The business case for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) is strong: Companies with a diverse workforce are 36% more likely to outperform their less diverse competitors. That’s why, in recent years, we’ve seen more businesses prioritizing DEI efforts — putting employee resource groups into place and publicly sharing their commitments to attract, support, and retain diverse talent.

But who is really behind these efforts?

Young women play a critical role in building diverse and inclusive teams, according to McKinsey’s “Women in the Workplace” study — the largest of its kind in corporate America. The study defines “young women” as those below the age of 40, and it states that this group is more likely to consist of women of color and women who identify as LGBTQ+. They’re also more likely than both older employees and men in their age group to actively practice allyship at work.

As someone who has navigated the workforce for over 15 years as an immigrant, a tech leader, and a diversity advocate, this concerns me. Young women with intersecting identities are some of the most underrecognized employees in the workforce. While they’re actively trying to push for change — whether or not it’s a part of their job descriptions — their peers are focusing on tasks directly tied to promotions. If we actually want to move the needle, and see these women move up into leadership roles, employees in positions of privilege need to play a much bigger part.

I’m not just talking about being an ally. I’m talking about being an activist. While many workers consider themselves allies, only a few actually take action. Activists, on the other hand, engage in the causes they support. We need both types of people to create an equitable workforce.

If you’re part of the next generation of workers — the generation that’s demanding diversity at work — you have the potential to drive real change. Allies, here’s what you can do to step up into activist roles and contribute to the DEI efforts you want to see in place.

1) Understand the difference between allyship and activism.

An ally is a person who supports diversity and wants to learn about communities outside of their own. In theory, a great ally asks insightful questions and finds ways support their underrecognized colleagues.

The problem is that “support” is a vague term. Liking or sharing a post on social media could be support. Wearing a pin in solidarity of a socially marginalized community could be support. But the data shows that too many of these gestures fall short. For instance, while three-quarters of white employees in the U.S. consider themselves allies to women of color at work, less than half of them are educated on the experiences of women of color or give women of color credit for their actions and ideas. Only one in five white employees advocate for new opportunities for women of color, even though women of color say this is the single most important action an ally can take.

Activists, on the other hand, take action to promote their causes. They don’t just educate themselves on an issue, they strategize what needs to happen to resolve it and work together to take steps towards that solution. Let’s take a look at the feminist movement as an example. Activists organized demonstrations to raise awareness of women’s political inequality. In the 20th century, they worked to influence policymakers, challenge unjust laws, and engage in political advocacy to challenge gender-based discrimination. They published literature and media, and organized events to draw attention and raise awareness. At work, your activism may look different than it does in the streets — but it can be just as impactful.

2) Figure out where you can offer value.

If you’re truly interested in shifting the burden of DEI work from the underrecognized person to the people, institutions, and systems that can initiate long-term change, evolve your ally mindset (I’m here to help and support you) into an the activist mindset (We’re in this together).

Think about your strengths. How can you offer people support in a way that either leverages your expertise, or helps you learn something new? To answer this question, you’ll need to first put on your ally hat. Educate yourself on the specific community you want to help and identify which of their projects, initiatives, or efforts needs more hands on deck. Then, start to take action.

For example, Neil, an activist I know, has a strong background in negotiating. He pitched himself to Women in Big Data (WiBD) — an organization that supports women in careers related to technology — and ended up joining their corporate giving workstream. Neil now uses his negotiating skills and experience to help WiBD secure donations from companies like Netflix and Databricks. Another activist in my circle has strong blogging and writing skills. He identified a gap in his company’s DEI efforts — there was a lack of companywide communication — and created a corporate blog about diversity activities, giving voice to underrecognized employees.

3) Participate in employee resource groups (ERGs).

If you’re unsure where to start or can’t think of a specific expertise to offer, you can get involved in the ERGs at your organization. I’m not just talking about showing up and listening (although this is important). I’m talking about lending an extra hand when the group needs it. ERGs often organize activities to help connect and build community among socially marginalized employees, which in turn, can help those communities build stronger connections and aid in their career development. Activities might include inviting community leaders to speak, networking events, or casual get-togethers that focus on relationship-building.

One easy way to take action is to help organize these activities so that the community members can focus on the experience. You could help out with logistics or organize the event setup (virtual or in-person). There’s always something to do — group members are usually doing this work on top of their daily jobs. In my own job, for instance, a few men regularly volunteer to help our women’s resource group. One senior executive organizes our regular meetings, takes notes, distributes minutes, and uses his leadership, influence, expertise around organizational politics to help us drive change. In fact, he led the creation of an early childcare program for our employees in Germany.

4) Actively sponsor your coworkers. 

Sponsoring is different than mentoring, and you don’t need to be a tenured employee to do it. Junior employees can make a huge impact, too.

