Gender Equity and Diversity Gap Analysis

  • Objective: To help offices evaluate their strengths, weaknesses, needed support and ways forward in strengthening their ability to manage and advance gender equity and diversity internally to become effective advocates for social justice and equity.
  • Materials/Preparation: Copies of the gap analysis framework handouts. Teams may choose to use written questionnaires in their data collection as well.
  • Participants: CARE staff

Steps

Senior staff meet and discuss the gap analysis process, factors to examine what diversity means in context, a timeline for the analysis, a data collection plan and key figures responsible for the work.

Based on the discussion, the research team develops a data collection method for each question, identify key participants, timeframe and communication plan with support from colleagues within CARE’s regional and international offices.

To design their data collection plan, teams use the Gap Analysis Framework, which outlines 4 key leverage areas for healthy relationships upon which high quality organizational performance depends. Key guiding questions to assist the analysis include:
 

In terms of representation

  • What is the demographic composition of your staff at all levels?
  • What are some of the barriers contributing to under-representation
  • Do you have a strategy for recruiting and retaining staff from under-represented groups?
  • What mechanisms do you have for:
    • Identifying issues affecting under-represented groups, and
    • Providing mentoring/coaching support to staff from under-represented groups to successfully undertake their job responsibilities, to grow within the organization and to contribute to decision-making?

 

In terms of learning

  • What efforts or awareness building strategies have you undertaken to broaden staff understanding about the relevance and value of gender equity and diversity?
  • How have you built staff capacity to manage and advance gender equity and diversity?
  • Do you have mechanisms to gather, share and analyze lessons learned?
  • Are there mechanisms for staff to apply new learning and innovation?

 

In terms of trust

  • How do you characterize your work-place climate and trust between colleagues?
  • How do you characterize trust in management and their commitment?
  • What mechanisms or structures exist to support trust building?

 

In terms of accountability

  • How do you hold staff accountable within your evaluation processes?
  • How is management held accountable?
  • What resources exist to sustain this work?

 

To answer these questions, teams used a combination of written surveys, focus group discussions and interviews.

Based on responses and analysis, offices then, identified priority areas, and developed action plans. Teams also shared reports with the regional management units.

Related Tools

View more tools related to:

Venn Diagram of three circles labeled Representation, Trust, and Learning, all within a larger circle labeled Accoutability.
Key Leverage Areas

Example

The employee survey used within CARE USA included the following statements:

Commitment

  • I am personally committed to CARE’s mission
  • I do not feel like part of the CARE organization
  • I feel a connection with those whom CARE serves
  • I do not feel emotionally attached to CARE
  • I feel my job makes a meaningful contribution
  • I would take a job with another organization if I were offered one with similar pay and benefits

Professional Opportunity

  • Resources, such as training and meetings, are available to orient new employees to CARE’s work
  • I am satisfied with the career development opportunities at CARE
  • Salary increases are consistent with performance
  • I am paid fairly for the kind of work I do
  • Our benefits compare favorably with those offered by other organizations
  • Working at CARE provides me with the opportunity to grow and contribute to my fullest extent
  • I believe I can achieve my career goals at CARE
  • It is easy for me to obtain the information I need to do my job effectively
  • The atmosphere in my unit helps me to be productive
  • My supervisor gives me regular feedback about my performance
  • If I perform poorly, my supervisor will work with me to improve

Supportive Organizational Environment

  • Sr. Management communicates a clear & consistent vision for CARE’s work
  • At CARE senior management’s actions are consistent with the organization’s core values
  • CARE clearly values teamwork
  • Overall, how satisfied are you with your employment at CARE
  • CARE is successful in providing a satisfying work experience to employees
  • CARE’s management works to create a trusting environment
  • Mechanisms are in place for senior management to get feedback and support for its initiatives
  • The results of this survey will be used constructively by senior management
  • CARE’s management responds to employees’ ideas, suggestions and concerns
  • I have confidence in the way management makes decisions that affect me
  • Policies & procedures are clearly communicated at CARE
  • Reasons for changes in policies and procedures are adequately explained
  • CARE has the capacity to sustain the organizational changes it is promoting
  • CARE’s management provides resources and support to help employees maintain their performance when changes are introduced
  • CARE provides adequate guidance to help staff operationalize critical values such as diversity, gender equity and excellence
  • My co-workers help me to learn from my mistakes
  • Others at CARE help me treat mistakes as opportunities for learning
  • CARE is an organization where risk taking is encouraged and employees are coached, not punished, if a mistake results

