DEI Training: What It Is and Why It Matters

Beyond buzzwords: Why DEI training matters

If you look at many organizations’ codes of ethics or company culture policies, you’ll probably find a passage that says something like, “We strive to create a workplace where everyone feels valued, respected, and heard.” Sounds nice, right? It’s an easy idea to pay lip service to. But putting it into meaningful practice? That’s a different story entirely.

Far too often, individuals find themselves in situations where they feel marginalized at work, whether it be through insensitive comments or jokes, a lack of diverse voices in meetings or leadership positions, or subtle or unconscious actions that have an alienating effect. It’s an experience that can lead to disengagement, increased turnover, and missed opportunities for your organization. It can also cause irreparable harm to your brand image.

That’s why DEI training—short for diversity, equity, and inclusion training—is more important than ever. By helping organizations recognize and avoid bias, foster inclusive communication, and build more equitable workplaces, DEI training plays a key role in creating environments where everyone can contribute and thrive.

In this blog post, we’ll explore what DEI training is, the most common types and delivery methods, and how best to measure its impact. Whether you’re launching a new initiative or refining an existing one, you’ll get strategies for making meaningful, lasting changes.

What is DEI training?

Definitions: Diversity, equity, and inclusion

Let’s start by defining the three pillars of DEI training:

Diversity refers to the range of differences among people, including race, gender, age, life experiences, abilities, viewpoints, cultural backgrounds, and more.

Equity is about fairness and justice, making sure everyone has equal access to opportunities and addressing systemic barriers that prevent certain groups from advancing.

Inclusion means fostering an environment where all individuals feel respected, valued, and empowered to participate.

Understanding these definitions and their human impact is fundamental to DEI training, which includes all employees, from frontline workers to executives.

Goals and objectives

DEI training focuses on transforming both organizational culture and individual interactions. This includes:

• Raising awareness. Helping employees understand both their own personal biases and the systemic inequalities that affect so many.
• Reducing unconscious bias. Giving workers the tools they need to disrupt bias and ensure fair access in everyday situations, such as hiring practices, promotions, and opportunities.
• Fostering cultural competence and inclusion. Enabling employees to collaborate respectfully with colleagues from diverse backgrounds.
• Strengthening company culture. Building a workplace where employees are not just aware of policies but encouraged to model attitudes and behaviors that support inclusion.

Common types of DEI training

Awareness-based training (unconscious bias, microaggressions)

This type of training focuses on helping employees recognize what might not be readily apparent—hidden biases or microaggressions. Through the use of case studies, facilitated discussions, and self-reflection, employees can learn how privilege and stereotypes influence workplace interactions. Awareness-based training is designed to broaden perspectives and set the foundation for deeper skill-building.

Skill-based training

Skill-based training gives employees tangible tools and techniques to navigate these situations through role-playing exercises and simulated scenarios. This often includes strategies for more inclusive communication (such as gender-neutral language), conflict resolution, and tips for collaborating effectively across diverse teams.

Inclusive leadership and management training

Designed specifically for team leaders, supervisors, and executives, this training focuses on how to lead inclusively. This might include identifying and breaking down systemic barriers, creating more equitable practices around hiring and promotions, championing DEI initiatives, and nurturing an environment that is conducive to psychological safety for all employees. Leaders get tools for modeling inclusive behavior and embedding it into organizational practices and policies.

Delivery methods: Online, instructor-led, and hybrid

Instructor-led training (ILTs): benefits and challenges

Whether in-person or online, instructor-led training can be effective for DEI sessions. Real-time interaction, expert facilitators, and a safe environment for difficult conversations can lead to powerful breakthroughs.

For example, during a live session, the facilitator might encourage the group to share a question or observation that they’ve been reluctant to voice elsewhere, sparking a fruitful discussion that reveals issues the team needs to address. These are the kinds of interactions that are hard to replicate in asynchronous sessions.

The drawback is that ILT can pose logistical challenges, especially for global teams that have employees across various locations.

