The inclusion gap
83% vs 59%
Employees who say their ERG is effective are far more likely to feel included at work: 83%, compared with 59% for employees who rate their ERG ineffective, according to McKinsey research involving almost 25,000 employees.
For HR leaders, employer branding teams and people managers, ERGs can be one of the clearest signals that inclusion at a workplace is real. At Great Place To Work®, the test of a great workplace is simple: do people trust leaders, feel pride in their work, and enjoy the people they work with, consistently across the workforce.
The Trust Index™ survey measures those experiences so organizations can see whether ERGs are helping everyone feel included, or just generating calendar invites.
In this article
What are Employee Resource Groups (ERGs)?
Employee Resource Groups, or ERGs, are voluntary, employee-led groups built around shared identities, life experiences or interests, with a goal of supporting members and improving the workplace. We define them as groups that foster a diverse and inclusive workplace aligned with an organization’s mission, values and objectives.
An ERG is where culture gets specific.
It might be a women’s network, a Pride network, a First Nations group, a disability network, a parents group, or a multicultural network. The good ones create community, surface issues leaders may miss, and help people feel less like the only person in the room. McKinsey found community building is the area ERGs do best, which tracks with what many employees feel too.
For Great Place To Work, ERGs matter when they strengthen the daily experience of trust. If people in underrepresented groups feel less fairness, less respect, or less ability to be themselves, the Trust Index will show it. That gives leaders something more useful than a vibe. It gives them evidence.
Are Employee Resource Groups effective?
Yes, they can be. The best available evidence links effective ERGs with stronger feelings of inclusion: 83% positive inclusion scores among employees who rated their ERGs effective or very effective, compared with 59% among those who rated them ineffective or very ineffective. McKinsey’s research drew on conversations and research involving almost 25,000 employees.
They are especially useful when they do more than host events. The accepted five dimensions of ERG activity are external engagement, allyship, leadership connection, employee community building and career advancement. Most explainers stop short of the practical question leaders care about: which of these outcomes are you trying to produce, and how will you know if you did?
| Effective ERG | Ineffective ERG | |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Written charter with named outcomes and accountabilities | Vague mission, unclear who it serves or what it changes |
| Sponsorship | Executive sponsor with budget and access to decision-makers | Ceremonial applause, no funding, patchy leadership support |
| Volunteer load | ERG work recognised in performance goals, with time allocated | Unpaid overtime for already stretched employees |
| Activity | Community, allyship, leadership connection and career advancement | Events calendar with no link to inclusion strategy |
| Measurement | Survey data tracks trust, fairness and belonging by group | Success measured by attendance and launch posts |
The Great Place To Work Trust Index survey measures credibility, respect, fairness, pride and camaraderie, which lets leaders test whether ERGs are improving trust for different groups across the business. If an ERG exists but women, LGBTQ+ employees, carers or culturally diverse employees still report lower fairness or belonging, the data is telling you the glossy launch post was not the hard part.
Why are Employee Resource Groups important?
ERGs are important because they help turn inclusion from policy into lived experience. ERGs can promote inclusion, support diverse recruitment, provide role models and mentoring, create networking opportunities, feed into diversity and inclusion strategy, and give underrepresented employees a voice.
They also matter for employer brand. Prospective candidates do not just want to know whether you have values on the website. They want signs that people like them can thrive there. McKinsey notes ERGs can support attraction, retention and representation of diverse talent when they are properly connected to the organization’s inclusion strategy.
How should you start an Employee Resource Group?
Start with the problem, not the logo. McKinsey’s research shows ERGs fail in predictable ways when purpose is fuzzy, expectations are mismatched, leadership support is patchy, or the work lands as unpaid overtime for already stretched employees.
A sensible ERG launch looks like this:
1Define the purpose clearly
Write a short charter covering who the ERG serves, what it is trying to change, and how it supports the organization’s inclusion goals. McKinsey recommends a charter, annual plan, named accountabilities and impact metrics.
2Get genuine executive sponsorship
Real access to budget, leaders and decision-makers. A sponsor needs to be senior enough to move budget and open doors. Ask them to commit to specifics: a named line in the annual budget, regular time with the ERG leads, and a route for the group’s insights to reach leadership discussions where decisions get made. Uneven support is one reason ERGs stall.
3Make joining easy and expectations obvious
Employees should know whether the ERG offers community, advocacy, career support, education, or all of the above. Confusion is where disappointment breeds.
4Protect volunteer time
McKinsey cites examples of companies formally recognizing ERG work in performance goals and allowing time allocation for leadership duties. This is wise. Burnt-out ERG leads do not build sustainable inclusion.
5Measure impact early
Use the Trust Index survey, or another robust employee survey, to track trust, fairness, belonging and voice across demographic groups before and after launch. Great Place To Work’s model is especially useful here because it links culture outcomes to the employee experience in plain terms leaders can act on.
If a carers ERG launches because employees say flexibility feels uneven, measure whether carers report stronger fairness, respect and manager support in the next survey cycle. If scores do not move, the answer is to fix the policy, capability or leader behavior the ERG has surfaced.
Is your ERG improving trust, or just adding meetings?
The Trust Index survey shows you how every group in your workforce experiences fairness, respect and belonging.
FAQs about employee resource groups
What is an employee resource group?
An Employee Resource Group is a voluntary, employee-led group that brings together people with a shared identity, background or interest to build connection and improve the workplace. ERGs often support inclusion, mentoring, feedback to leaders and career development. Done well, they help more employees feel respected, heard and able to be themselves at work.
Are employee resource groups effective?
Employee Resource Groups can be highly effective when they have a clear purpose, leadership support, time, funding and measurable goals. McKinsey found employees who rated their ERGs effective were much more likely to report feeling included at work, 83% compared with 59% for those who rated them ineffective.
Why are employee resource groups important?
Employee Resource Groups are important because they give underrepresented employees community, visibility and a route to influence workplace decisions. They can also help with recruitment, retention, mentoring and leadership insight. Their real value is strongest when they improve trust, fairness and belonging across the employee experience.
How do you start an employee resource group at work?
Start by defining the ERG’s purpose, the employee need it addresses, and the outcome you want to improve. Then create a charter, appoint leaders, secure executive sponsorship, allocate time and budget, and set simple success measures. Survey data is essential, because it shows whether the ERG is improving inclusion rather than just increasing activity.
How do you measure employee resource group success?
Measure Employee Resource Group success through employee survey results, participation data and feedback from the people the ERG is designed to support. Great measures include belonging, fairness, trust in leadership, psychological safety and career opportunity. Great Place To Work’s Trust Index is useful because it tracks these culture signals in a structured, comparable way.