Managing Differences

  • At CARE we practice what we preach about diversity
  • I would recommend CARE to others as a good place to work
  • Individuals in my unit treat each other with respect
  • Management in my division treats everyone with dignity & respect
  • Senior management treats everyone at all organizational levels respectfully
  • The different parts of CARE cooperate well with each other in the interest of the organization as a whole
  • At CARE senior management makes meaningful efforts to manage the different cultures within the organization
  • CARE does a good job of managing the differences between country offices and headquarters
  • Career development opportunities exist for headquarters and country office staff equally
  • I have opportunities to work in team settings with diverse groups of people
  • In my unit, differences in opinion are taken seriously, but do not block decisions
  • My unit produces better results and makes better decisions when we explore different perspectives
  • Members in my unit reconcile differences to achieve mutually beneficial solutions
  • My unit is comfortable with discussing issues about difference
  • I feel encouraged to come up with new and better ways of doing things
  • I feel free to contribute my thinking and perspectives, even when I know they might be unpopular
  • I can give my honest opinion without fear of negative reprisals
  • I seldom speak up in meetings
  • Most of the people I work with at CARE see the world the same way that I do
  • I often feel impatient when the people I work with cannot agree
  • I feel I have a reasonable workload
  • CARE allows me sufficient flexibility to balance my work and family commitments

Example 2

Another example of a survey used with staff is the Employee Opinion Climate Survey. For this, staff are asked to rate each statement with the following:

Vision

  • I feel my job makes a meaningful contribution to the overall goals of CARE.
  • My supervisor demonstrates integrity.
  • Senior management communicates a clear and consistent vision for CARE’s work.

Commitment

  • I am personally committed to CARE’s mission
  • I feel a connection with those whom CARE serves.
  • I do not feel like part of the CARE organization.
  • I do not feel a strong sense of belonging to CARE.
  • I do not feel emotionally attached to CARE.
  • I really feel as if CARE’s organizational problems are my own.
  • I would be happy to spend the rest of my career with CARE.

Planning/Priority Setting/Workload

  • I see a clear link between my work and CARE’s objectives.
  • My supervisor treats everyone at all organizational levels respectfully.
  • Roles and responsibilities in my unit are clearly understood.
  • My supervisor provides information to enable me to see how my objectives relate to CARE’s strategy.
  • I am given adequate resources to handle my job duties.
  • My supervisor helps me set priorities effectively.
  • It is easy to obtain assistance from others in my unit if I am overburdened.
  • I feel I have a reasonable workload.

Team Effectiveness

  • The people I work with cooperate to get the job done.
  • Management in my division encourages employees to work collaboratively.
  • CARE clearly values teamwork.
  • The atmosphere in my work unit helps me to be productive.
  • I am encouraged to work with employees in other departments to share ideas and resources to meet CARE’s objectives.
  • Changes in priorities are clearly communicated within our division.
  • The different parts of CARE cooperate well with each other in the interest of the organization as a whole.

Performance Management

  • My supervisor holds me accountable for my work.
  • If I perform poorly, my supervisor will work with me to improve.
  • My supervisor works with employees to improve performance and develop capabilities.
  • I get enough feedback about my performance to know if I am performing up to expectations.
  • CARE’s management provides resources and support to help employees maintain their performance when changes are being introduced.

Organizational Satisfaction

  • I would recommend CARE to others as a good place to work.
  • CARE is successful in providing a satisfying work experience to employees.
  • CARE’s management responds to employees’ ideas, suggestions and concerns.
  • Core Values/Respect/Integrity/Trust
  • Individuals in my unit treat each other with respect.
  • Management in my division treats everyone with dignity and respect.
  • Senior management treats everyone at all organizational levels respectfully.
  • I can give my honest opinion without fear of negative reprisals.
  • CARE’s management works to create an open and trusting environment for employees.
  • Senior management will use the results of this survey constructively.
  • CARE has a particular environment; we seek to involve all interested employees in the decision-making process.
  • At CARE, senior management’s actions are consistent with the organization’s core values.
  • Management in my division regularly talks about core values.
  • I have confidence in the way management makes the decisions that affect me.

Diversity/Inclusion

  • I have opportunities to work in team settings with diverse groups of people.
  • My unit produces better results and makes better decisions when we explore different perspectives.
  • In my unit, differences in opinion are taken seriously, but do not block decisions.
  • Members of my unit reconcile differences to achieve mutually beneficial solutions.
  • I seldom speak up in meetings.
  • I feel free to contribute my thinking and perspectives, even when I know they might be unpopular.
  • My unit is comfortable with discussing issues about difference.
  • CARE allows me sufficient flexibility to balance my work and family commitments.
  • I often feel impatient when the people I work with cannot agree.
  • At CARE, senior management makes meaningful efforts to manage the different cultures within the organization.
  • CARE provides adequate guidance to help staff operationalize critical values such as diversity, gender equity and excellence.
  • Most of the people I work with at CARE see the world the same way I do.
  • At CARE, we practice what we preach about diversity.
  • CARE does a good job of managing the differences between country offices and headquarters.

