Leaders, Keep Track of These 5 DE&I Trends in 2024
Part of a series | 2024 HR Trends Series
From pay transparency to leading with inclusion to generative artificial intelligence (AI), the field of diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) is changing and will continue to change throughout 2024.
Leaders have plenty of DE&I topics to think about in 2024 as the space evolves due to new laws, technology and expectations. Keep reading to learn more about the DE&I trends you should consider as you manage your DE&I efforts, and download the 2024 HR trends guide to find out how to respond.
5 DE&I trends to keep track of in 2024
1. Pay equity considerations remain strong as pay transparency laws gain ground
As of August 2023, around half of Indeed job postings in the United States include some salary details provided by employers. This fraction has nearly tripled since February 2020, partly due to pay transparency laws in certain states and localities. This growth is expected to continue for a while.
Pay transparency laws are a mechanism for improving pay equity, requiring organizations to disclose pay in job postings and to candidates and employees. With visibility into pay and pay ranges, workers can more easily negotiate and renegotiate their pay, understand whether a role's compensation is aligned with market expectations and determine if their employers are paying them equitably, all of which can help improve pay equity. Organizations can further support pay equity by conducting internal pay equity audits to reveal unexplained pay gaps and by fostering workplace cultures where employees aren't afraid to discuss their pay.
2. Inclusion is playing a leading role
Tiffany Davis, chief inclusion and diversity officer, ADP, says judicial developments are contributing to a re-evaluation of DE&I programs, with the "I" in "DE&I" becoming a top consideration. These shifts may lead to strategic changes for organizations emphasizing diversity. Already, some organizations supporting the development of specific groups have expanded their charters to include others, placed the "I" in "DE&I" first and provided all-inclusive offerings. Leaders are encouraged to lean into the "I" in 2024 by measuring inclusion and adjusting accordingly to support belonging and acceptance.
"Leading with inclusion is and will continue to be important," says Corina Fisher, leader, diversity and talent, ADP. "As leaders responding to the effects of a complex legal atmosphere, we must avoid including some while excluding others. We must prioritize inclusion for all."
3. A neurodivergent employee experience is increasingly important
An estimated 15-20 percent of the global population exhibits some form of neurodivergence, defined as the variation in the human experience of the world, school, work and social relationships. ADP partners with organizations on their DE&I initiatives and has observed an increased focus on ensuring an inclusive work environment for people who are neurodivergent. Fisher says neurodivergence is in the hearts and minds of organizations but that sometimes efforts are limited to hiring people who are neurodivergent. While hiring programs can benefit neurodiversity, it's essential to investigate accommodations that can make the employee experience more equitable for neurodivergent communities.
"Are you accommodating people who are neurodivergent as they're being recruited?" Fisher says. "What about during onboarding, growth and development, retention and offboarding? Furthermore, how are you measuring the success of these and other programs?"
There's also a tendency to limit "people who are neurodivergent" and "neurodiversity" to autistic people and people with ADHD. While people with these diagnoses often identify as neurodivergent, consider accommodating all people who are neurodivergent, including those with dyspraxia or dyslexia, for example.
"Throughout each phase of the employee experience, we must ensure we accommodate not only autistic people and people with ADHD but also people with dyslexia, dyscalculia and other types of neurodiversity that don't always receive the attention they deserve," Fisher says.
4. Generative AI is having inclusion implications
Generative AI systems have attracted widespread attention. They can help leaders answer questions, facilitate content creation for DE&I initiatives, educate users on concepts such as intersectionality and more. A user simply prompts the tool, and it returns a conversational response, like asking a knowledgeable friend or coworker for assistance. At times, however, the systems can generate outputs that only consider the experiences of some. This outcome is partly due to unclear or nonspecific prompting and the data the tools are trained on. To help improve these experiences,leaders can provide context for their teams to consider as they use generative AI. For example, they can share questions that promote an inclusive mindset, such as, "Are these outputs accurate? Who might view these outputs? How might that affect them? Who will review the outputs to ensure they're considerate, correct and comprehensive?"
"We should always consider people and their experiences when using generative AI," says Giselle Mota, chief of product inclusion, ADP. "Remember, just because you're prompting a generative AI tool doesn't mean it will detect human complexity, different languages, nuances in translation and culture, biases or the absence of certain populations. Be specific and clear in your prompts and review them to ensure they're considerate of all people."
5. Leaders are acting on DE&I before and beyond legislation
Compliance has its place in DE&I. Pay transparency laws are an apt example, as is antidiscrimination enforcement by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). But compliance isn't necessarily the be-all and end-all for organizations with DE&I commitments. It's crucial to keep compliance in mind, of course; however, some organizations are proactively committing to DE&I before laws and regulations influence or require change. For example, according to an AP News report, some organizations have committed to pay transparency for all jobs across the United States, even in states where it's not required. Additionally, whereas the EEOC is considering using the revised federal standards for collecting race and ethnicity data, some organizations have already expanded their options.
Taking on the next anything in DE&I
As DE&I evolves, leaders can move forward with clarity and confidence with the right expertise and resources in their corner.
Download the 2024 HR trends guide to find out how to respond to the trends in this article.
Meanwhile, discover other DE&I topics at ADP's DE&I Resource Hub.
