Increasing Executive Self Identification Rates

What is Self-ID?

To meet the needs of Canadians, fostering diversity and inclusion (D&I) in the public service is crucial. Employers that prioritize D&I are better enabled to leverage and incorporate a range of perspectives and expertise that are necessary to address complex workplace and life challenges. Under the Employment Equity Act (EEA), employers under federal jurisdiction are required to correct situations of disadvantage historically experienced by the four designated employment equity (EE) groups (women, Indigenous peoples, persons with disabilities, and members of visible minorities).

The Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer (OCHRO) is responsible for advancing employment equity in the federal public service. To fulfil this responsibility, the collection of EE data is critical to support in developing programs, policies and interventions that encourage employment equity across the public service. EE data is collected primarily through the completion of self-identification (self-ID) questionnaires by employees who identify with one or more of the EE groups.

Problem

Increasing diversity and fostering inclusion across the public service, including at the executive ranks, is a key priority for the Government of Canada. Self-ID data at the executive level is crucial for understanding the progress that is being made in representation, hiring, promotion, and separation rates. Diversity in the leadership ranks sets the tone for the rest of the organization and ensures that the whole organization is more inclusive and effective.

Problem Definition:

Not all executives (EXs) that may want to self-identify do so, due to the time and effort required to access and complete the form, or because they lack the motivation to do so. ​In behavioural science literature, this is called the action-intention gap, which is the difference between what people intend to do, and what they actually do.

To address the action-intention gap on EX Self-ID, OCHRO launched a behavioural insights experiment. This trial had two objectives:

• To deliver a measurable increase in the proportion of EX’s who completed the self-ID questionnaire in the Executive Talent Management System by the deadline. ​
• To provide evidence-based insights into what works in encouraging self-identification for executives.

Behavioural Insights in Action

The behavioural insights trial tested two key behavioural science principles: ​

• Messenger Effects — people respond differently to prompts based on who they are receiving it from. ​
• Social Norms — individuals are more likely to take an action when they know that many of their peers are also taking that action.

Trial Overview

OCHRO developed an email campaign to encourage executives to complete the EE questionnaire and explain the importance of providing EE data.​ The campaign targeted 67 departments/agencies in the core public administration. Departments were randomly assigned to one of five groups, and the executives in each of those groups received different emails encouraging them to Self-ID. One group was a control group which received no communication. The emails came from either the Chief Human Resources Officer or the deputy head of the executive’s department. The text of the emails also differed, with about half of them providing authoritative instructions on self-identification and the other half emphasizing the social benefits of self-identification.

Key Insights

The trial showed that:

• Providing clear and authoritative instructions to Self-ID was 2.2x as effective than focusing on social norms and benefits.
• Social norms were more effective coming from the Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) than from deputy heads.
• A message from the CHRO was more effective than from Deputy Heads. 2.1x as many EXs acted before the deadline if they got an email from the CHRO, and 1.4x as many EXs took action after a message from the CHRO.

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Post by Haris Khan and McKenzie Krasilczuk, Research and Experimentation Team at OCHRO, Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat

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