Disability Equality Index Top-Scoring Company Toolkit

Disability Equality Index 2023 Report The most comprehensive benchmarking tool for disability inclusion in business

Disability Equality Index Top-Scoring Company Toolkit

Congrats on earning a top score on the Disability Equality Index!

Announcement Date: Tuesday, July 11th, 2023 at 8:00 a.m. ET

Top-Scorers will be listed on this webpage:

https://disabilityin.org/what-we-do/disability-equality-index/2023companies/

Top-Scorers will also be listed on this LinkedIn Article:

https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7084505151465541633 

Points of Contact

About the Disability Equality Index (Boilerplate)

The Disability Equality Index (DEI) is a comprehensive benchmarking tool that helps companies build a roadmap of measurable, tangible actions that they can take to achieve disability inclusion and equality. Each company receives a score, on a scale of zero (0) to 100, with those earning 80 and above recognized as a “Best Place to Work for Disability Inclusion”.

The DEI is a joint initiative of the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD), the nation’s largest disability rights organization, and Disability:IN, the global business disability inclusion network, to collectively advance the inclusion of people with disabilities. The organizations are complimentary and bring unique strengths that make the project relevant and credible to corporations and the disability community. The tool was developed by the DEI Advisory Committee, a diverse group of business leaders, policy experts, and disability advocates. Learn more at: www.DisabilityEqualityIndex.org.

Download the Top-Scorers Toolkit (DOCX)

How We Recognize Your Company

On Tuesday, July 11th, Disability:IN and AAPD will make public announcements on all owned channels starting at 8:00am EDT. This includes social media, websites, and email campaigns.

Websites Twitter Facebook LinkedIn Instagram
Disability:IN DisabilityIN.org twitter.com/DisabilityIN facebook.com/DisabilityIN LinkedIn.com/company/DisabilityIN instagram.com/DisabilityIN
AAPD aapd.com twitter.com/AAPD facebook.com/DisabilityPowered LinkedIn.com/company/american-association-of-people-with-disabilities
Hashtags Recommended hashtags:

#DisabilityInclusion #DEI23 #AreYouIN? #BestPlaceToWork

 Recommended hashtags: #DEI23 #BestPlaceToWork Recommended hashtags: #DEI23 #AreYouIN #BestPlaceToWork Recommended hashtags: #DisabilityInclusion #BestPlaceToWork

All top-scoring companies of the DEI will be recognized in an article on Disability:IN’s LinkedIn. We will amplify and engage with each top-scoring company’s announcement on their channels.

Please alert and encourage your corporate communications teams to share any social media posts from Disability:IN and/or AAPD recognizing your company’s efforts. We are more than happy to do the same for you, and amplify your company’s posts if you tag us.

In-Person and On-Site at the Disability:IN Annual Conference in July 2023

On Tuesday, July 11, your DEI top-scoring company will be recognized at the Disability:IN Conference Opening Plenary: Disability Equality Index – Honoring Achievements and Focusing on the Future.

Since awards are being mailed directly to companies this year, top-scoring companies can stop by and get their photo taken with the DEI Award and backdrop on Tuesday, July 11th between 8am and 5pm, location information will be posted on the conference agenda. These photos will be shared via email two weeks after the conference.

There’s still time to register to attend virtually: conference.disabilityin.org. Please contact [email protected] for more information.

Sharing with Stakeholders – Sample Formats

Below are numerous ways other top-scoring companies have shared their Disability Equality Index score in the past with stakeholders.

Press/News Release

Industry Specific Press

Stakeholder Impact Report

  • Salesforce’s FY21 Stakeholder Impact Report: The Office of Accessibility partners with internal stakeholders to ensure compliance, highlight accessibility needs, develop improvement plans, and build workforce development programs.

Website Spotlight

Social Media Activation

Your scorecard provides insight into how well your company has advanced inclusion for each category. There are six (6) categories within the 2023 DEI benchmark. We recommend taking relevant sections of the scorecard and meeting with team leads to review opportunities for advancement.

  • Culture & Leadership = HR
  • Enterprise-Wide Access = Technology, HR
  • Employment Practices = HR
  • Community Engagement = CSR
  • Supplier Diversity = Supplier Diversity
  • Non-U.S. Operations = Supplier Diversity, International, HR

As a top scoring company, your team may choose to communicate your top score with external stakeholders. Below are a few ways we have seen top-scoring companies communicate their scores:

Messaging Your Score

Do not use the term “perfect” in any of your DEI top-score promotional materials. “Top-score” or “top-scorer” are the preferred terms.

Receiving a 100 on the DEI does not constitute as a “perfect score”. There is always room to advance disability inclusion! Do not use the term “perfect” in any of your DEI top-score promotional materials. “Top-score” or “top-scorer” are the preferred terms.

Companies that have earned a 100 score on the DEI have satisfied the criteria for that year and are recognized as a “Best Place to Work for Disability Inclusion.” A score of 100 on the DEI simply means that a company adheres to many of the numerous leading disability inclusion practices featured in the DEI. It does not convey perfection.

These criteria have been created to encourage companies to participate in the DEI year-after-year and to advance the best practices that should be expected of all large employers. The criteria have always been intended to evolve as more employers adopt existing criteria and new best practices emerge.

