• by Amy Corr , July 29, 2021

Omnicom’s cultural intelligence consultancy, sparks & honey, released the findings from its latest report: "The Equity Effect: Principles for The Post-Pandemic Organization."

This report was created using the company’s technology platform, Q, that combines public data sources with intelligence from its people panel to decode, quantify, and predict culture.

The S&H team set out to answer the question: “What are the cultural shifts affecting the future of the post-pandemic organization, and what does equity mean in such a landscape?”

Q then scanned the top 25 mega- and macro-trends for equity and the future of the post-pandemic organization, including trends that have accelerated in the wake of 2020, to define five main priorities. 

They include:

Accountable Action: Looking at equity at work — it's time to abandon the business case for diversity.

Ergonomics of Health: Investing in the mental, physical and emotional health of people is the business imperative.

Human Betterment: Thinking about humans first is the best pathway to a company’s consumers.

Shared Future: Sharing resources and collaborations builds a company’s purpose and a future for everyone.

Designs for a Resilient Future: Nourishing local ecosystems and environments will mitigate global threats.

“One of the most eye-opening findings was that the end of ‘the business case for diversity’ is here,” said Anna Sofia Martin, editorial director at sparks & honey.  “For the last few years, we’ve seen companies recognize that more diversity actually translates to more profitability, which on the surface seems like compelling reasoning.

“However, the social strife, racial tensions and pandemic caused us all to ask a lot of questions, and businesses still had to scramble to try and respond in authentic ways. For others, it was a reckoning. When it comes to organizations speaking out on diversity, it should have been in the spotlight long before the events of 2020. A company's diversity message can no longer be about profitability or just a sticker solution, but a core function of overarching principles of equity and fairness.”

Terry Young, Founder & CEO of sparks & honey, added that “the lessons from 2020 have illustrated our endless capacity for resilience, rebuilding and empathy. They’ve also highlighted the major inequalities that still prevail globally. It’s on the shoulders of business leaders to forge a more equitable future for all.”