Leadership

  • I have confidence in the ability of management at my location.
  • All in all, CARE is an effectively managed, well-run organization.
  • My supervisor inspires high performance through his/her personal leadership.
  • CARE’s management considers both long-term and short-term implications when developing plans.
  • Mechanisms are in place for senior management to get feedback and support for its initiatives.

Internal Communications

  • My supervisor gives me regular feedback about my performance.
  • It is easy for me to obtain the information I need to do my job effectively.
  • Policies and procedures are clearly communicated within CARE.
  • I receive enough advance notice about organizational changes that are going to occur.

Creativity/Innovation/Organizational Learning

  • I feel encouraged to come up with new and better ways of doing things.
  • My co-workers help me learn from my mistakes.
  • My supervisor encourages me to look beyond the organization for innovative ideas and practices.
  • Reasons for changes in policies and procedures are adequately explained.
  • Others in CARE help me treat mistakes as opportunities for learning.
  • CARE is an organization where risk-taking is encouraged and employees are coached, not punished, if a mistake results. CARE’s management rewards innovation and creativity among employees.

Management

  • My supervisor takes accountability for his/her work.
  • Resources, such as training and meetings, are available to orient new employees to CARE’s work.
  • My supervisor clearly sets standards of accountability for our unit.
  • CARE has the capacity to sustain the organizational changes it is promoting.
  • CARE provides me with the tools and resources to help me manage change.
  • CARE provides mechanisms to help me manage work-related stress.

Compensation/Benefits

  • I have a good understanding of our compensation policies.
  • I would take a job with another organization if I were offered one with similar pay and benefits.
  • I am paid fairly for the kind of work I do.
  • Our benefits compare favorably with those offered by other organizations.
  • I am satisfied with my total compensation and benefits program.
  • Salary increases are consistent with performance.

Career Development

  • Working at CARE provides me with the opportunity to grow and contribute to my fullest extent.
  • I believe I can achieve my career goals at CARE.
  • I am satisfied with the career development opportunities at CARE.
  • I have a formal development plan to help me achieve my career goals.
  • Career development opportunities exist for headquarters and country office staff equally.

Miscellaneous Questions

  1. Recognizing that workload has many different causes and solutions, which of the following do you feel would have the most positive impact on workload where you work?
    1. More investment in automation
    2. Improved up-front planning
    3. Clearer priority-setting by management
    4. Fewer levels of approval
    5. More headcount
    6. None of the above/no opinion
    7. Other ______________________
  1. Given your choice, how long are you likely to work for CARE?
    1. Less than 2 years
    2. 2-5 years
    3. 6-10 years
    4. 11-20 years
    5. More than 20 years
  1. Overall, how satisfied are you with your employment at CARE?
    1. Very satisfied
    2. Satisfied
    3. Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied
    4. Dissatisfied
    5. Very dissatisfied

 

Demographic Information

  1. How many years have you worked for CARE?
    1. 0-2 years
    2. 3-4 years
    3. 5-6 years
    4. 7-8 years
    5. 9-10 years
    6. 11-12 years
    7. 13-14 years
    8. 15-16 years
    9. More than 16 years
  1. With which of the following ethnic groups do you most closely identify?
    1. White
    2. Black
    3. Hispanic
    4. Asian
    5. American Indian
    6. Other ______________________
  1. With which of the following nationalities do you most closely identify?
    1. US/Canadian
    2. African/Middle Eastern
    3. European
    4. Central/South American & Caribbean
    5. Asian/Pacific Islander
    6. Other ______________________
  1. Please identify the highest education level achieved.
    1. Some high school
    2. High school diploma
    3. Some college courses
    4. Associate's degree
    5. Bachelor's degree
    6. Some graduate courses
    7. Master’s degree
    8. Doctorate
    9. Other ______________________
  1. What is your gender identity?
    1. Female
    2. Male
    3. Nonbinary/third gender
    4. Prefer to self-describe ______________________
    5. Prefer not to say
  1. What is your employment status?
    1. Professional/Exempt
    2. Administrative/Support/Non-exempt
  1. Do you supervise others?
    1. Yes
    2. No
  1. Which part of the organization do you work for?
    1. External Relations – Headquarters
    2. External Relations – Field
    3. Executive (President’s office, Legal, Internal Audit, Advocacy)
    4. Finance
    5. Human Resources
    6. Information Systems
    7. Program – Domestic (US)
    8. Program – International staff (Asia)
    9. Program – National staff (Asia)
    10. Program – International staff (East Africa/Middle East)
    11. Program – National staff (East Africa/Middle East)
    12. Program – International staff (South and West Africa)
    13. Program – National staff (South and West Africa)
    14. Program – International staff (Central/South America & Caribbean)
    15. Program – National staff (Central/South America & Caribbean)
    16. Other ______________________

 

Resources

  • CARE (2007). Organizational Gap Analysis Guidelines: A Resource Guide for Advancing Gender Equity and Diversity within CARE.