Other Messaging Requirements:

  • Always include that the Disability Equality Index is a joint initiative of the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) and Disability:IN.
  • Include registered mark “®” in superscript for first reference of the DEI. When referencing the DEI, include hyperlink to http://www.disabilityequalityindex.org

Feel free to use a variety of channels to message your score, including:

  • Company website
  • Career and/or diversity & inclusion webpage
  • Social media accounts
  • Email signature line
  • Press Release boilerplate
  • Recruiting materials
  • Employee Resource Group (ERG) materials
  • Self-Disclosure Campaigns
  • Company-wide town halls

Communications Assets and Materials

Your company’s main point of contact will receive the DEI score logo (100 / 90 / 80)

You may also use the DEI logos below that do not include a score

Press Release Key Messaging Document  containing:

  • Pre-Approved Quotes from Disability:IN and the American Association of People with Disabilities
  • Boilerplates for each organization
  • Key Messaging & Overview of the DEI

If you would like to use a custom graphic, download this graphic and place your company logo in the placeholder. To do this, just open this graphic in a photo editing software/platform.

customizable graphic with a blue striped background and text reading: Named 2023 Best Place to Work for Disability Inclusion by the Disability Equality Index

Feel free to tweak the following to better align with your company’s brand and voice.

  • We are proud to be named a Disability Equality Index (DEI) #BestPlaceToWork for #DisabilityInclusion by @DisabilityIN @AAPD. This recognition highlights the work we continue to do to include people with disabilities.
  • (Company) is proud to have earned a XX on the Disability Equality Index by @DisabilityIN @AAPD. It’s an honor to be recognized as a Best Place to Work for Disability Inclusion. #DisabilityEqualityIndex
  • We are thrilled to have earned a top score on @DisabilityIN and @AAPD’s Disability Equality Index. (Company) is proud to be IN for #DisabilityInclusion. #DisabilityEqualityIndex
  • Proud of (Company’s) top score on @DisabilityIN and @AAPD’s Disability Equality Index (DEI). We are thrilled by this benchmark of our efforts as we continue to advance disability inclusion. #DisabilityEqualityIndex
  • We are honored to be recognized as a #BestPlaceToWork for #DisabilityInclusion on the Disability Equality Index by @DisabilityIN @AAPD. #DisabilityEqualityIndex
  • Did you know that (Company) received a top score on @DisabilityIN and @AAPD’s #DisabilityEqualityIndex? We are proud of our #DisabilityInclusion efforts and our continued commitment to #PwD.
  • Disability inclusion drives #Innovation. (Company) values all talent and we’re proud to have earned a top score on the #DisabilityEqualityIndex!
  • Thank you @DisabilityIN and @AAPD for recognizing (Company) as a top-scorer on the Disability Equality Index. We are proud to advance further on our #DisabilityInclusion journey to drive tangible actions toward full inclusion and equality. #BestPlaceToWork

As companies post about their disability inclusion efforts, it’s a best practice to ensure those social media posts are accessible. For example, photos should have alt text descriptions and videos should include captions. For additional guidance, we recommend reviewing our Toolkit for Creating Accessible Social Media Content. Other great resources are the Accessible Social Media Checklist, Federal Social Media Accessibility Toolkit Hackpad, and How to Make Your Facebook or Instagram Posts More Accessible.

Additional Opportunities to Join IN!

As you review your scorecard, you may want to begin advancing inclusion in certain areas of business. The Disability:IN website, under “Resources”, has a variety of resources for teams to dive into, including “From Compliance to Culture: Self ID in the Disability Inclusion Era,” “Three Actions to be a Mental Health Champion & Ally”, “Disability Etiquette” and more.

Additionally, you can invite your Employee Resource Groups, team members, and senior leadership to sign up for our mailing list to receive relevant communications on how they can advance inclusion in their capacity: DisabilityIN.org/email-newslettersubscription/.

A complimentary DEI Scorecard outlining your company’s results on the 2023 DEI is available for download to help you continue to grow your disability inclusion strategy and programming. Details on how to access the scorecard were emailed to your company’s primary DEI contact on June 9. Customized DEI Deep Dive review presentations delivered by Disability:IN team members are available to select Disability:IN corporate partners as part of their partnership package and can be scheduled by all other companies for an additional cost. Please contact Mackenzie Ward, Director of Corporate Relations, to learn more about Disability:IN partnership opportunities and DEI Deep Dives.

Inclusion Works provides participating companies with unlimited, customized, virtual and onsite consulting provided by a team of disability inclusion experts. We help you create an inclusive culture while simultaneously developing a sustainable recruitment strategy.

Joining Inclusion Works also connects your company to a Community of Corporations with exclusive meetings and shared best and evolving practices. To date the community of corporations have hired over 300,000 people with disabilities and has grown to nearly 132 participating companies. Learn more about Inclusion Works.

Nearly 175 CEOs have now signed the Disability:IN CEO Letter on Disability Inclusion. You can learn more about the campaign and how your CEO can join “IN” at  DisabilityIN.org/CEOs-Are-IN.

Any asset-managing company or financial institution is also invited to join “IN” as an investor. Learn more at: DisabilityIN.org/investors-are-in/.

Gain year-over-year benchmark insights and register for the 2024 DEI. Registration opens Fall 2023. Register at www.disabilityequalityindex.org/register. Additional information on how to register will be forthcoming.

2024 DEI Overview

  • DEI Registration Opens: Fall 2023
  •  Registration Closes: Jan. 26, 2024
  • DEI Opens: Jan. 29, 2024
  • DEI Closes: April 12, 2024

Learn more about the DEI Get link to Toolkit Topics

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