New inclusion & diversity score to help telcos attract top tech talent
Following TM Forum’s successful trial of a new Inclusion and Diversity Score (IDS) to measure diversity and inclusion (I&D), telecom industry executives discussed the strategic importance of benchmarked I&D data during Digital Transformation World Series (DTWS).
14 Oct 2021
New inclusion & diversity score to help telcos attract top tech talent
Following TM Forum’s successful trial of a new Inclusion and Diversity Score (IDS) to measure how diverse, equal and inclusive organizations are, telecom industry executives discussed the strategic importance of benchmarked inclusion, equality and diversity (IE&D) data during Digital Transformation World Series (DTWS).
Today the net promoter score (NPS) is the benchmark against which many communications service providers (CSPs) measure customer experience. Yet no similar gauge exists for IE&D, despite its importance in helping the communications industry attract the talent it needs for future growth, according to speakers at DTWS.
Colt is one of the companies working within TM Forum's Diversity & Inclusion Council to create a single, universal index, with Bain & Company providing leadership and expertise. The need is pressing. According to Gilder, 77% of CEOs see limited availability skills as a major threat to their growth.
A key challenge is that every industry sector is competing to recruit new digital skills in areas such as AI and security. CSPs also face increasing pressure from investors and shareholders.
The TM Forum IDS has just completed a successful Alpha trial with five companies including Colt, Telia Rostelecom. The benchmark is set to enter the next phase of trials with a larger number of participants, with a full launch expected in 2022.
IDS is designed to be a simple measurement that is equally weighted between inclusion and diversity, according to Danielle Stekelenburg, Partner, Bain & Company. Like NPS, it gives CSPs the information they need to take action and structure change.
“Unless you can measure this ... it’s really hard to execute,” said Nik Willetts, CEO, TM Forum.
Taking a measurement also underscores the importance of I&D to everyone inside and outside a company.
The IDS is being designed to enable organizations to assess the maturity of their IE&D across intersectional characteristics, compare their maturity score with others, and set baselines to monitor growth and evaluate the effectiveness of their current D&I initiatives.
It will also help companies identify where they can “make interventions that change the systems and structures in an organization [which] will be critical to making progress,” said Stekelenburg.
“Organizations need to go deeper, to understand the root causes of challenges in the same way that you ... do for NPS. And then you need to take targeted interventions that make the difference,” she explained.
The second stage of the IDS trial, “will provide enough data for a final validation of the scoring questions, as well as the pain points and the categorization of those,” Stekelenburg said. “This will then form the basis for actionable interventions.”
“The telecoms industry must address DE&I to remain competitive, relevant and sustainable over the next decade..., according to Willetts in a media release. "It’s critical that the telco industry considers DE&I a strategic issue as well as a moral imperative. As an industry, we need to improve our attractiveness to cutting-edge talent, together.”
Watch the keynote panel on how diversity and inclusion is a strategic imperative:
Today the net promoter score (NPS) is the benchmark against which many communications service providers (CSPs) measure customer experience. Yet no similar gauge exists for IE&D, despite its importance in helping the communications industry attract the talent it needs for future growth, according to speakers at DTWS.
“If we’re going to build the foundation for the digital economy and drive Industry 4.0 the only way to do this … is to put D&I, at the center of our strategy,” said Keri Gilder, CEO of Colt & Chair of TM Forum's Diversity & Inclusion Council.“We must include it in our operational reviews; we must start measuring what matters. After all, we do this with everything else: NPS, churn, profitability,” said Gilder. “We need an industry-adopted benchmark, much like NPS for customer experience, but this time for our people.”
Colt is one of the companies working within TM Forum's Diversity & Inclusion Council to create a single, universal index, with Bain & Company providing leadership and expertise. The need is pressing. According to Gilder, 77% of CEOs see limited availability skills as a major threat to their growth.
A key challenge is that every industry sector is competing to recruit new digital skills in areas such as AI and security. CSPs also face increasing pressure from investors and shareholders.
“Our investors … are now starting to mandate diverse management on boards,” said Gilder.
The TM Forum IDS has just completed a successful Alpha trial with five companies including Colt, Telia Rostelecom. The benchmark is set to enter the next phase of trials with a larger number of participants, with a full launch expected in 2022.
IDS is designed to be a simple measurement that is equally weighted between inclusion and diversity, according to Danielle Stekelenburg, Partner, Bain & Company. Like NPS, it gives CSPs the information they need to take action and structure change.
“Unless you can measure this ... it’s really hard to execute,” said Nik Willetts, CEO, TM Forum.
Taking a measurement also underscores the importance of I&D to everyone inside and outside a company.
“As with anything else, if it’s not measured, it’s not important, right?” said Magda Yrizarry, Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer, Verizon.
The IDS is being designed to enable organizations to assess the maturity of their IE&D across intersectional characteristics, compare their maturity score with others, and set baselines to monitor growth and evaluate the effectiveness of their current D&I initiatives.
It will also help companies identify where they can “make interventions that change the systems and structures in an organization [which] will be critical to making progress,” said Stekelenburg.
“Organizations need to go deeper, to understand the root causes of challenges in the same way that you ... do for NPS. And then you need to take targeted interventions that make the difference,” she explained.
The second stage of the IDS trial, “will provide enough data for a final validation of the scoring questions, as well as the pain points and the categorization of those,” Stekelenburg said. “This will then form the basis for actionable interventions.”
In addition to benefiting employees, data suggests successful I&D programs increase profitability and innovation. Recent McKinsey data reveals that diverse organizations achieve 83% more engagement from employees, experience 20% more innovation, perform 35% better on financial return and generate 38% more revenue on average.
“The telecoms industry must address DE&I to remain competitive, relevant and sustainable over the next decade..., according to Willetts in a media release. "It’s critical that the telco industry considers DE&I a strategic issue as well as a moral imperative. As an industry, we need to improve our attractiveness to cutting-edge talent, together.”
Watch the keynote panel on how diversity and inclusion is a strategic imperative:
