Foundational Stage 

Identify and engage Executive sponsor(s) 

If you are responsible for identifying an executive sponsor, consider leaders in your organization who identify as a person with a disability or an ally. You may also want to consider leveraging your Human Resources and/or Diversity, Equity & Inclusion team to help you identify potential Executive Sponsors and to invite them to participate in that capacity.   
Additional information regarding Executive Sponsors is available in the BRG Executive Sponsor Role Fact Sheet 

Form ERG/BRG Board & Committees 

In addition to board positions such as Chair/President, Co-Chair/Vice President, Treasurer/Finance Lead and Secretary, consider what positions you may need to support your ERG structure. (i.e., communications, department Liaisons, membership, outreach, education, infrastructure & resources, regional leads). Position titles and responsibilities will vary based on the size and needs of the ERG/BRG.

If there are other diversity-focused ERGs within your organization, it may be helpful to look at their structures to see if a similar structure would make sense for your ERG/BRG.   

Here are some common roles and possible responsibilities within ERG/BRGs:

Chair/President

• Has responsibility for the ERG mission statement.
• Spearheads development/implementation of annual strategic plan & oversees budget development ensuring alignment and integration of ERG/BRG ’s global strategy and programming are aligned with the company’s overall D&I Strategy. 
• Provides leadership to BRG membership by identifying & articulating annual strategic goals, leading monthly meetings of the committee, and approving events.
• Partners with Executive Sponsor(s) and other department leaders (HR, IT, supplier diversity, facilities, etc.) to ensure engagement and support of BRG Board members to drive key Culture, Talent & Business initiatives.
• Participates in regular meetings with other BRG leaders to help foster a collaborative and engaged BRG environment. 
• Attends and represents membership at the quarterly Inclusion Council meeting hosted by the CEO and the executive leadership team.
• Leads transition planning activities: Identifies high potentials to assume greater responsibility in the BRG and expose them to board opportunities to gain experience; develop potential successors; and ensures best practices are documented and saved.
• Serves as a role model for inclusive behavior by  Creating an environment characterized by open communication, creative thinking, cohesive team effort and trust. 
• Help grow a diverse talent pipeline within the company.
• Recruit new ERG/BRG members and board/committee members.
• Track metrics and share with appropriate stakeholders.

Co-Chair/Vice-President

• Serves as back-up resources to the leader when both are not able to attend meetings and events together.
• Oversees group logistics – meeting agenda, places, times.
• Helps ERG leadership team to organize ERG events.
• Coordinates community service activities.
• Mentors committee leaders.

Treasurer/Finance Chair

• Submits, tracks and confirms budget requests and approvals for BRG expenses. 
• Develops and manages annual budget.
• Allocates budget (internal coding) for events from national and local sites, and resolves any budgetary matters with vendors.
• Ensures all necessary documentation of expenses are maintained and submitted on a timely basis.
• Supports budget process and prepares financial reports and presentations to share with E/BRG Board, Executive Sponsor, and Diversity, Equity & Inclusion team. 

Secretary 

• Coordinates ERG registration of new members.
• Maintains ERG membership list.
• Acts as official recorder of meeting notes and keeps all records.
• Manages events/planning calendar.

Communications Lead

• Develops BRG key messaging, and spearheads communication strategies
• Receives approval on key communications from Chair/President, Executive Sponsor and other Board members/leads, as needed.
• Creates BRG internal messaging and manages communications, such as emails, flyers, SharePoint/newsletter submissions, etc. 
• Oversees all BRG-related communications and promotion within membership and employee-wide.
• Writes/manages BRG event/activity submissions for internal communication channels, such as employee emails, intranet, Diversity & Inclusion Newsletter, etc. 
• Partners with Diversity, Equity & Inclusion team for external publicity or speaker opportunities, such as blog, website, social media/media, etc. 
• Selects/approves design, photography and any marketing materials representing BRG with Corporate Communications approval.
• Gathers photos, videos and summaries of events.

Culture Lead

• Develops and distributes the agenda and shall arrange logistics for all membership meetings (with input form Chair/President, other board members, and leads).
• Ensures all members have been welcomed, assigned to site location and engage new members. 
• Manages the Mailbox emails and run membership reports from SharePoint for the Site leads monthly.
• Promotes, encourages and organizes local volunteerism in coordination with local leads.
• Partnership with the Diversity, Equity and Inlcusion team to elevate BRG and to continue to foster an inclusive culture where employees feel valued and fully engaged.

Talent Chair

• Assesses and monitors the professional development needs of BRG members and develops/implements plans to meet those needs.
• Partners with Diversity, Equity & Inclusion team and HR to develop/distribute member surveys, including skills assessments, analysis/develop talent programs.
• Identifies and establishes networking, mentoring and other professional development opportunities for membership.
• Supports key professional development initiatives, talent pipeline and mentoring/sponsorship programs.

Business Lead

• Establishes strategy/direction on business model intake for the BRG members to participate in business outcomes.
• Oversees activities in partnering with internal business groups to reach corporate goals as well as participation in diversity initiatives that promote leveraging BRG cultural insights.  
• Assists in collaboration and development of a forum to leverage BRG members for business initiatives.  

Strategy Lead

• Establishes strategy/direction on business model intake for the BRG members to participate in business outcomes.
• Oversees activities in partnering with internal business groups to reach corporate goals as well as participation in diversity initiatives that promote leveraging BRG cultural insights.  
• Assists in collaboration and development of a forum to leverage BRG members for business initiatives.  
• Partners with other leads to empower BRG’s to make a significant impact on business growth & diverse market expansion.
• Partners with other leads to implement Business Case & Intake Model and strategize on needed business resources.

