Employee resource groups & staff networks

Almost every organisation that takes inclusion seriously ends up here: someone says, “Should we start a network?” It’s a good instinct. Employee resource groups (ERGs) and staff networks are one of the most practical, low-cost ways to turn good intentions into something people can actually feel at work. But the gap between a thriving network and a well-meaning one that quietly fizzles out is wide — and it usually comes down to mandate, resource and sponsorship rather than enthusiasm. Here’s how to get it right.

Building blocks of inclusion

Start with what these groups actually are. An ERG or staff network is a voluntary, employee-led group — usually formed around a shared identity or lived experience, and open to allies — that fosters a more diverse, inclusive workplace aligned with the organisation’s mission, values and goals. The terms are often used interchangeably: “ERG” in North America, “staff network” in the UK. The label matters far less than the design.

“Networks aren’t a nice-to-have on the side of the business — they’re the building blocks of an inclusive culture. They’re where belonging gets built, one honest conversation at a time.” — Joanne Lockwood

They sit alongside — not instead of — the everyday work of inclusion. A network gives people somewhere to find each other; the broader job of building a culture of belonging is what stops anyone needing to leave a part of themselves at the door in the first place.

Strength in diversity: the value they bring

When networks work, the benefits ripple in three directions. For individuals, they offer connection, support and a route to personal and professional development. For the organisation, they lift engagement, surface issues early, and provide a genuine read on how different groups experience the business. And for strategy, they offer insight into diverse market segments, sharpen recruitment, and improve retention — people stay where they feel they belong.

• Development. Members build skills, visibility and confidence — and leaders emerge who might never have raised a hand otherwise.
• Engagement. People who feel seen give more, stay longer and speak more freely.
• Insight. A network is an early-warning system and a focus group rolled into one — if you actually listen.

From the ground up: starting a network

You don’t need a grand launch. You need a handful of committed people and a few decisions made deliberately rather than by accident:

• Identify a clear purpose. What is this network for, and who is it for? A vague remit pleases no one.
• Gather interest. Test whether the appetite is real before you build the scaffolding. A small, energised group beats a large, indifferent one.
• Secure executive sponsorship early. Don’t leave this until the network exists and is asking for things. The mandate comes first.

The order matters. A network launched without backing has to spend its first year fighting for the standing it should have started with.

Guiding lights: the role of network leaders

The people who step up to lead carry a lot — strategic planning, advocacy, facilitation, and the emotional labour of holding space for colleagues. Define the role clearly so it’s a development opportunity, not an open-ended drain. Good leadership of a network is a leadership credential in its own right, and it should be treated as one: named in objectives, recognised in reviews, and supported with training.

Leading a network is also a masterclass in inclusive facilitation — the same skills that make running inclusive meetings work, applied to a community rather than an agenda.

Join the movement: engaging the wider organisation

A network shouldn’t be a closed room. Encourage people to engage at whatever level suits them — joining as a member, turning up to an event, or taking on a leadership role. And make space for allies. The point of a network isn’t to wall people in; it’s to widen the circle of people who understand and act. That’s the same instinct as allyship — holding the rope: showing up, using your standing, and staying when it counts.

Executive backing: support from leadership

This is the make-or-break factor. Support from the top isn’t a warm word in a town hall — it’s resources, visibility and strategic input. A sponsor with real seniority who turns up, opens doors, defends the budget, and carries the network’s voice into the rooms where decisions are made.

“A network without a sponsor is a campaign without a megaphone. The energy is real, but it can’t reach the rooms where things actually change.” — Joanne Lockwood

Inclusion doesn’t just happen — it’s designed, resourced and led. A network is one of the clearest places that truth shows up.

Metrics matter: measuring success

If you can’t see whether a network is working, you can’t protect it when budgets tighten. Agree a small set of meaningful indicators up front: membership growth, engagement levels, and — crucially — impact on business goals and on the experience of the people the network exists to serve. Measure what matters, not just what’s easy to count.

Stronger together: cross-network collaboration

Identity isn’t single-file, and neither are people. Encourage networks to work together — a joint event, a shared campaign, a combined response to a policy change. Collaboration across groups widens reach, reflects the reality that people hold many identities at once, and stops any one network being siloed as “their issue” rather than everyone’s.

Funding the mission: budgeting

Goodwill is not a budget line. If you want events, speaker sessions, training and community outreach, you have to fund them. A network expected to deliver value on nothing but evenings and weekends is being set up to fail — and is being told, plainly, where it sits in the order of priorities. Provide a real budget and a simple way to draw on it.

Prepared to lead: training network leaders

Don’t assume the people who volunteer already have everything they need. Offer training and development — facilitation, influencing, wellbeing boundaries, working with sponsors — so leaders are equipped rather than thrown in. It’s an investment that pays back twice: in stronger networks, and in capable people who go on to lead elsewhere in the organisation.

Aligning with strategy

The most resilient networks are woven into how the business thinks, not bolted on beside it. Show how a network contributes to strategy — insight into diverse markets, sharper recruitment, better retention — and it stops being seen as a cost and starts being seen as an asset. That’s the position you want it in when the difficult conversations about money and time come round.

The pitfalls to avoid

Most failing networks fail in the same few ways. Name them so you can design them out:

• Tokenism. A network that’s consulted and then ignored does more harm than no network at all. Give it standing, or don’t pretend.
• Unpaid labour. Treating leadership as a free extra on top of the day job burns good people out and signals that inclusion is optional. Recognise and resource the time.
• No mandate. A logo without a seat at the table is decoration. The network needs the authority to influence, not just to comment.

Get those three right and most other problems become solvable. Get them wrong and the best intentions in the world won’t save the network.

Where to start

This is the work Joanne does with leaders and teams: helping organisations design networks that have a real mandate, supporting sponsors to sponsor well, and turning enthusiasm into something sustainable. Explore the Inclusive Culture & Belonging topic, or hear inclusion explored on the Inclusion Bites podcast.