Driving Cultural Transformation: DEI-Led HR Strategy in APAC

In an exclusive interaction with Asia Business Outlook, Patrick Woo, Director of Human Resources - Asia Pacific at Steelcase, shares his insights on driving cultural transformation through DEI-led HR strategies across the APAC region. He highlights the evolving landscape of gender diversity initiatives, hybrid work inclusion dynamics, data-driven DEI metrics, and the empowerment of employee resource groups. Patrick Woo provides a comprehensive view of how organizations are holding leadership accountable for measurable cultural change while navigating future challenges, including generational workforce shifts, AI integration and the growing emphasis on well-being.

As gender diversity initiatives gain momentum across APAC, how are companies evolving their DEI strategies to increase women's leadership representation in traditionally male-dominated industries?

Gender diversity is one of the focuses of APAC which came into the spotlight within the five years of globalized changes in diversity. Even as the U.S. focused on race and ethnicity after the Black Lives Matter, there already was a diversity of race in the Asia-Pacific region, which caused organizations in the region to focus on gender balance, which was always unbalanced. Organizational commitment is crucial in the instillation of success and this should begin with the buy-in of the culture and the leadership to be followed through by the institutionalization of change which entails in some cases the transformation of the existing cultures. This entails policies, practices, performance bonuses and expectations in order to foster leadership accountability.

Transformation is effective when guided by three principles; that is, attitude, accommodation, and action. The companies should develop an appropriate attitude by eliminating their biases, both conscious and unconscious, through training and communication. They have to adjust to change by availing time, space, flexibility and money. Lastly, they have to act with commitment- developing strategies that provide immediate results but does not weaken the long term strategies. Success does not happen overnight; it takes completion of initiated projects, planning and long term commitment. Even when the goals are met, the practice of inclusion will remain sustainable through perpetual nurturing in sectors that are considered to still be dominated by males.

With DEI now tied to business performance, how are APAC organizations holding leadership accountable for driving measurable and lasting cultural transformation?

The Systematic leadership accountability mechanisms are being developed by APAC organizations as the direct influence of DEI on the business outcomes is becoming apparent. Firms incorporate a variety of measure of diversity in performance appraisals, aligning executive pay and promotion with inclusion goals, and cultural change metrics. Accountability starts with a management leadership that has sets some expectations and goals that can be measured. Organizations set out particular diversity objectives representation targets, inclusion survey scores, and retention rates, which leaders should meet. The visibility and sense of urgency over results are achieved through regular progress reviews and clear reporting.

New systems of performance management reward inclusive leadership behaviors as well as the old measures of business results. Organizations do not only consider the numerical representation of diversity but also inclusive decision-making environments and team engagement indicators and cultural propensity changes. This holistic strategy makes the leaders take into consideration both the quantitative and qualitative change. Board transparency has escalated, and diversity advancement is a trendy subject of board governance. Leadership accountability is also compounded by external reporting and disclosure to the stakeholders. Consequence management is also used in organizations where recognition is offered to exemplary inclusive leaders and cases where people fail to develop are addressed. Effective accountability involves long-term persistence, precise measures, frequent evaluation, and significant repercussions that angle on DEI being a business need and not a luxury project.

The shift to hybrid work environments has created new inclusion dynamics; how are APAC companies adapting DEI efforts to foster belonging for both remote and in-office employees?

Hybrid work transformation has redefined work inclusiveness in the APAC workplace. As more than half of the meetings involve remote attendance, even those attending the office rooms on behalf of their organizations connect to the online meeting remotely, organizations are struggling to find a way to sustain digital and human connection through environment. This change has transformed the use of the office and the aspect of building relationships. Hybrid work, when unmanaged, can cause loneliness and disengagement as the workers replace the physical workspace with the convenience of the digital environment, announcing new issues of inclusion.

