The British Standards Institute (BSI) has published a new code of practice designed to help organisations build a more diverse and inclusive culture.
PAS 1948 is now available for organisations to download and use to support their D&I initiatives, and is sponsored by diversity data organisation the All-In Diversity Project.
Areas covered by the new D&I guidance include understanding and implementing concepts such as diversity of thought and intercultural competence, and there is practical guidance around recruitment and other business processes.
The guidance also looks at how organisations can address behaviour that goes against D&I values, and how to engage and support underrepresented social and cultural groups through employee networks.
The aim is for organisations to use the guidance alongside existing British standard frameworks in human resource management, diversity and inclusion and psychological health and safety at work.
D&I guidance
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It does not cover local, national or international employment law, but includes standards and principles organisations can introduce that have been scrutinised by research institutes, government agencies and other bodies, the BSI said.
It also includes advice on identifying appropriate learning and development needs in D&I, how to create an inclusive workplace culture, how to embed inclusion into internal policies and processes, setting achievable targets and measuring progress.
Kate Field, global head of health, safety and wellbeing at BSI, said: “A diverse, equitable and inclusive workplace culture that prioritises people has the potential to be transformative for individuals, organisations, and society.
“This starts with leadership taking steps to turn ambition into action to build and sustain DEI across their organisation.
“Seeing DEI as a valuable investment in people and the future of your organisation can offer huge benefits, including in attracting and retaining the very best talent and skills which in turn has the potential to support innovation, customer insight engagement and improve performance.”
Christina Thakor-Rankin, co-found of the All-In Diversity Project, added that the “fourth industrial revolution” will change the way people live and work, so employers need to focus on how they make workplaces as inclusive as impossible.
“The aim from the outset has been to create a document that is accessible to anyone, and is applicable to any organisation of any type, size and sector, anywhere in the world. It applies where a workplace could be an office, but could just as easily be a studio, stadium, shop, science lab, safari park, street or outer space,” she said.
The guidance also includes a workplace toolkit so organisations can create a framework for D&I to fit their operational needs, or improve on what they already have.
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She added: “This is a universal standard that is designed to be used either as a stand-alone document or alongside other national and international standards.”
The UK standards body also recently published a new British standard for menopause support, BS30416.
