Diversity Ideologies and Employee Resource Groups: C-Suite Perspectives

Abstract Social and political attention to whether organizational diversity initiatives promote exclusion and divisiveness has increased. In this study, rare access to Chief Human Resources Officers (CHROs) of leading organizations allowed the gathering of their perspectives on how to navigate implementation of one identity-conscious diversity initiative, employee resource groups (ERGs). Following a descriptive survey ( N = 107), a thematic analysis of interviews with 24 leaders indicated how awareness of potential advantage or exclusion signaling with identity-conscious practices was coupled with embracing more identity-blind or multicultural ideological approaches. Additional themes related to whether ERG goals were seen as aligned with those of the business, how organizations managed spillover of external conflicts into the workplace, and how stage of maturity with regard to ERGs impacted performativity. Implications for research on ERGs as well as practical implications for management of identity-conscious practices are provided.