Chamber creates DEI Toolkit for Quad Cities businesses

Diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) is top-of-mind for most businesses right now. And if it is not, it should be. It is not only a best practice, but it is imperative to the future success of businesses. If your company has not developed a DEI Plan, the Quad Cities Chamber is here to help with a new DEI Toolkit for businesses.

Additionally, an expert on the subject is one of the headliners at the Chamber’s upcoming Annual Celebration presented by TBK Bank on Aug. 13. Skot Welch, who has nearly 20 years of experience in the field, will talk about the difference between success and failure of DEI at your company. Growing up in a military family gave Welch a unique perspective on diversity and a passion for helping organizations tap into the vast experiences of their employees to create stronger businesses.

In alignment with the Q2030 vision of creating a welcoming and inclusive Quad Cities region, the Chamber created a DEI Toolkit to help your business become a more diverse, equitable and inclusive organization. The toolkit, sponsored by Quad Cities Community Foundation, Rock Island Community Foundation and US Bank, includes four steps to begin or advance your DEI journey:

Step 1: Enhance leaders’ knowledge and capabilities

Step 2: Build the business case for why DEI is important 

Step 3: Build a coordinated approach for how the company will focus on DEI

Step 4: Build a DEI plan for what the company will do to achieve the company’s DEI vision

Each step includes a list of action items and tools to accomplish them. Businesses are encouraged to progress through each phase at their own pace to ensure organizational buy-in and lasting change. 

“In order to compete for talent and be the welcoming community we strive to be, we must continue to look at how we think, speak and behave as a region,” said Kristin Glass, the Chamber’s Chief Strategy Officer. “The DEI Toolkit was created to support businesses wherever they are on their DEI journey and help them become a more welcoming and inclusive business.”

Research shows that having a diverse team of employees and an inclusive workplace environment will help a company attract and retain talent and make it more competitive in the marketplace. Data also shows the Quad Cities region’s talent pool is becoming more ethnically diverse, further emphasizing the importance of creating equitable opportunities for people of color and other historically marginalized groups of people.

Quad Cities population projections for 2021 indicate the white population in the region will have declined by almost 9% since 2001, while the non-white population will have increased by over 65% during the same span.

Creating the implementation toolkit for businesses is part of the Chamber’s DEI strategic framework adopted in February 2020 to guide our organization’s journey. It has three sections: organizational competency, customer engagement and community impact. The Chamber is committed to integrating the framework into our everyday approach to serving the regional business community and facilitating economic growth.

To download the toolkit, please fill out the form below: