How to Choose a Diversity and Inclusion Service Provider
How to Choose a Diversity and Inclusion Service Provider
This is a question many HR directors and D&I leaders ask themselves when they’re looking for a partner. The market is vast, companies’ positioning often looks similar, and key differences are rarely apparent in sales brochures.
Here are the criteria that really matter—even if some of them don't work in everyone's favor.
What most service providers don't do
“Platform” D&I consulting firms
Their model: building a pool of independent trainers, speakers, and coaches, and placing them with their clients. The quality depends on the professional selected for your project, not on the parent company.
Advantage: extensive catalog. Disadvantage: lack of consistency across projects, no holistic view of your organization, and no continuity from one project to the next.
Generalist firms with a D&I offering
HR firms, management consulting firms, or organizational consulting firms that have added a D&I component to their services. Their expertise is often genuine but superficial: D&I is not their core business, and this is evident in the depth of their content and their ability to lead a group through sensitive topics.
Activist groups and organizations
Strong commitment, in-depth knowledge of the subject—but an approach that is often prescriptive, which generates resistance within companies. Their tone fails to win over skeptics, who are often the most important people to convince.
The criteria that set them apart
1. Is D&I a core business, not just an option?
A firm that has specialized in this area for over 10 years does not have the same depth of expertise as a generalist firm that launched a D&I service two years ago.
2. Are the consultants in-house or independent contractors?
Ask them directly. If the answer is vague, it’s a staffing agency. If the consultants are employees of the firm, there is a consistent culture, methodology, and approach.
3. Can the service provider align with your existing policies?
A good service provider understands your workplace equality index, reviews your HR data, and tailors their approach to your specific situation—not to a standard program.
4. Is there a way to measure impact?
If the service provider does not offer a measurement tool, it means they are not tracking the impact. This may be a deliberate choice or a methodological limitation—in either case, it is a problem.
5. Is the tone engaging without being confrontational?
The topic of diversity and inclusion tends to polarize opinions if the tone is preachy. A good service provider speaks the language of performance, fulfillment, and behavior—not of struggle or moral obligation.
What Accordia suggests you do
We aren’t the right fit for everyone, and we don’t claim to be. Before committing to any project, we always schedule an initial consultation to determine whether our approach aligns with your needs.
If that’s not the case, we’ll let you know—and we can help you find something that’s a better fit for you.
