Quest Diagnostics Amplifies Inclusion and Diversity Initiatives With New Employee Networks, Professional Development, and Expanded Training in 2023

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NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / September 4, 2024 / Originally published in Quest Diagnostics' 2023 Corporate Responsibility Report

Inclusion and diversity

The communities we serve at Quest are diverse in background, abilities, experiences, and cultures. We strive to build a workforce that reflects that diversity and supports all employees in achieving their goals and growing at Quest. In 2023, we continued to embed Inclusion & Diversity (I&D) into our organizational culture, processes, and leadership and development opportunities.

EMPLOYEE BUSINESS NETWORKS
Our EBNs are a key part of our I&D strategy and help cultivate a culture of belonging. In 2023, membership in our EBNs grew by ~30%, with 2,000 new members and the launch of 4 new chapters, 3 in Mexico and 1 in Puerto Rico. By the end of the year, our 11 EBNs had ~8,000 active members comprising ~16% of our workforce. To provide additional structure and support for our EBNs, we also invested in leadership development, streamlined membership processes, and revamped programming to better align with employee interests.

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND PROCESS IMPROVEMENTS
In 2023, Quest enacted several process improvements to better reflect our company values and further integrate I&D across our operations and consumer services.

We launched our Everyday Equity Council, which is comprised of EBN leaders and exists as a standing focus group for Quest employees to raise equity-related ideas, concerns, and questions. Whether they're developing a process or preparing to release a product or service, employees can use the Council as a sounding board to determine whether their effort is inclusive and accessible. The Council can advise on Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance, for example, or review training or development materials for culturally sensitive language.

In 2023, we worked to create a common understanding of gender identity and sexual orientation across our workforce. As employees voluntarily self-identify at Quest, we've expanded how we define gender and sexual orientation to better reflect our workforce composition. We introduced training to provide every Quest employee with the same baseline knowledge of what gender identity means-with 93% of employees completing the training. Additionally, we added an option for chosen names to be added to several internal platforms. We remain committed to creating a workplace where all employees feel supported to show up as their authentic selves.

Quest also spearheaded a working group to evolve our search, selection, and hiring practices. The group will leverage metrics and insights to inform process enhancements, assess strategies to attract diverse talent, and implement practices with the goal of increasing the diversity of candidate slates and interview panels. To further support this initiative, training programs for recruiters and hiring managers are being developed to advance skills in competency-based search and selection best practices.

PROGRAMMING
We continued to incorporate I&D into our leadership and talent development efforts throughout 2023. In collaboration with McKinsey's Connected Leader Academy, employees have an opportunity to participate in various programs based on leadership level. In addition to enhancing core business understanding and leadership strategies, participants are provided with a robust network of peers and experts with whom they may share cultural backgrounds and experiences. Over 350 employees participated in 2023, an increase from 58 employees in 2022.

We also launched our Inclusion Mentor Circles program, where leaders connect with frontline supervisors to share their expertise and hone the inclusive leadership skills needed to ascend at Quest. This new initiative is in addition to MentorQuest, a learning and development program designed to strengthen diversity in the leadership pipeline.

Aligning a diverse Board with a diverse workforce

We commemorated heritage months throughout the year with our EBNs and took the opportunity to hear directly from our Board of Directors. In celebration of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in May, Board Director Tracey Doi spoke at an event hosted by our Pan-Asian Leaders EBN. Ms Doi served as CFO of Toyota North America for 20 years and has deep expertise in finance, strategic planning, and enterprise risk.

In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, our Hispanic/Latino EBN hosted an engaging talk with Dr Luis Diaz. Dr Diaz, a leader in advanced oncology research, joined the Quest Board in May 2023, and is head of the division of Solid Tumor Oncology at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.

Read more from Quest's 2023 Corporate Responsibility Report, or click here to access the Inclusion and Diversity landing page on Quest's website.

View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Quest Diagnostics on 3blmedia.com.