The response of APAC companies is a redesign of both the physical and digital landscape to create a sense of belonging no matter where a person is. Among the most important adaptations are re-designing the space in terms of privacy and acoustics, re-designing of the communication procedures to make sure that the remote worker does not get forgotten, and the replacement of simple laptops and cameras with more extensive technology. Privacy and autonomy is specifically essential to the middle managers to succeed in this setting. Firms are also changing the policies on financial benefits, flexible arrangements and performance management to treat remote employees as fairly as other typical employees.

Integrative technology: Hybrid inclusion can be achieved by means of acoustically-optimized space, effective collaboration technologies, inclusive meeting environments, and equitable performance-evaluation practices. The intention here is to see to it that every employee is felt, heard and supported, whether working in the office or off office, eventually ensuring that team cohesion prevails regardless of distributed work environments.

With growing emphasis on data-driven HR, what key DEI metrics are APAC firms prioritizing to track cultural transformation and inform strategic decisions?

 APAC firms prioritize comprehensive DEI metrics including workforce demographics across organizational levels, retention and promotion rates by demographic groups, and pay equity analysis.  Some of the indicators that are also seen as key include employee engagement scores, surveys which take into account the sentiment of inclusion, the demographics of the candidate pipeline, and the employee resource group participation rate. Nonetheless, organizations that are successful implement metrics on particular strategic priorities instead of the strategies that are generic. It is the measuring of the outcome that has a direct influence on the transformation objectives of each company which has to sustain the business objectives. This is a focused approach that allows distributing resources into an area that has high impact in bringing about a significant change in culture other than the data collection process. An effective DEI measurement is not too track-heavy or even too strategy-oriented, making metrics actionable, thus having a constructive result that can provide a better understanding of the outcome of decision-making and show a steppingstone to create an inclusive workplace culture in the region.

Also Read: How Middle East Conflicts Destroy Asia's Economy Right Now

Employee resource groups have proven effective in many APAC markets—how are organizations empowering ERGs to support diverse talent and drive sustained inclusion?

Employee resource groups can be a potent tool that helps in bringing inclusion in the APAC markets, which involves belonging and community among different workers. ERGs permit greater choice, control and purpose to the employees and allows them to devote efforts to personally significant projects. Organizations support ERGs using specific resources, funds, and secured time to engage in participation. Top-level support is essential, as it provides organizational substance and makes sure that communication processes are clear. These sponsors are also able to facilitate the matching of ERG activities with the overall strategies of the company, thereby bridging the gap between the grass-roots goals of the employees and the company goals. At success, there must be synergistic relationships between leadership and the employee-driven groups. Companies which support the ERGs fully with budget funding, meeting space, and support by top management, help the ERGs to make a significant difference. This hand-in-hand strategy allows ERGs to effectively explain the development of talent with diversity, inclusion in workplaces, and sustainable cultural change in the entire organization.

Considering evolving social and economic trends, what future DEI challenges and opportunities do you foresee shaping HR strategies across the APAC region?

APAC's future DEI landscape presents multifaceted challenges requiring strategic adaptation. Organizations have to compete with an ageing generation of workers as well as younger ones, who have alternative expectations over technologies and purpose-motivated values. The increasing needs of well-being and mental health and wellness force employers to offer holistic mental health and wellness examinations. The revolution of AI will require reskilling programs and making the training of technology accessible to people of various demographics without discrimination.

High talent mobility in the region and on an international scale provides possibilities to hire various talents but complicates retention strategies. The APAC region is characterized by its cultural diversity, which requires locally specific ways of implementing techniques in compliance with universal inclusion concepts. The policies of the HR in the future must focus on creating more inclusive cultures that cross-generational gaps, creating fair policies that accommodate diverse cultures and embrace technology in order to make them more accessible and reachable. The key to success lies in the combination of standardized inclusion models with culture and sensitivity so that everyone could receive support regarding their well-being, diverse talent to be prepared to work in the world of AI, and human-centered principles to be kept throughout the process of the organization changing.