Operations Lead

• Ensures programming among the board members and site leads is relevant to the BRG’s Mission and Goals
• Oversees official publication of BRG marketing material, and any other communications or feedback vehicles that impact the image of the organization.  
• Assists Site Liaisons and Site Leads with report out progress and events.
• Serves as official custodian of records, including the Charter & playbook and the Executive Board minutes and Leadership Committee meetings provided by Communications.  
• Assists with email requests and follow up inquiries. 

Site Liaison Lead

• Partners with Site Leaders in all locations to ensure that they are providing leadership support, consistency and best practices.
• Ensures consistency and helps each site develop effective business plans, which are supportive of the BRG Mission & Goals providing each site with support for following:
• Maintaining compliance with the BRG mission & vision and with the broader Enterprise rules governing Business Resource Groups.
• Soliciting budget requests in a timely fashion.
• Having a forum to surface issues that relate to the BRG.
• Holding regular site member meetings to capture issues and ideas for the BRG Board and providing monthly status reports to the Strategy Lead.
• Cataloging events at the site and leveraging best practices and ideas across all the sites.

Membership Development Lead

• In partnership with the Site Leads, develops and implements effective business plans for managing recruitment and member benefits, which are supportive of the BRG’s Mission & Goals.
• Works with the Site Liaisons to ensure regular site meetings are held to secure member status updates and feedback.
• Manages the Email distribution list and consistency on welcoming new members to the BRG.

  

Determine initial ERG structure (regional, sub-groups) 

Things to consider while determining the ERG structure can include the general company location and size to determine how many sub-groups may be needed.  Sub-groups can be broken down by region as well as by disability. Focus on aligning the disability ERG strategy with your business outcomes and the goals of other ERGs. Also determine a structure that will help drive impactful outcomes for both the business and ERG members.  

PNC Financial

Industry: Financial Services

Company Size: 50,000+

Company Locations/Regions/Global: Global; regional markets across over 40 states in the U.S.

Established: 2010

High Level Structure: ERG is primarily focused in US

Hybrid model – Regional representatives to coordinate activities within the region and awareness groups that function across all regions

How sub-groups are identified: Hybrid – Regional and disability specific across all regions

Budget Allocation: Budget allocated annually from D&I based on operating plan-approval from E/BRG leadership and D&I team needed for spending not included in initial plan; incremental funding may be sought from E/BRG Exec sponsor

E/BRG Leadership:

• Centralized ERG Leadership group located in the US
• Each US region has a Regional Advocate to coordinate activities within the region. 
• There are also awareness groups focused on specific disabilities or life conditions that operate across all of the US regions.

Executive Sponsor: 

• One (1)

Initiatives and Working relationship between different locations:

• Combination of separate initiatives and events that are coordinated with other diversity-focused ERGs within a region
• Annual disability conference – regional watch parties
• Membership drive at US level and regional advocates lead the effort within their region

Additional Information: 

• Mission Statement – (possibly include a link to the list of mission statement examples). We don’t have a mission statement per se, but our tagline is “employees helping employees.” 
• How the ERG was implemented/evolved, – PNC Cares (now PNC ENABLE) started in 2010 as a virtual ERG when several call center employees with disabilities came together as a group. 
• How to build a sense of community across ERGs – PNC Enable build community in several ways:
  • By offering programming such as lunch and learns, annual conferences, etc.
  • Nine awareness groups focused on specific disabilities or stages of life. 
  • Regional advocates in markets across PNC’s footprint to promote PNC Enable in their local markets, host local events, etc. 
  • SharePoint site housing resource and a “Connections” page. (Connections is a wiki).
  • PNC Enable president personally contacts all new members 
  • Collaborating with other PNC EBRG on events, book clubs, etc.  
• Strengths/Successes
  • Membership growth – Members grew from 687 at the end of 2019 to a current total of 1,658
  • Awareness groups grew from original five to current nine.
  • 35 Regional advocates (starting from zero in 2018)
  • Launched buddy program to assist PNC Enable members with cultural agility
  • Grew PNC Enable leadership team from nine members to 26 since 2018
  • PNC Enable has been virtual since inception.
  • “Voice at the table” provide PNC input when company is seeking recommendations for accessibility enhancements.  
• Opportunities
  • Challenge with hourly employees or employees with fixed work schedules being able to actively participate in PNC Enable events and awareness group meetings – Consider asking leaders of awareness groups to have meetings at different times on different dates that provides opportunities for employees with different schedules to attend; asking all awareness groups to move meetings/events to later in the day due to time differences; any events after hours are on their own time; partnered with care center locations and managers will consider allowing employees to attend during lunch hour or break time; non-exempt and non-customer facing, it is easier for manager to give employees the time.
  • Virtual model allows for broader but not as deep connections as having members meet in person.
  • Include information about how your programs link to the ERG mission statement, which then links to overall DEI strategy
  • Selection of ERG/Leaders who are strategic thinkers and/or high enough in the organization to enable growth – Leaders must be at a certain career band (salary grade).  

Lessons learned in implementing (or evolving) into current model 

• Ideally candidates for elected office should already be active leaders being an awareness group leader, committee chairperson or committee member
• Adding awareness groups, regional advocates and increasing frequency of newsletters have really helped to drive membership growth and engagement

How are executive sponsors brought on? 

• Diversity and inclusion office appoints executive sponsors

How does ERG connect with Executive Sponsor and/or company executives? 

• ERG president meets with Exec sponsor monthly; Exec sponsor is active participant in annual conference; annual membership meeting that Exec sponsor participates in; Operating plan is reviewed and approved by Exec sponsor; Exec sponsor helps engage with other company leaders when needed (i.e., instrumental in pulling together speakers for Leadership panel—including CEO—at annual conference)

Any special ERG programs that are unique to PNC – internal or external? 

