An internship or part-time job in the human resources department of a company is a good way to start learning about workplace diversity and inclusion. Search for opportunities in the career sections of the companies that most interest you. School career services offices can also help with finding employment and internship openings. An informational interview with a workplace diversity expert will give you insights into the daily responsibilities, education and experience requirements, and other topics. Prepare a list of questions before the interview.

Another good way to meet people in the diversity and inclusion field is by attending professional association events and classes. Most associations offer students discounted rates on their programs as well as on memberships. Find events on Web sites such as https://www.shrm.org/Events, https://www.ipma-hr.org/events, and https://www.societyfordiversity.org.

Workplace diversity experts are employed in many different industries, from finance and insurance to health care and higher education and everything in between. They work in-house on staff for companies or they are hired for short-term and long-term projects if they work as independent consultants. Workplace diversity experts may work in the human resources department as part of a team. If they are independent contractors, they will collaborate with human resources management teams and other related staff members.

The main job of workplace diversity experts is to make sure that the companys culture and business practices are inclusive and fair. They review the overall hiring process and staff retention and management strategies, assessing for areas where improvements or changes need to be made. Workplace diversity experts study the employee demographics of companies to gain a full understanding of the companies workforce. They create reports and make recommendations based on their findings.

Workplace diversity experts develop education programs in diversity and inclusion. They share their knowledge with companies employees through training sessions such as in-person workshops as well as through webinars. They help companies to be diverse in their services, products, promotions and marketing, communications, and in all other areas of their business operations. They also develop and maintain relationships with equal employment opportunity associations, to keep up with diversity and inclusion employment legislation. For some companies, diversity experts may be required to develop and maintain sources for a broad base of candidates for job openings. These sources may be local or national staffing firms and nonprofit organizations. Workplace diversity experts who work for large corporations may also be tasked with training and managing new employees in their department.