The Complete Guide to Starting a Successful Employee Resource Group

Over the past few months, we’ve been posting articles about starting an ERG at work.

We’ve covered various useful topics: getting HR support, setting goals, crafting a mission statement, and finding a corporate sponsor.

Today, we’re putting all that valuable information into one comprehensive guide. Read ahead to learn how to start an Employee Resource Group at your company.

Write a mission statement

You intuitively understand that your company needs an ERG to champion inclusion and diversity at the grassroots level.

But now, you need to communicate your conviction to everyone else, which starts with writing a clear mission statement.

Your mission statement should include:

• What do we do?

• Why are we doing it?

• How do we do it?

• What is the value of what we do?

Getting this right is critical, as a clear mission statement can help you attract members and volunteers to your ERG.

Once you have your mission statement ready, post it and promote it so everyone can see what your ERG is all about.

Define your goals

We all have goals – but do you know how to communicate them clearly and work towards them? Your ERG needs to have defined goals to succeed.

Here are a few reasons why goals are so crucial for your ERG.

• Defined goals keep everyone on the same page – When you set clear goals, everyone knows exactly what they’re working towards.

• Clear goals prevent ‘scope creep’ – Scope creep can happen when your ERG takes on too much and starts to feel muddled and confused.

• Clear goals help you gain supporters – When you’re trying to attract supporters and volunteers, they need to understand your goals and purpose in just a few sentences.

• Goals help track your ERG’s success – Your goals should include ways to track and report all outcomes.

• Clear goals keep the ERG aligned with business initiatives – Your goals should be tied clearly to current company objectives.

Read more on why your ERG needs clear goals here.

Create a clear strategy

Now that you have a mission statement and clearly defined goals, it’s time to flesh them out into a broader strategy.

A strategy is one of the most crucial Employee Resource Group best practices.

Your ERG strategy will underpin your long-term planning, helping you reach your goals and stay on track.

As ERGs focus on diversity and inclusion, your strategy should stick closely to achieving these goals while positioning your ERG as improving the company’s bottom line.

While it can be tempting to get caught up in the more minor details, don’t worry about the tactics for the time being.

Work on your overarching strategy and long-term goals, and then designate the specific actions you need to take to reach those goals.

Finally, make sure you include trackability in your strategy.

You should be able to track your success – and your missteps – at every stage.

Check out our detailed article on creating an ERG strategy here.

Find Volunteers/Supporters

You’re working on the strategy and learning Employee Resource Group best practices – now it’s time to get your employees and colleagues on board.

However, that’s not always as easy as it sounds.

Many ERGs fail because they can’t get members and supporters on board – either people aren’t tempted to join, or the extra responsibility and work put them off.

As an ERG leader, it’s your job to get them excited and motivated to join you.

Here are a few ways to get people interested in joining your ERG.

• Reach out to your existing workplace networks.

• Get listed in your company newsletter and in-house social media pages.

• Place sign-up sheets in every common area.

• Tell people about the ‘why’ and the ‘how,’ not just the ‘what’.

• Host exciting events that bring people value.

Check out why ERG volunteers stop helping so you can avoid them here.

Attract a Corporate Sponsor

ERG executive sponsors are usually senior leaders in the company who can provide much-needed guidance and mentorship, helping bridge the gap between your group and corporate leadership.

They can help you understand the role and function of the ERG and where you fit into the company’s overall strategy.

They can also help you define your goals and articulate your needs to key stakeholders in the company.

A corporate sponsor can help you learn how to set reasonable expectations for your members and teach you how to keep them engaged.

Importantly, they understand the importance of aligning the ERG’s goals with the company’s overall goals, which will help you get crucial buy-in from company executives.

Finally, they can prevent ERG leader burnout, helping support and mentor you as you embark on this new project.

Have you been asked to be an ERG sponsor? Check out our guide on how to sponsor an Employee Resource Group here.

Ensure you have time allocated for your ERG work

You’ve got great ideas and a lot of passion, but you also have your regular day job.

When you start trying to add all your ERG tasks and responsibilities to your regular job, it’s very easy to get burnt out and overwhelmed.

Speak with your HR department and sponsor to ensure that time is allocated for your ERG work.

Similarly, you should ask your HR and DEI team for support with training.

If they value your time, effort, and ethos, they should invest in your training and continuing education to help make the ERG a success.

After all, your ERG adds value and prestige to the company, helping with recruitment and retention.

Get Outside Support and Training for Your ERG

Many organizations are still not unlocking the full value of Employee Resource Groups.

ERG leaders are often not given the right tools and training to help the ERG succeed.

That’s where we can help.

Our 12-week program helps ERG leaders build employee resource groups that create a positive impact in their workplace.

If you work in HR or Diversity and Inclusion, you can find out more by booking a call.