No Rest for the Weary — Key Takeaways from Page Conversation on Addressing “DEI Fatigue”

Three years ago, the world watched in horror as George Floyd was murdered at the hands of police officers. Many corporations stood up and promised to contribute to progress, both within and outside of their organizations. But, three years later, a number of organizations are beginning to pull back on these efforts, citing "DE&I fatigue". With economic and political uncertainties growing, it is critically important that communicators tackle this issue head-on.

It is against this backdrop that the Page Community recently met for a Conversation on Addressing "DE&I Fatigue". Moderated and organized by Yanique Woodall, VP of communications at CVS Health, and Joe Cohen, chief marketing & communications officer at AXIS, the conversation largely centered around the three key points below.

1. The communications function is not an innocent bystander.

As was discussed during the 2023 Spring Seminar, the communications function has material influence in the organization, and needs to use that influence to enact positive change. This includes influencing the c-suite to prioritize meaningful DE&I efforts, and identifying any blind spots or weak points of existing programs.

2. When advocating for DE&I, we must illustrate how the programming directly links to business priorities and outcomes, and advances the corporation's mission.

One participant mentioned how CCOs are often the de facto "Chief Stakeholder Officers" as well. Because CCOs have intimate knowledge of key internal and external stakeholders, there is perhaps no one in a better position in the organization to identify where the organization is falling short, and make the case for renewed DE&I efforts.

Other functions do not have to deal with decision-makers saying they "are tired" of focusing on their areas. There is no "growth fatigue" or 'accounting fatigue", because senior leaders are acutely aware of their impact on the business. With economic and political headwinds, leaning into the business case for DE&I will continue being critical. But it is also important to remember your audience - senior executives may want business quantification for DE&I strategies, but many other internal stakeholders will be convinced using more altruistic appeals.

3. Go beyond internal and external awareness and promotion and play an active hand in enabling strong execution.

As one attendee mentioned, perhaps the "fatigue" is not with DE&I itself, but with poorly-resourced programs yielding sub-par results. Ultimately, effective DE&I must go beyond merely implementing programs that exist in siloes, and require true organizational transformation.

Many thanks to the panelists
Yanique Woodall, VP of communications at CVS Health;
Joe Cohen, chief marketing & communications officer at AXIS;
Mike Fernandez, SVP & CCO at Enbridge;
Denvol Haye Jr., head of communications at the McKinsey Institute for Black Economic Mobility; and
Soon Mee Kim, chief diversity officer at Omnicom Public Relations Group.

Want to support DE&I efforts across the communications function at large? Learn more about the Diversity Action Alliance to get started.

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