In light of President Donald Trump’s recent executive order titled “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity,” every aspect of workplace inclusion and diversity (I&D) has been turned on its head.
As a result, SHRM launched a framework, Belonging Enhanced by Access Through Merit (BEAM), which aims to ensure that workplace policies and programs follow the rules but still support I&D. The framework says that HR leaders should first evaluate whether opportunities are open to everyone, without regard to sex, race, or any other protected status, before identifying talent based on relevant qualifications, including skills, proficiencies, and experience.
One of the principles laid out in BEAM is continuous calibration—the use of performance data and feedback loops to optimize talent management, foster development, and eliminate systemic biases in hiring, retention, and promotion processes.
Those concepts are important in ensuring inclusiveness because they provide real-time insight into employee experiences and make sure that inclusivity efforts are measurable, explained leadership expert Susan Leger Ferraro, author of SuperLoop: How Understanding Beliefs, Biology, and Behavior Creates a Business That Works for Every One (Advantage Media Group, 2024).