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1. Leadership Commitment: Questions focus on the managers and senior management as against
leadership's role in supporting DEI, including policy
enforcement and promotion of a diverse culture.
2. Hiring and Promotion Practices: Interviews
explore whether recruitment, retention and
advancement are fair and unbiased across different
demographics.
3. Workplace Culture: Employees are asked about
their comfort in sharing diverse perspectives and
whether they feel valued and included.
4. Training and Awareness: Assess the presence and
effectiveness of DEI training programmes to foster an
inclusive culture.
5. Inclusiveness and Belonging: Questions might
measure employees’ sense of belonging and comfort
in expressing their identity.
6. Equity in Opportunities: Survey items can assess
if employees feel equalopportunities for development
and advancement exist for all.
7. Discrimination and Harassment: Specific
questions gauge the prevalence of discrimination and
the organisation’s response.
8. Impact of DEI Programmes: Measures the
perceived effectiveness of DEI initiatives.
Supporting an Ethical Culture
Promoting ethical culture in the organisation should
start with leadership roles in each department.
This encourages and sets the example for the team
members to deal ethically with their peers and
clients. To build a discrimination-free environment,
organisations should ensure:
1. Promoting 360-degree feedback to ensure the
employees are heard.
2. Independent checks on the department's employee
appraisal process.
3. Checks to review instances of complaints against
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28 | INSIGHT EXCHANGE
employee's resignation.
4. Retaliation-free working environment.
5. Leaders should continuously evaluate,
recalibrate, and spar on DEl efforts to ensure
blind spots are diminished.
6. Have someone responsible for DEl initiatives.
7. Customise DEl management styles based on
organisational needs.
8. Implicit biases.
9. Overcoming DEl challenges.
10. Recognise the importance of DEI by
encouraging awareness and training in diverse
perspectives within audit engagements, as
outlined in various guidelines and technical
guides.
The DEI framework should be adaptable and
implemented across all areas of an organisation
to address potential discrimination,
encompassing gender, religion, language, caste,
colour, abilities, experiences, and ethnicities.
Internal audits promote ethical practices by
encouraging a culture of integrity and open
reporting. These efforts help cultivate a safe and
trustworthy environment where employees feel
secure in raising concerns, ultimately fostering a
more ethical and transparent organisation.
About the author: : Lakshmi B is a qualified
Chartered Accountant (CA) and Certified
Internal Auditor (CIA) with over 13 years
of experience in internal auditing. Currently
the Head of Audit at Padakannaya and Co.,
Bangalore, she has demonstrated a commitment
to quality and value in enhancing organisational
controls across diverse sectors, including financial
services, IT, and manufacturing.
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