What does it take to honor a commitment to the diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) journey? An awful lot! Just a few days ago, we crossed the first anniversary of the murder of George Floyd. And with that came scrutiny to hold organizations accountable for leadership commitments for change. Corporate stumbles have been met with bullhorns that trumpet lousy behavior, and the "I told you so's" for lack of commitment to the long haul for genuine cultural changes. According to the Society for Human Resources Management, employers have felt the financial sting to the tune of $172 billion over the past five years due to attrition from bias and other unfair treatment.

What are some of the commitments that caught our attention in the past year?

• Microsoft's committed to more representation, vendor diversity, and community engagement. 
• Bank of America carved out one billion dollars to focus on health, training, small businesses, and housing inequities.
• GM's CEO put skin in the game by taking personal responsibility for retaining DEI as a prioritized area for the company's agenda.
• Apple committed to building an education space for diverse developers in Detroit.
• Boeing pledged 100 million dollars to support organizations fighting Anti-Asian American hate crimes.
• Accenture's DEI commitments anchor to the company's values and creating an equitable workplace.
• Netflix has committed to tackling representation by creating a fund to create more diversity in film.

The dictionary defines commitment as a "pledge or promise" . . . The following are four signals that indicate inclusive leadership commitment:

1. Investing personal time to grow cultural competencies indicates a leader's genuine commitment vs. leaving it at the organization's door and shedding a new persona upon exit. A Leader's willingness to learn and unlearn is another good signal that the leader personally cares about outcomes. This leader is a champion you want on your change team versus leaders who show up in body and obligatory based on role. Please don't assume that because leaders are assigned, they are genuinely committed to your DEI goals.
2. Words matter. A willingness to vocally commit and then take the necessary actions to back up the words signals steadfast commitment. A solid track record validates commitment levels. In the Mckinsey, Diversity Wins: How Inclusion Matters report, commitment is one of the key actions that leaders can take to create a sense of belonging in the workplace.
3. A leader who makes themselves available to support the achievement of DEI goals reflects a commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion as a priority. These leaders not only show up, but they show out by providing support. They move their calendars around to show their support. They lend a listening ear about roadblocks that threaten to derail the advancement of DEI goals.
4. JP Morgan's 30 billion dollar commitment to advance racial equity sends a clear commitment message with dollars and time to prove it. We must not mistake large donations as the only signifier of commitment. Leaders can invest boldly, but they need to have a long-term strategy to show growth and not just performative dollars. 

Creating inclusive workplaces will require more and more leaders to make and keep their commitments to drive and sustain inclusion in the workplace. There's never been a better time to be an inclusive leader who commits to this journey.