• Mentoring day for high school students – ERG participates in company-wide mentoring
• Annual accessibility summit put on by accessibility committee (digital accessibility, real estate, customer facing) come together to discuss accessibility needs and progress; ERG participates in discussions; members serve as panelists/speakers and provide input into summit content (i.e., developed accessibility catalogue)
• Accessibility Operating committee is a steering committee spearheaded by accessibility office and is a way to stay connected to accessibility effort and provide input (i.e., training for non-apparent disability training and an ERG leader provided input for training)
• Has a list of member volunteers that serve as a focus group for the rest of the organization when they have a need for input from ERG
• Do regional advocates meet with other regional advocates on a regular basis? Yes, meet monthly to share what they are doing in their region, best practice sharing, share information to be pushed out within the regions.

TIAA

Industry: Financial Services

Company Size: 15,000+

Company Locations/Regions/Global: Global; across the U.S. with 4 hub locations

Established: 2014

High Level Structure: National; U.S. ERG plus 6-chapter locations

How sub-groups are identified: Chapters

Budget Allocation: Budget allocated annually at the national BRG level and distributed to chapters as requested/approved

E/BRG Leadership: 2 National Chairs; each chapter has at least co-leads (2 leaders per chapter)

Support structure by role

• 2 Executive Sponsors
• 2 National Co-Chairs
• 2 Communications Leads
• 3 Corporate Social Responsibility Team
• 1 Business Manager
• 1 Sharepoint Lead
• 2 Community Circles Leads
• 1 Health and Wellness Lead

Executive Sponsor(s): 

• 2 Co-Executive Sponsors are assigned to the BRG and each has a 2-year term

Initiatives/Working relationship between different locations: 

• Disability E/BRG has their own national strategy, goals and initiatives to complete each year; coordinate with other diversity-focused BRGs to collaborate on joint events throughout the year where topic aligns
• Each chapter establishes how they will align and execute to the national strategy, but may work together to leverage what they are doing

Cummins

Industry: Manufacturing

Company Size: 50,000+

Company Locations/Regional/Global: Global

Established:  2007

High Level Structure: Global Inclusion Leadership Council (GILC) with an Executive Sponsor and Leadership Chair for each of our six primary dimensions of diversity.  Local or Regional Chapters located around the world. Specific to Disability Inclusion: 

• 4 U.S. local chapters
• 6 Regional ERGs, some with local chapters (India, Latin America, Europe, Africa/Middle East, Asia Pacific, China)

How Sub-Groups are Identified: Chapters

Budget Allocations: 

• Budget allocated annually from Corporate Diversity, Equity & Inclusion with additional support from local or executive sponsors. In the United States each ERG is given a budget of $1500 from a Central Diversity and Inclusion budget.  

E/BRG Leadership: 

• Each Regional and Local chapter has two Co-Chairs. Many chapters also have members serving as workstream or pillar leaders.

Executive Sponsor(s): 

• The GILC has an Officer-level Executive Sponsor and a Director-level Chair dedicated to Diversity Inclusion ERGs. 
• Each Regional and Local Chapter has an Executive Sponsor.
  • Managers who are passionate about making Cummins a more inclusive place to work
  • Demonstrated personal commitment to D&I, inside and outside of Cummins
  • Strategize with and coach ERG Leaders on how to effectively operate a new ERG
  • Support the creation of new ERGs

Initiatives/Working Relationship Between Different Locations (national to regional oversight, etc.): 

• The GILC sets global initiatives and workplans based on the Cummins Leadership Team’s DE&I Goals.  The GILC Sponsors and Chairs cascade the initiative and workplans to Regional and Local ERG leaders.  Regional and Local ERGs set workplans specific to their ERG goals and in support of the global workplans. The GILC Chairs meet regularly with ERG Leaders to help set local strategy and goals for their ERG. Co-leaders of all the Disability Inclusion ERG’s meet monthly to discuss and support each chapter as they coordinate their own initiatives locally. 

Additional Information: 

• Over 30 years ago, Cummins employees began forming affinity groups organized around traditional minority workplace groups such as women, African Americans, and Hispanics.  Affinity groups were primarily used for social and networking opportunities and served as a support system and social outlet for their members. In 2019, Cummins made the shift from affinity groups to employee resource groups (ERG) supporting six primary dimensions of diversity: Gender, Multi-Cultural, Disability Inclusion, Gender Identity and Sexual Orientation, Age, and Military Service. The purpose of the shift was to strengthen the inclusiveness of all employees.  Affinity implies gathering of the same. Cummins culture supports a workplace where all employees can be involved in resource groups, bringing the power of diversity to our ERGs. The shift has led our employee groups to move from event-driven to serving as a critical strategic partner for Cummins.
• Sponsors and chairs bring strategy to ERGs that are set at Leadership Council level; sponsors in US chapters are Director level or above.
• Each leader/co-leader for workstreams sets their strategy each year – can be any level of employee who has passion around the ERG and time to dedicate to those positions; a lot of advertising talking about development opportunities; typically hard to fill positions so whoever steps up is placed in the role for a 2 year commitment; work on succession planning for backfilling the leadership roles; similar for sub-committee positions
• Global inclusion leader in each region pulls all ERG leaders together within the region on a regular basis.

Have a designated D&I lead as liaison for disability ERG 

Determine ERG/BRG name  

There are a few things to consider when selecting a name for your ERG: 

• Be careful not to use euphemisms (i.e., differently abled, challenged, special) as many individuals with disabilities feel use of these types of words perpetuates the negative stigma associated with disability and it is better to just use the word disability. 
• It’s ok to use the word “disability” in your ERG name. In fact, including disability in your ERG name will help employees more easily identify the demographic you serve versus using acronym or some clever name. 
• Be sure your employees with disabilities are comfortable with the name being used to represent them. 
• Most companies have a single disability-focused E/BRG that encompasses all employees regardless of type of disability.  Within that resources group, sub-groups/committees are formed to focus on specific types of disabilities. Some of the more common sub-grounds include mental health, neurodiverse/autism, physical, caregivers, blind, and deaf/hard-of-hearing.  