E-learning and microlearning

If ILT isn’t feasible for your organization, e-learning and specifically microlearning are excellent alternatives. They offer learners the flexibility to fit the content into their busy schedules when they can. And when you break training content into smaller, more digestible chunks, it allows employees to focus on a single concept at a time, whether that’s how to encourage more diverse voices in meetings or reminders about inclusive language usage.

Blended approaches

Of course, there’s always the option to combine instructor-led training with digital learning to get the best of both worlds. With this blended approach, for example, an organization might kick off DEI training with a live workshop to set the tone, then follow up with a series of microlearning modules or e-learning discussion prompts delivered over the next few weeks.

Not only does this allow the organization to customize the training for different departments, roles, or regions, but it also gives learners time to reflect, revisit concepts, and apply what they learn.

Measuring impact and accountability

Metrics: representation, retention, engagement, surveys

Measuring the effectiveness of DEI training can be challenging. To discover its true impact, you have to go beyond tracking attendance, completion, or satisfaction scores.

Here are some key metrics to watch for:

• Representation. Is the organization becoming more diverse over time, from frontline workers to executives?
• Retention. Are historically marginalized employees staying and advancing?
• Engagement. Do employees feel seen, heard, and valued at work?
• Surveys. Do surveys and/or focus groups reflect improvements in trust and inclusion?

Tracking these indicators over time gives you a clearer picture of your progress and where you can improve.

Long-term DEI programming (mentoring, ERGs)

DEI training doesn’t stop when the session ends. It takes sustained efforts to keep DEI values at the forefront across the organization. That might include mentorship programs or employee resource groups (ERGs) devoted specifically to this endeavor.

A mentoring program, for instance, might connect underrepresented employees with team leaders to provide support, while an ERG can create and nurture a community of leaders who serve as change agents. The long-term success of any DEI program requires accountability and ongoing efforts.

Embedding DEI into culture, not just training

If you want to weave DEI values into the fabric of your organization, it takes more than just a one-off training session. This often requires both specificity and action. For instance, you might start by conducting an audit of your current hiring practices, performance reviews, and promotions to check for potential biases. Or, you might take a closer look at whose voices are and should be included in various projects or collaborative efforts. The goal is to turn DEI training from an initiative to a foundational aspect of your culture.

Real-world examples and templates

Scenario-based learning (branching scenarios)

DEI training has crucial real-world implications, which is why it’s so important to give learners the opportunity to practice real scenarios they might encounter in the workplace. Scenario-based learning or branching scenarios mimic realistic situations, such as navigating a tense interaction with a colleague or addressing biased behavior during a meeting. They’ll get real-time feedback on their decisions and explore the consequences of different choices.

This approach turns theory into practice, encourages empathy, and creates a safe space where learners can practice in a low-stakes environment. And because it resembles real scenarios, it leaves a much greater impact.

DEI statement examples

Whether you’re building a course or refining your organization’s DEI strategy, a strong diversity statement is the bedrock on which to build. But an effective DEI statement goes beyond buzzwords. It is authentic, actionable, and perhaps most important, specific.

For inspiration, look at organizations you admire for their values, and see how their DEI statements reflect their commitment. These can serve as powerful examples by which you model your own statement.

Course templates from Articulate

Need a jumpstart? Articulate 360 offers readymade, fully customizable course templates, such as this microlearning template on creating a more inclusive workplace through simple, actionable strategies. With built-in illustrations, clear learning objectives, and focused modules on topics like inclusion and the benefits of belonging, it makes it easy to tailor the content for your organization’s specific goals.

Turn DEI training into meaningful, daily action

With the right intentions and the proper commitment, DEI training can be the key to unlocking your organization’s full potential. It takes thoughtful design and a sustained effort to create a workplace where differences are embraced, all voices are amplified, and everyone has an opportunity to succeed. So, whether it’s a standalone module or a full course, remember that it’s part of a much larger, ongoing initiative. Change doesn’t happen overnight, but each day is an opportunity to be better, and it’s the small improvements that add up.

Ready to find out more about Articulate’s commitment to DEI? Learn how we’re building a more inclusive company.