workplace for recruiting – use Workplace to recruit diverse talent.
- Amplifying Company Culture - learn how to use Workplace to build internal comms that enhance and amplify your company culture
Was this article helpful?
Thanks for your feedback