It's time to move beyond diversity as a feel-good talking point and bring about actual results.

The concept of diversity as a driver of innovation and healthy company culture has been around for a long time. To a large extent, companies have embraced the concept of diversity and inclusion, but there is still a lot of work to be done around integrating a commitment to diversity and inclusion into company culture in ways that result in more engaged employees, improved decision making, and healthier bottom lines. We talk a good talk – but how can we begin to see actual results?

I believe the answer lies in the relationship between diversity and corporate responsibility. Diversity and inclusion has been considered solely an HR issue for many years, and I think we haven’t seen the kind of results we’d like to see. If we begin to look at diversity as a CSR issue, and use the same framework that we use to drive other corporate responsibility issues through our organization, I think we’ll be a lot more effective.

This year’s Net Impact conference gave us the perfect opportunity to explore this concept. Partnering with TriplePundit, we asked thought leaders from a variety of sectors – from students to corporate executives, across all industries – what diversity means to them and how it can help drive sustainable business growth.

The result is a series of thought-provoking interviews from leaders at corporations including Accenture and KPMG, representatives and students from academic institutions like Spelman and Mills Colleges, and nonprofit leaders from the Racial Equity Institute and Net Impact – and more. We were even treated to a great impromptu rap on diversity from Areva’s Laura Clise.

There’s mounting research to show the impact of diversity on business success, but we have to be motivated to move the conversation beyond basic diversity to embrace culture-driven changes in attitudes and behavior. Managing diversity and inclusion as one of a set of material business issues – rather than as just a feel-good talking point – is a huge step in the right direction.

About Cecily   

Cecily Joseph is Vice President of Corporate Responsibility and Chief Diversity Officer for Symantec Corporation, a global leader in security, backup, and availability solutions. In her role, she oversees Symantec’s global corporate responsibility efforts, which encompass environmental, social, and governance program development as well as diversity and inclusion, integration, and alignment. She is the U.S. network business representative to the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) and works to advance the principles of the UNGC through the public and private sectors and civil society. Cecily received the San Francisco Commission on the Status of Women Human Rights Award for her work in advancing gender equality and was named a Women of Influence by the Silicon Valley Business Journal for 2014. 

This blog post is an ongoing series featuring speakers from the 2014 Net Impact Conference.

More video to watch

See more diversity interviews and advice.
Catch sessions from this year's conference.