ERG/BRG Name Examples 

• Abilities First/ Abilities First & Allies 
• Abilities in Motion (AIM) 
• Ability: Advance, Advocate, Educate 
• ABLE (acronym for: Achieving Beyond Limits and Expectations or Abilities Beyond Limits and Expectations or Ability Bettered through Leadership and Education or Ability Beyond Limited Expectations) 
• ABLED (acronym for: Awareness Benefiting Leadership and Employees about Disabilities) 
• Access 
• Access for Disabilities Network (ADN) 
• AccessAbilities 
• AccessAbility 
• ADAPT (Abled & Disabled Allies Partnering Together)  
• ADAPTability 
• ADEPT (Abled and Disabled Employees Partnering Together) 
• AIM (acronym for: Ability Inclusion Movement or Abilities in Motion) 
• All Abilities Resource Group (AARG) 
• Allies for Disabilities 
• Awareness of Visible and Invisible Disabilities (AVID) 
• CAN (acronym for: Capable + Able Network or CapAble Associate Network 
• CapAbilities  
• Combining Abilities for Business Success (CABS)  
• Connected Disability Awareness Network (CDAN) 
• DAN (acronym for: Disability Advocacy Network or Disability Alliance Network) 
• disAbilities Business Impact Network 
• Disabilities Network 
• Disability/disability/DisABILITY 
• Disability+ 
• DisAbility Advocacy Inclusiveness Resource Team 
• Disability Advocacy Network (DAN)/Disability Employee Network (DEN) 
• disAbility Awareness  
• Disability Confidence  
• Disability Connection 
• disAbility Diversity Network 
• Disability Inclusion Employee Resource Group/Network 
• Disability Interest Forum 
• disABILITY Outreach & Inclusion Team 
• Employees with Disabilities and their Allies 
• Empower Abilities 
• Empowering Abilities ERG 
• Enable/ENABLE /ENABLED (acronym for: ENhancing ABilities and LEveraging Differences) 
• EnableIn 
• Focus on Abilities 
• Global DisAbilities Council 
• HEART (Helping Each Ability by Respecting and Teaching) 
• iCAN 
• InABLE 
• In-Abled Business Resource Group 
• LEAD (Leadership, Education and Allies for Disabilities) 
• MyAbilities 
• People with Disabilities  
• People with Disabilities and Allies Council 
• People with Disabilities and Caregivers Associate Resource Group 
• possAbilities Employee Resource Group 
• possABILITY 
• Powering Connections for All Abilities (PCAA) 
• Professionals with Disabilities Network (PwDN) 
• REACH (Recognizing Employees of All Abilities, Celebrate and Harness) 
• REAL DEAL (Resourceful, Empowering, Awareness, Limitless for Disabled Employees Accessing Life) 
• Strive (for disability empowerment) 
• The Council on Disability Awareness 
• Thrive-Disability Leadership Council  
• True Ability 
• U Belong 

Develop your mission/vision statement(s) 

Having a mission and vision can help define future goals and strategies to achieve those goals. Together they help you develop a strategy and guide decision making. 

The mission statement specifically outlines the goals and strategies for reaching those goals. 

• It is your grand plan – how you are going to change, disrupt disability inclusion. 
• It is forward-looking and creates an image of the ideal state the ERG wants to achieve. 
• It is inspirational and aspirational. 

The vision statement helps look to the future and provides the direction in which to go.  

• It supports the vision of the ERG leadership team and will serve to communicate the purpose and direction to employees and key stakeholders. 

Here are some sample mission and vision statements:  

1. Mission: To advance a positive and supportive workplace for employees with disabilities and increase disability awareness. 
   The Disability Network is here to support, advocate and celebrate the inclusion of people with disabilities in [company’s] workforce. The Disability Network strives to provide support to customers and the community with disabilities. Our contribution to [company’s] workforce assists in building better communities. It helps to increase [company’s] awareness and reputation regarding disability issues, accomplishments, and challenges. 
   We work to ensure that each employee is provided with the resources to work in a safe, respectful, fair, and culturally sensitive workplace. 
2. Mission: Leading the way by actively shaping culture for people with diverse abilities as well as for their caregivers and advocates. 
   Vision: Transforming the world to enable our best every day. 
3. The mission of the Disability ERG is to expand [company’s] culture of inclusion and understanding by raising awareness that those with disabilities have vital skills and unique talents and are an important dimension of diversity and identity at [company].   
   This group will contribute to an environment that validates the dignity, trust and respect of employees who live with and / or support those with disabilities, visible and invisible medical conditions, or illnesses so that our employees are recognized and supported as whole people, and so that [company] benefits from a more integrated, healthy, and productive workforce. 
4. Mission:
   ERG promotes the inclusion and celebration of people with any disability to be empowered to bring their “whole selves” to work.   
   We raise awareness for issues specific to people with disabilities in the workplace and community while creating allies and sustaining a safe environment where we can learn, teach, and share resources for individuals, customers, and allies. 
   Vision:  To be a trusted thought leader for disability inclusion by being an advocate in the workplaces and communities where we do business.  To be the company of choice for employees, candidates, and customers. 
5. Demonstrate our commitment to employees with disabilities, caregivers, and supporters by creating opportunities to connect, learn, develop and contribute powerfully to our company and communities. 
6. Mission: The Disability ERG is committed to fostering an inclusive environment for persons with disabilities and employees who are caregivers to family members in need. 
   Vision: Our vision is an environment where everyone with the passion to create extraordinary products has the opportunity to contribute through inclusion, accommodation, communication, networking and community engagement, we strive for an environment that is inclusive of persons with disabilities. 
7. Disability BRG supports [company] by creating a culture that welcomes people with differing abilities, exemplifies [company] as a disability friendly employer, works to better serve our customers and colleagues with disabilities and helps improve the communities in which we work and live. 
8. Disability ERG is a community for those who have a disability, support a close family member, friend or colleague with a disability, and any employee that wants to help raise awareness and champion support for impacted individuals. Through education, advocacy, and networking, the ERG aims to ensure that all employees impacted directly or indirectly by a disability have the resources, opportunities, and support they need to excel in their career and help [company] achieve its mission of making the world a safer place. 
9. Our mission is to foster an environment that affirms the contributions of employees with visible and non-visible disabilities and supports the work of every employee who is impacted by disability – including parents of disabled children, spouses or partners to disabled individuals, caregivers of disabled friends or family members, and others. 

