ERG Playbook

Notes for ERG Vision Keepers:

• Where can we include Visuals?

Table of Contents

1. What is an ERG?
• Employee Resource Groups (“ERGs”) are voluntary, employee-led groups that serve as a
resource for members and organizations by fostering a diverse, inclusive workplace
aligned with organizational mission, values, goals, business practices, and objectives.
Employee Resource Groups (also commonly referred to as “Employee Networks” or
“Business Resource Groups”) are staples at many large companies across the world.
View the videos below to learn more about successful ERGs in the United States in
particular.
• ERGs are known for engaging employees through various programs, activities, events,
and community service. Employees often join ERGs not only to fuel their own
engagement, but to grow, develop, and network with other employees.
• Examples of other companies’ ERGs:
• Employee Networks at Google
• Comcast Employee Resource Groups: Women’s Network
• Kimberly-Clark's Employee Resource Groups and the Value of Diversity

2. Why an ERG?
• ERGs are key to building a workplace culture of inclusion, by providing the members
with an opportunity to address diversity issues and best practices as a company.
• ERGs provide support, contribute to professional growth, and enhance career
development for employees. They also contribute to retention and increase employee
referral and recruitment efforts.

3. How to implement an ERG?
• Keep in mind:
• There is no “one way” to implement an ERG. Just keep in mind that is important
to engage all levels of the company to ensure that the ERG is aligned to cultural
contexts, current social issues, company culture/mission/vision, etc…
• However, here are some best practices …
1) Establish an ERG Vision Keeper team
• Provides guidance and leadership to ERG Drivers to ensure
execution of all ERG programs, initiatives, and activities. Helps
develop ERG mission, vision, objectives, and milestones.
• 1 ERG Vision Keeper team for all ERGs
2) Define the WHY / PURPOSE of the ERG
3) Define the Community Guidelines
• Purpose:
o Help establish and foster a safe environment; one that
supports open, honest, and supportive dialogue.

o Help govern the ERG, enabling ideas to flourish and expand,
while keeping sight of the ultimate goal and purpose of
their existence.

• As ERG leadership teams brainstorm programs, events, and other
activities, the Community Guidelines should be consulted to ensure
the proposed engagement aligns with at least one of the stated
principles.

4) Identify Key Areas of Focus
• Examples may include …
• Workplace:
i. DEI Education/Training
ii. DEI Council
iii. Organizational Culture Assessment
iv. Recognition Months
• Workforce:
i. Diversity Recruitment Strategy
ii. Diversity Internship Program
iii. Employee Resource Groups
• Marketplace:
i. Community Service Initiatives
ii. External DEI Customer Programming

5) Define Key Objectives and Success Measures for initiatives
6) Get Organized: Things to think about…

• Who’s involved?
• Define roles and responsibilities
• How often will you meet? (make sure to accommodate different

time zones)
4. RAY ALLEN ERG Initiative

• Established an RAI ERG Vision Keepers
• Who we are
• 6 individuals from various parts of the company:
• HR Manager
• Director of CCE (Culture, Comms, & Enablement)
• Talent Agility Specialist
• Director of Customer Success
• Director of Culture
• Director of Operational Performance
• Why we are on the committee
• We were interested in furthering RAI’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
initiative, and volunteered to be involved.
• What we initially discussed
• Tools we wanted to use
• Teamwork: Project Management Tool

i. SCREENSHOT
• SharePoint: Knowledge Management System
• Key Objectives & Milestones of the ERG Vision Keepers
• Discussed the impact we wanted to make: to inspire, enable,

and provide safe spaces for employees to share, discuss, and
support one another.
• Captured the Key Objectives & Milestones in Teamwork

i. E.g. The creation of this Playbook was one of the ERG
Vision Keepers’ Key Milestones.

• Purpose & Responsibilities of the ERG Vision Keepers
• Frequency of ERG Vision Keepers meetings
• Initial structure of our first ERG (Women@RAI)
• Defined roles and responsibilities
• ERG Vision Keepers
• Provide guidance and leadership to ERG Drivers to ensure execution of

all ERG programs, initiatives, and activities.
• Help develop ERG objectives and milestones.
• Term: 1 year
• Drivers
• 1 Driver group per ERG

• 4-6 members total
• Initial Drivers: Those who initiate the creation of the ERG

i. Approx. 2-3 employees (depending on situation)
ii. Collaborate with ERG Vision Keepers to create

