THE I M P A CT O F D E I O N RE CR U ITIN G A ND R E T E NT I O N Guest Author: Asheya L. Warren, FSMPS, CPSM, PRAXIS Strategic Consulting
Understanding the impact of
matrix that breaks out all
work of our industry, building the
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
segments of their staff, cross-
world around us.
(DEI) on recruiting and retention
referencing career levels with both
in the A/E/C industry has
race and gender. Some of this is
multi-faceted implications.
unbeknownst to marketers and
From project selection to firm
business developers who may
operations, our unique
be doing their best to position
organizations have numerous
the team only to be caught in the
lenses through which to consider
crosshairs of policy evaluation.
DEI. From a project perspective, we all must comprehend the
Additionally, firms are struggling
selection process, particularly in
across the country with
public work where team member
bandwidth and pipeline issues.
makeup, M/WBE requirements,
On the construction side, skilled
and individual roles are included
project professionals like
in the evaluation process.
superintendents are concerned
Additionally, on the procurement
with workforce depth over the
side, some entities analyze
next 5 to 10 years. This article
internal workforce composition
explores the impact of DEI on
where firms must complete a
recruiting and retention and considers those impacts on the
Recruiting For years, professional services, particularly in the A/E/C industry, have been dominated by a specific demographic. Entry into the technical field is often overshadowed by preconceived notions and stereotypical archetypes of who can succeed. Usually, this is exacerbated by the recruiting efforts of seeking students from known or related higher educational institutions, often resulting in a homogenous pool of internship candidates and job placements. For non-technical business services positions in the
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