Set year 1 goals and objectives. 

Review other sections of the maturity model to identify what the ERG wants to accomplish in the first year.  You don’t have to accomplish everything all at once, so consider setting no more than 5 achievable goals for your first year to keep from becoming overwhelmed.  

Here are some sample goals/objectives (not all will be year one goals):  

• Partner with Talent Acquisition to help attract and support acquiring talent with diverse abilities. 
• Enhance community impact by identifying and cultivating external strategic partnerships. 
• Make the invisible visible by continuing to shape a culture of inclusion for people with diverse abilities along with their caregivers and advocates. 
• Identify specific opportunities for collaboration with the business, other ERGs, and community partners. 
• Promote a supportive work environment that provides all the means to thrive. 
• Create awareness about [company’s] responsibilities and obligations under the American with Disabilities Act.  
• Create a greater sense of appreciation for employees and members of society who are disabled, including an awareness for how their unique challenges often translate to outstanding contributions, breakthrough thinking and competitive advantages for teams. 
• Partner with Human Resources to develop and promote efforts that: 
  • Recognize the value of the disabled community at [company],  
  • Improve recruitment efforts, and define career guidance and opportunities for the disabled, 
  • Promote the accomplishments of those who are disabled / with different abilities or talents, 
  • Serve as a resource for employees, Human Resources, and the business to help identify ways to leverage special skills and/or develop specialized products and services. 
• Sponsor thought provoking and informational sessions led by education specialists or occupational therapists about topical issues (i.e.: emerging technologies, trends, legislation, etc.) and foster open internal dialogue.  
• Partnering with internal and external organizations to:  
  • learn from experts in the field, 
  • more fully support [company’s] employees as individuals who have disabilities. 
• More fully support employees as caregivers of family member with a disability. 
• Positively represent [company] and its commitment to the disabled community. 
• Look at funding sources; develop business plan to request funding. 

Your Diversity & Inclusion team may already have a pre-determined budget for each diversity BRG. If not, develop a business plan and estimated costs involved for year 1 activities and goals.  

Identify internal stakeholders.  

Identifying internal stakeholders early allows you to identify their needs and expectations, which can prove helpful as you identify goals and priorities. This can also set the stage for clear communication, and to understand and effectively address stakeholder expectations or concerns.  

• Possible stakeholders include but are not limited to: DE&I, Safety, Talent Acquisition, Human Resources, Benefits, Accommodations, Supplier Diversity, Facilities, Product Developers, IT, Legal, Internal Communications, Marketing, External Vendors.  

Identify Executives, Managers and employees who are disability champions. 

While it may seem difficult to engage executives on the topic of disability, remember Sr. Leaders are people too; they have stories to tell and room to grow/learn more., ERG leaders need to be bold and not be afraid to have the conversations with them if they want to make progress.

Many diversity-focused ERGs have successful ally programs and you can expand your effectiveness and reach if you include them Executives and Managers in your efforts. 

Executive Sponsors

• Ensure Executive Sponsor is aligned with ERG (e.g., how they want to be involved, let them know how you want to partner with them, what you need from them, expectations of their role in support of the ERG).
• Engage Executive Sponsor to help open doors, remove barriers, and make connections throughout the organization:
  • Ask them to reach out to other leaders who may be able to speak about disability in the workplace,
  • Have them share information and events with their peers.
• Advocate to have scorecard to measure Executive Sponsor involvement/effectiveness.
• Ask Exec Sponsor to share business problems that need to be solved with ERG so diverse viewpoints on the problem can be considered as the solution is being developed.
• If Executive Sponsor is not engaging, provide an out so you can get someone who will actively engage/advocate (i.e., let them know you know they are busy and offer to give the opportunity to someone else who may have more time available).

Other Senior Leaders

• ERG Leaders can meet regularly (monthly, quarterly, annually) with Executive Sponsor, CEO and other “C” suite executives:
  • Have a discussion instead of just presenting,
  • Talk about initiatives (tangible results of past initiatives, ideas for future initiatives), support and/or resources needed from CEO, Executives, or others, what members need, “it would be helpful if…”, and metrics. 
  • Have discussion prior to company budgets being set in case monetary resources are needed for initiatives (e.g., accessibility review).

• Talk to your organization’s leadership team about their goals and align ERG goals to support those efforts. 
• Send year-end email to all managers highlighting ERG scope, results of initiatives during the year, and correlate to positive business outcomes.
• Listen to what leaders are talking about and use that information to invite them to speak or engage in some other way (e.g., leader talks about importance of taking vacation so ask to speak on the topic of the importance of self-care for mental health).
• Be specific about what the “ask is” when you are asking for leadership involvement.
• Identify Sr. leaders (EVP/C-Suite) who have a disability or are caregivers with a relatable story to promote efforts, speak at events, record supporting messages, and/or serve as Executive Sponsor.
• Invite leaders to participate in active allyship.
• Help leaders realize and acknowledge how they are included in DE&I and without their involvement, organizational goals are not met.
• Provide leaders with concrete examples of how the E/BRG is driving value for the business.
• Host workshops or focus groups with Sr. Leaders and employees with disabilities so leaders can learn more about both the value and needs of the population.
• Invite leaders to Disability:IN conference or other engagements where they can connect with other business leaders and better understand the value of the E/BRG and their inclusion efforts. 
• Invite supervisors, manager, leaders, executives to the table. Some examples include:
  • Have them share information or allow E/BRG member to present at team meetings (e.g., E/BRG information, etiquette tips, resources),
  • Attend and actively participate in E/BRG events,
  • Become a member, committee chair, sponsor,
  • Coordinated efforts with their communications teams on inclusion campaigns,
  • Mentor steering committee members,
  • Ask where/how they would like to engage with speaking opportunities,
  • Ask leaders what ERG goals would align with and add value to the business, 
  • Invite to an accessibility tour of the buildings to see areas that are/are not accessible.
• Ask E/BRG members to engage the manager/leaders in their line of business and to leverage their networks/relationships with leaders to inform, invite, and solicit support.
• Engage with Executive Assistants who manage calendars, so they understand the importance of leaders attending events.