Sponsorship happens when a person in a privileged position actively supports the growth of their less privileged coworkers by advocating for them or their work when they’re not in the room. The sad truth is that some employees have more access to the big leaders and decision makers at their company, simply because of their demographic background. This is a consequence of decades of bias, discrimination, and groupthink in educational and work institutions. While it’s starting to change in some industries, it’s changing slowly. If you’re someone who is privileged enough to have access to the power players at work, you can be an activist by being a sponsor.

Start by paying attention and recognizing your own privilege. Ask yourself: What doors have opened easily for me that have unfairly remained closed for my colleagues? How can I help change that? You’ll need to understand the work your colleagues are doing, and their larger career goals, to be a successful sponsor. This will allow you to drop their name when they’re not included in a meeting or conversation. Use your access to promote their work, speak up for them, or tell management about their potential.

Another way to be a sponsor is to break down knowledge barriers. What tips and tricks have you learned from schmoozing with senior leaders at your company? How do you get their attention? What do they find valuable? In short, what are the unspoken rules to success at your organization? Give your colleagues feedback to help them navigate this terrain. This could look like encouraging them to take on stretch assignments or invite a senior leader to lunch. You can also give them guidance on the best way to address conflicts work, like how to escalate situations in a way that will get senior leadership’s support.

Finally, know that you don’t have to limit sponsorship to your organization. You can sponsor students by helping them land an internship at your organization or by connecting them to someone in your network who would be a good resource. You can even look into volunteering at youth organizations aimed at closing the opportunity gap for underrecognized communities.

5) Step in when you see a microaggression.

Microaggressions are insensitive actions, statements, questions, or assumptions that feel offensive to an aspect of someone’s identity. Whether they are intentional or not, these biases can have devastating effects on the mental and physical health of the people they impact — and most often, they impact socially marginalized communities. When microaggressions remain unaddressed, or are repeated continuously over long periods of time, they can cause depression, stress, and burnout.

For context, in the past year, half of 5,000 women surveyed across the globe for Deloitte’s Women at Work study said they experienced microaggressions at work. Ninety-three percent also said they believe reporting non-inclusive behaviors will negatively impact their careers. Women, of course, are just one of the many groups targeted by microaggressions, and if the majority feel unsafe speaking out, it’s safe to assume that other marginalized communities share that sentiment.

As an activist, you can step up and help mitigate the problem, because it’s not going anywhere until more of us do. When you witness a microaggression, don’t be a bystander. Here are some common signs to watch out for and how you can respond:

• Interruptions in meetings. If you see that one person on your team is often interrupted, take the lead and call it out. You can say: “Maria didn’t finish sharing her thoughts. Can we listen to what she has to say? I think it’s very important that all our colleagues have a chance to share their ideas.”
• Discriminating humor. Microaggressions can often show up in the form of slanders disguised as “seemingly harmless” jokes. If you notice this happening, speak up. For instance, if you hear a colleague share a homophobic or sexist stereotype in the form of a joke, you can say: “I know you didn’t mean it, but that joke is hurtful to some people, and plays on a lot of harmful stereotypes. Let’s be mindful of others.”
• Stereotypes. If you see somebody making assumptions about a colleague based on their identity (origin, gender, age, sexuality, abilities, and so on), challenge their thinking. Educating yourself on what stereotypes can look like for various groups will help you respond thoughtfully. For instance, if you hear a sexist stereotype you can say: “I disagree that women are very emotional in the workplace. What are you basing that logic on? Most of the women I know react based on data, facts, and logic. There’s research that debunked that stereotype a while ago.”

6) Turn your actions into SMART goals.

As we’ve seen, there are many ways to be an activist at work. Whatever path (or paths) you choose to take, you’ll make a greater impact if your end goal is specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound goal, or SMART.

For example, let’s say you decide to drive change through participating in an ERG. Breaking your goal down in this way will help you actually achieve it:

• Specific: I’ll work with the women’s resource group to plan and execute a company-wide virtual event focused on educating employees on how to build a more equitable workplace. It will include a speaker with expertise in this area.
• Measurable: At the end of the event, I’ll measure its impact by distributing a survey to participants, asking them how the event affected their understanding of diversity and inclusion (from 1 “no impact” to 5 “great impact”). I’ll also track the number of attendees and collect quotes.
• Achievable: I’ll work with the ERG to create internal marketing materials, identify speaker candidates, and run a technical check before the event. I’ll use my organizational skills to moderate questions that people enter in the chat during the event. I’ll also collaborate with other ERGs in the company to maximize participation and impact.
• Relevant: The purpose of this event relates to the company’s mission of promoting diversity and inclusion. It will also help promote the ERG and demonstrate its value to the company.
• Time-bound: I’ll plan and execute the event within the next six months, and begin tracking feedback immediately after the event.

. . .

Truly equitable workplaces will only arise when everyone is willing to play their part. When we put the burden of work on the people being targeted by bias and discrimination, we fail them  — as leaders, as colleagues, and as peers. No matter where you sit in a company, you can participate. Don’t just call yourself an ally. Use your position of privilege to push for change. Be an activist.