Objectives and Milestones for the ERG
• 1 member of ERG Vision Keepers is on the Driver team, to

create interlock between the two groups
• Plans/facilitates ERG meetings
• Term: ??
• Ambassadors/Participants
• Participate in large group ERG meetings
• Socialize and spread the word to the rest of company
• Determined the WHY/PURPOSE of RAI’s ERG Initiative:
• Deliver long-term business benefit to RAI and provide professional and personal
development to ERG members.
• Drive diversity and inclusion, enhance retention, expand our marketplace reach,
and support the development of diverse leaders.
• Enhance the employee experience and connection by fostering a diverse and
inclusive environment where all are welcome, respected, and valued.
• Positively impact employees nationally, regardless of job title or location.
• Created RAI’s DEI Mission Statement:
• To help reinforce the why/purpose of the ERG initiative, the ERG Vision Keepers
created a DEI Mission Statement:

• RAI’s Diversity Initiative is dedicated to the inclusion of, equity for, and
cultural celebration of all global RAY ALLEN, Inc. Team Members. We
aim to proactively encourage and empower individuals for the greater
good of our global community through education, representation, and
inclusion. Celebrating that which makes each individual, from every
country and region, unique, contributes to a thriving global culture.

• Aligned RAI’s Core Values with the DEI Mission Statement:
• The ERG Vision Keepers then wrote descriptions for RAI’s Core Values that align
with RAI’s DEI Mission Statement and ERG Initiative:
• RAI’s Core Values:
• Mutual Success is the Only Success: Companies that celebrate
individual diversity through inclusiveness and encouragement
contribute to the mutual success of the individual and the
company. When both the business and its employees succeed,
the sum of these successes is greater than their individual parts.
Mutual success of both RAI and individual Team Members is
achieved through inclusivity, encouragement, and the
celebration of individual diversity. When both the business and
its Team Members succeed, the sum of these successes is
greater than their individual parts.
• Our Environment is Not an Afterthought: Our unique
environments are not limited to the physical arrangement of
our workspaces. They are comprised of the talented and multi-
cultural individuals that shape the RAY ALLEN team. We bring
our environment – both physical and cultural – to the forefront
to encourage collaboration and innovation. Our unique
environment is not limited to physical or virtual locations; it is
comprised of the talented and multi-cultural individuals that
shape the RAY ALLEN Team. We bring our environment –
physical, virtual and cultural – to the forefront, encouraging
collaboration and innovation.
• Status Quo is Not Status Quo: We continuously re-evaluate our
existing company culture to ensure that all voices are heard. By
doing so, we identify new ways to celebrate diversity as RAI
expands globally. By continuously reevaluating our existing
company culture, we ensure that all voices have a space to be
heard and supported, enabling us to identify new ways to
celebrate diversity globally throughout RAI.

• Why we chose Women@RAI as our first ERG:

• We decided to focus on RAI women first because of feedback we received from

women at the company. They felt that their voices were not being fully heard

and that there was a lack of female representation in leadership.

• Established Women@RAI ERG:

• Defined Objectives and Success Measures

• Captured in Teamwork

• How do we define and measure success?

• It’s okay if this isn’t clear from the get-go; the ERG Vision
Keepers first discussed why we wanted to start the ERG in the
first place and what we wanted the outcomes to be, and then
tweaked them along the way.

• Sent Survey:
• When: Prior to the Women@RAI Kick-Off Call
• Who:
• From: The ERG Vision Keepers
• To: All women at RAI
• Why:
• Gauge interest levels
• Determine what women at RAI would like to gain from being
part of the group, with a focus on the following 3 areas:
i. Personal:
• Provide life skills and personal development
workshops and related programming.
ii. Mentoring:
• Help grow internal talent, by developing and
honing leadership skills of ERG members.
iii. Community Outreach:
• Engage in projects that contribute to under-
served communities and causes related to
Education, Workforce Development, and
Employee Engagement.
• Kick-Off Call:
• Established Community Guidelines for the group (to be read at
the beginning of each recurring call moving forward)
• Brainstormed Topics and Formats for future Women@RAI
meetings:
i. Example Topics:
• Leadership Skills, Negotiation Skills, Work/Life
Balance, Taking Ownership of Your Career,
Identity & Juggling Multiple Roles
ii. Example Formats:
• Workshops, Speakers, Discussions,
Coaching/Mentorship
• Established Roles & Responsibilities for the group:
i. Described the various roles: Drivers vs.
Participants/Ambassadors
ii. Asked for volunteers to be Drivers

• Established the Women@RAI Drivers Group:
• 1 member of the ERG Vision Keepers acts as an interlock between the Drivers
and the Vision Keepers