Create continuity plan/operating manual in case ERG leaders transfer/leave. 

Hold ERG membership drives. 

• Metric – ERG members/ERG membership growth rates (number/percent growth year over year)(percentage of overall employee base) 

Formalized Stage 

Gather feedback from Leadership regarding expectations from ERG/BRG 

Gather feedback from ERG members  

ERGs may consider surveying employees, as well as their members to help determine short term and long-term goals; however, you don’t want to do a survey without considering what you hope to accomplish by conducting one.  Some things to consider before you begin developing a survey include: 

• The purpose of your survey/what you hope to accomplish. 
• If a survey is the best way to obtain the information you want. 
• If there is survey fatigue in your organization. When individuals are asked too often for feedback, the become less likely to participate. 
• How much participation you need to make the results meaningful. 
• How you will analyze your feedback (qualitative vs. quantitative). 
• What data or information you need and why. 
• How you will use the data collected (i.e., develop action plans/implement changes based on the feedback). 

Sample survey questions may include: 

• Rank what is most important to you to experience as a [ERG name] Employee Resource Group (ERG) member: 
  • Networking 
  • Employee Engagement 
  • Volunteer Opportunities 
  • Learning & Development 
  • Leadership Development 
• Have you ever joined an ERG before? 
  If yes, which ones? [list your other ERGs – Veteran, Hispanic, Black, LGBTQ2+, Women, Millennials, etc.) 
• How did you become interested in joining [ERG name]?
• I can achieve my career goals at [company] regardless of my disability. 
  • Strongly agree 
  • Agree 
  • Neither agree nor disagree 
  • Disagree 
  • Strongly disagree 
• I know someone who is finding employment to be difficult at [company] because of their disability. 
  • True 
  • False 
  • (Comment Box) 
• If I needed to discuss my disability with my leader, I would feel comfortable to do so. 
  • True 
  • False 
  • (Comment Box) 
• I know where to find information for team members who have disabilities or are a caregiver for someone who has a disability. 
  • Strongly agree 
  • Agree 
  • Neither agree nor disagree 
  • Disagree 
  • Strongly disagree 
  • (Comment Box) 
• I am able to balance work and personal life because of my disability or due to being a caregiver for someone who has a disability.   
  • Strongly agree 
  • Agree 
  • Neither agree nor disagree 
  • Disagree 
  • Strongly disagree 
  • (Comment Box) 
• If a network of people were available who have or know someone with disabilities, I would participate in events to connect, share experiences, and learn from one another. 
  • Strongly agree 
  • Agree 
  • Neither agree nor disagree 
  • Disagree 
  • Strongly disagree 
  • (Comment Box) 
• Overall, I’m satisfied with how [company] creates an inclusive environment for individuals with disabilities.  
  • Strongly agree 
  • Agree 
  • Neither agree nor disagree 
  • Disagree 
  • Strongly disagree 
  • (Comment Box) 
• If you could change one thing related to disability experiences at [company], what would it be? 
  • (Comment Box) 
• (For leaders) I have the appropriate resources and information to support my team members with disabilities or my team members who are caregivers of someone who has a disability. 
  • Strongly agree 
  • Agree 
  • Neither agree nor disagree 
  • Disagree 
  • Strongly disagree 
  • (Comment Box) 
• What resources and / or reference materials either through [company] or outside of the company have you found useful?? 
  • Human Resources SharePoint Site 
  • Employee Service Center  
  • Disability BRG SharePoint Site 
  • (Comment Box) 

Develop location/region/global ERGs

Welcome to the Disability:IN E/BRG globalization playbook.  The purpose of this playbook is to provide guidance on how to expand your disability-focused E/BRG globally, and how to achieve synchronization & maintain alignment across chapters around the world. 

What it means to “globalize” your E/BRG depends on your company’s structure & culture. There is no single “right” way to do this.  Here are several examples of ways you might globalize:

• Have a single virtual chapter that is global and open to colleagues from all countries, and work to engage colleagues from around the world in creating/hosting events & content.
• Stand up an E/BRG chapter in each region (e.g., Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America).
• Stand up E/BRG chapters by language (e.g., Spanish-speaking, French-speaking, Chinese-speaking).
• Stand up an E/BRG chapter in each country.
• Stand up E/BRG chapters for the largest in-person office locations in states/cities around the world and keep a global virtual chapter open to everyone regardless of location. 

These are just a few models. You may find that one model, a combination of them, or something else entirely, is what makes most sense for your organization. 

Finally, remember that you don’t have to move from having a single-location model to being “globalized” all at once.  Adding additional chapters can take place over time. 

Standing up an E/BRG chapter 

Consider the following when standing up a new E/BRG chapter. Note that you can be successful without doing all these items. 

• Factors to consider in deciding if it’s a good environment to stand up a regional, country, state, or local E/BRG.
  • There is a need for more disability awareness or a gap in representation.
  • There are compliance needs in the country.
  • The size of population is large enough to support an E/BRG.
  • There is local interest in having an E/BRG. (Consider surveying the population to gauge interest.)
  • There are enough local individuals who have appropriate interest, knowledge, and influence to serve as chapter leaders/founders. Not all these roles are needed to start an E/BRG chapter, but some common roles to consider include chair, membership/recruiting, operations/admin, events & engagement, communications, volunteer, finance, social media, accommodations.
• Consider terminology used in different countries (i.e., accommodations vs. adjustment). Refer to Disability:IN’s Global Directory for more information.
• Identify a local executive sponsor.
• Encourage involvement of local leaders.
  • Invite leaders/managers to serve as role models (as someone with a disability or as an ally).
  • Ask leaders to advocate for inclusion and discuss its importance among peers and direct reports.
  • Have leaders participate in disability panels, videos, and/or provide positive quotes supporting disability inclusion.
• Identify/nominate a local E/BRG lead/chair. Consider co-chairs to avoid burnout.
• Develop a local marketing/communication strategy.
  • Have a stream of regular communications to employees and new members.
  • Identify internal network who can support execution of your strategy.
• Create kick-off event and a year 1 events calendar Disability:IN resources library has an annual calendar of disability awareness days/months). Consider if they need to align to other global/regional awareness events being scheduled across the organization.

• Develop a local resource repository. Be sure it also links to any regional/global resources. 
• Ensure employees are aware of how to connect with the new chapter.
• Connect with global E/BRG to evaluate how to prioritize local initiatives and how they will tie into global strategies, priorities, and goals.

Connecting local E/BRG plans to global E/BRG priorities

Once you have more than one E/BRG chapter in place, it’s a good idea to consider how to establish alignment and coordination amongst chapters. 

• Consider if it makes sense in your environment to have a “Global E/BRG Leadership Team” with local chapters, or if it makes sense to have a network of chapters that are all peer chapters.
• Work with your executive sponsor to help identify global priorities and connect with local leaders to sponsor local chapters and initiatives.
• Engage your company’s DE&I team to identify guardrails and expectations for what it means to be an E/BRG in the company.
• Consider if you would like to have E/BRG chapters follow a cohesive global E/BRG branding.
• Create a global steering team/roundtable with regular meetings for collaborating on events, sharing information, and cross-communicating to prevent E/BRG events overload.
• Create a global shared calendar of awareness days and initiatives where all local E/BRGs can put their events. Include awareness days and initiatives for other diverse groups so all E/BRGs can prioritize and support each other through collaboration and intersectional events. Share calendar with communications team so information is marketed to entire employee population.
• Identify roles and responsibilities of local vs. global leads. For example, consider developing a tiered model so each chapter knows where to focus their efforts. An example might be:
  • Tier 1: Initiatives that have global scope/impact are managed at the global steering committee level and they engage with key stakeholders at the global level (e.g., develop global E/BRG strategy, key priorities and high level goals that can be adapted regionally and locally, influencing improved digital accessibility across the organization, Global inclusion week events, E/BRG summit, develop themes for global inclusion days/months, promote events at all tier levels and provide information and/or resources so all tier levels can leverage what others are doing instead of duplicating effort).  
  • Tier 2: Initiatives that have regional/business unit impact are managed at the regional/country/state/business unit level (e.g., National/geographic-specific observances that are disability-related, engage business leaders within the region to influence inclusion). Also supports Tier 1 initiatives while customizing programming to meet regional/business unit needs.
  • Tier 3: Initiatives that have local impact are managed by the local state/city/office E/BRG chapters (e.g., establish local goals, local events, speakers, volunteer activities, E/BRG sub-groups, develop strategies on how best to engage different types of employees within the region such as manufacturing or retail). Also supports Tier 1 and Tier 2 initiatives while customizing programming to meet local needs.

Connecting E/BRG Members Across the Globe

One benefit of having multiple E/BRG chapters around the world is that it can help colleagues develop their internal global network.  Here are some ideas for how to help members from different chapters connect:

• Build an online community/forum for members to share stories, questions, concerns – consider creating “seed topics” to initiate conversations.
  • Use existing communication channels and workspaces to engage E/BRG members (i.e., MS Teams channels, Google chat/drive, Viva engage).
  • Develop a portal/resource library for all employees to access resources related to disability inclusion, benefits, etc.
• Use breakout rooms during meetings to provide smaller group interactions. 
• Host “Let’s talk” sessions where E/BRG members can talk about a topic or to talk about whatever is on their mind.
• Identify hallmark events that will be celebrated/recognized across all regions/chapters (e.g., International Day of People with Disabilities, Disability Pride Month)
• Consider recording calls or taking notes so those who could not attend “live” can access the information.
  • Turn off recordings for a portion of the meeting to create a safe space for members to ask questions, share more personal information, if they choose.

Engaging Local E/BRG Members 

• Create a welcoming environment for new members.
  • Send an onboarding message to new members to let them know about resources, meetings, events calendar, etc. 
  • Develop a buddy system to welcome new members to the group. Assign a buddy for the first few months that they are part of the group. 
• Invite local members to participate in projects, task forces and focus groups that the E/BRG is driving.
• Develop a platform where EBRGs members can share ideas/initiatives.
• Encourage members to participate in hiring events.
• Invite members to serve in E/BRG leadership roles or to participate on a committee.
• Host events that are of interest to local members. Some examples include:
  • Viewing parties to bring local members together to attend global and regional events.
  • Local volunteer events.
  • Book clubs.
  • Mental health check-ins.
  • Discussions that would be of interest to affinity groups (i.e., ASL, caregivers, mental health).
  • Networking events where members are paired to have 1:1 time (coffee, lunch, etc.) to get to know each other.