• Drivers Kick-Off Call:
• Discussed Mission, Objectives, & Milestones for Women@RAI:
• The Mission Statement is a succinct sentence that describes the
group’s reason for being; its fundamental purpose.
i. To create the ERG’s mission statement, finish the
following sentence using 35 words or less: “This ERG’s
mission is _________”.
ii. Sample Mission Statement:
• Allstate
• Objectives:
i. Specific results that you want the ERG to achieve within
a timeframe and with available resources.
• Milestones:
i. Tasks that mark the completion of a major phase in the
life of the ERG.
ii. Milestones can be observed and defined, and often lay
the foundation to monitor progress. They can include
high priority tasks, checkpoints, and deliverables.
• Entered all of these into Teamwork
• Determined tentative Schedule and Format for large group
Women@RAI sessions moving forward
• Scheduled recurring Drivers call
• Created tentative Calendar, w/ potential Topics & Formats for future
large group sessions

Food for Thought: ➔ Wasn’t able to fix the numbering for these; not sure why. But I will fix them when
plugging them into AnyFlip

5. Annual Theme
• Similar to a Company Theme (think, “One Vision. One Team” ==> OneRAI?), many ERGs
choose to select an annual theme to shepherd its agenda and ensure all of the programs
and activities for the year relate to the ERG’s defined goals. Themes should be relevant,
easy to remember, and engaging.
• To develop a theme, identify at least 3 causes or issues that would support the ERG
members’ development, growth, and engagement.

6. Membership Drive
• Our goal is to have ERG members who are actively involved. It is important that we are
able to share the value and benefits of ERGs to encourage more employees to become
involved.
• What ideas do you have to drive membership? What would you say to encourage a
colleague to join the ERG? What can we do to provide an overview of what the ERG is
and why our colleagues should join?

7. Sample Activities
• ERG activities commonly range from panel discussions and workshops, to social outings
and volunteerism. Identifying programs and activities that resonate with members can
be extremely impactful. Remember, although the ERG may be focused on a specific
group of employees, all employees should be able to benefit and develop by
participating.
• What sorts of programs and activities would you like the ERG to develop? What were
some of the best programs or events that you have attended in the past?
• When thinking about events and programs, remember to keep the Community
Guidelines, Mission Statement, Core Values, and annual theme in mind.
• Examples:
• Personal Development:
• Workplace (Internal education & training, employee engagement):
• Career path requirement with manager. Could incorporate in
annual performance goals.
• Behavioral based interviewing course; coaching opportunities
• Workforce (Recruitment, retention, & development):
• Recruitment: Recognize outside talent and provide exposure to
opportunities within the company.
i. Improving Your Financial Strength
• Business networking 101: Priority management; Courses on
developing your personal brand.
• Marketplace (Community service, client interaction, & brand
promotion):
• Host a career day for local high school girls
• Mentoring:
• Workforce (Recruitment, retention, & development):
• "Day in the Life” program – sending employees out into the field
• Job Shadowing: Exposure to different areas of the business
• Marketplace (Community service, client interaction, & brand
promotion):
• Bring in top leadership in the community to conduct a workshop
on Leadership
• Community Outreach:
• Workplace (Internal education & training, employee engagement):
• Have RAI sponsor events in local communities
• Donate time/talent to help develop community talent
• Participate in National Week of Service
• Marketplace (Community service, client interaction, & brand
promotion):
• Engage in local volunteer opportunities (adopt a school,
homeless shelters)

• Adopt an organization for a year; Use vetting process to
determine right fit.

8. Other things to think about:
• Why do you want to start an ERG?
• How will you collect resources and create a library?
• How will you share and collaborate on documents?
• How will you define roles?
• “Defining Success”: How will you define if the ERG is successful or not?
• What do you want the name of the ERG to be?
• Do you want a logo for your ERG?

9. Helpful Resources
• The MSW@USC Diversity Toolkit: A Guide to Discussing Identity, Power and Privilege
• Activities:
• Introducing Identity: “My Fullest Name”
• Systems of Power and Privilege: “Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack”
• Gender and Sexuality Workshop: Creating Gender-Free Nouns
• Race and Ethnicity: Diversity Profile
• Class and Historical Disadvantage: Crossing the Line
• Recap and Closing Activity
• Identity & Intersectionality Worksheets/Discussion Questions
• Creating Community Guidelines:
• Facilitate a discussion to co-create these with the group
• State the purpose of the Community Guidelines (can also be called the
“Guiding Principles" or "Code of Conduct"):
• E.g. To ensure that we create a safe space for open and honest
sharing and active participation.
• Give everyone the opportunity to throw ideas out and expand / define them.
• Example Prompter Questions:
• How do we want to feel in this group? How do we want to interact?
How should we behave / communicate / interact in this group?
• If further prompting is needed, offer the first couple of ideas. E.g.:
• Be Present (and define what that means)
• No Judgment (and define what that means)