Other Considerations

• Understand global/local legislative requirements, data privacy, physical and digital accessibility standards, etc. More information available in the Disability:IN Global Directory.
• Develop inclusive language guide with local disability terminology.
• Keep in mind that local chapters may not have the same level of influence when working with Corporate Departments. Think through where to best leverage local business leaders to drive disability inclusion efforts. For example, a local E/BRG working with a local IT team may or may not be the best place to start when trying to influence improved digital accessibility across the organization. 

Disability ERG Globalization Case Study: Otis Worldwide Corporation

Otis’ disability-focused employee resource group (ERG) was founded under the name All Abilities. Several years later, after spinning off from a parent company and collectively navigating the COVID-19 pandemic, the company observed that the ERG felt stagnant. It had fewer than 50 members and almost no participation outside of the U.S. – despite Otis having a global workforce of 69,000 employees, with more than 80% of colleagues based outside the U.S. 

To re-energize the ERG, Otis identified a new executive sponsor and co-chair to bring new perspectives and to refocus and clarify the ERG’s mission. The ERG was rebranded as the Otis Thrive ERG with the subtitle People with Disabilities, Caregivers, Mental Health and Wellbeing. “This new name helped us re-center on our target audiences and have a name and identity that is connected to our mission – helping all Otis colleagues and our company thrive,” said Christy Vanek, Otis Global Accommodations & Accessibility Leader and Thrive ERG co-chair. 

That year, the ERG leadership team invested their time in preparing for a global recognition of International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPWD), sponsored by the Otis Global Office of DE&I. In planning for this global recognition, they connected with HR colleagues from around the world who would assist in planning region-specific events. This was an important, early step towards collaboration across many regions and countries. 

One member of the event’s planning team was a Brazil-based HR business partner, who further connected the ERG leaders to an HR colleague based in Chile with a mobility disability. The original plan was to have this colleague speak on a multi-regional fireside chat panel.  

Ambitions expanded when he expressed interest in starting a Thrive ERG chapter in Latin America. Because Otis also has a strong presence in Brazil, the conversation quickly evolved to starting two Latin America chapters: One in Brazil that would include Portuguese language content and events, and the other for the rest of Latin America that would build content and events in Spanish. These two ERG chapters formed leadership teams in December as part of IDPWD, launching with a campaign to attract members in the first half of the following year. 

The events held around the world for this celebration helped promote the ERG and attract new members from multiple countries to join the U.S. chapter (which operates virtually).  Otis now refers to this chapter as a global chapter that is U.S.-based but open to all. 

“I am continually impressed by the authentic passion and power of our ERGs to make a positive impact on our core business. This potential for impact blossoms when we encourage global participation and nurture chapters and leadership teams around the world,” said Aditi Sant, Otis Corporate Real Estate Leader and Thrive ERG global executive sponsor

And there is more: Thrive ERG leaders heard from HR colleagues in the United Kingdom (UK) who were beginning to see grassroots interest from local colleagues in having a wellbeing ERG. By connecting with them early, Thrive leaders were able to influence them to create a chapter of Thrive instead of a standalone wellbeing ERG. The UK chapter launched later that year. Otis Thrive leaders also are engaged in  early-stage conversations  with their HR colleagues in several more countries across Europe and Asia Pacific.

“In this stage of expansion, we have chosen to give each chapter significant autonomy and space for localization, leveraging standards governing all Otis ERGs as the guardrails. Beyond this, we encourage only a few other elements of standardization: the Thrive name, branding and mission; and the intersectional focus on disability, caregiving, mental health, and wellbeing,” said Christy. 

“We were able to build on the great foundations from the global chapter and customize for our specific needs in the UK. We focused on establishing a strong and positive chapter leadership team to set us up for success and sustainability in forthcoming years. This is a journey for us all, and we embrace the opportunity to make a difference every day.”  said Adam Watkinson, Otis Modernization Sales Director and Thrive ERG UK co-chair

To close out the year, Thrive will bring all chapter leaders together virtually to engage in cross-chapter sharing of successes and alignment of plans for next year. As they continue their globalization journey, they plan to establish a regular cadence of global connectivity across chapters and continued expansion to new markets.  

Otis Thrive ERG leaders’ advice for a globalization journey

• Have a clear ERG mission that is widely attractive, globally relevant, and connected to your business. 
• Open your existing virtual chapter to colleagues from anywhere in the world. 
• Leverage IDPWD, and other global or local days of disability recognition, as an opportunity to attract members to your current chapters.
• Engage with global and regional HR, as well as your Office of DE&I, to stay connected to organic and emerging opportunities for new chapters.
• Be patient – with others and also with yourselves. This is a journey. 

Additional Resources

• Disability Inclusion Global Best Practices Report
• Global Directory

Develop support/awareness groups within Disability ERG 

Within Disability focused BRGs there is an overarching commonality of members, but much diversity within its membership which adds a level of complexity when organizing your BRG to be able to achieve your BRG’s goals and support the needs of employees with different disabilities, as well as parents and caregivers. 

Most organizations have a single disability BRG that focuses on broader disability inclusion. Within the disability BRG, if groups of employees with similar disabilities or caregivers are interested in supporting the overall BRG goals as a group, subgroups have been formed.  Some of these subgroups include: caregivers of children with disabilities, elder care, learning disabilities, mental health, autism, vision and hearing, downs syndrome.  These groups will start to emerge as the BRG continues to grow. 

Operational Stage 

• Have dedicated staff member(s) focused on operation of ERG/BRG related to disability inclusion (may have responsibility for multiple ERG/BRGs within the company) 
• Have representation from disability ERG/BRG on company’s diversity council 
• Conduct regular pulse survey for ERG/BRG (needs, concerns) 

• Create advisory group within ERG/BRG to assist with business questions related to disability/accessibility 
• Develop succession plan for ERG/BRG leadership 

Integrated Stage 

• Establish ERG/BRG governance for how stakeholders would work with the ERG/BRG 

Dynamic Stage 

• Integrate ERG/BRG access throughout the stakeholders’ processes and programs