What’s an ERG? Leaders of Nava’s employee resource groups share their impact on the company

With company culture constantly changing and adapting, how can you accurately figure out what your employees seek?

At Nava, a DC public benefit corporation that attempts to improve accessibility and effectiveness in government service through tech, employees have the option to join employee resource groups (ERGs). These groups are set spaces for employees to meet and discuss any changes or goals they’d like to see from the company, and we asked a few leaders to share their best practices for creating an effective one.

What is an ERG?

Mercy Chogugudza, VP of people operations at Nava, defines an ERG as a committee of employees invested in the organization, its goals, its mission and career development within it. The groups work with the rest of the company to find the best ways to support it and execute what employees are asking for — be it changes in culture, benefits or DEI work.

Nava is home to four ERGs: earthtones, dedicated to Black employees; Juntos, serving Latinx employees; Gender Equity, inclusive of women, genderqueer, agender and non-binary employees; and Kaleidoscope, catering to LGBTQ+ employees. Additionally, the company has introduced three affinity groups to provide support for employees with disabilities, Jewish employees and those caring for aging parents.

All in all, about a third of Nava’s workforce participates in these groups, Chogugudza said, with the overall goal of creating a safe space for current and future workers.

“This is the work that we do, which is to serve the underserved communities through our programs that we do that reflect the populations, the citizens of the United States,” Chogugudza told Technical.ly. “That was also reflected in what and who we are, so that makes it easy for us when we go and work on these programs that provide these services.”

Sheena Bryant, a senior software engineer, has worked for Nava for almost six years and served with earthtones for about five and a half. She said the ERG, which she helped launch with two other employees, aims to create an environment where Black employees feel welcomed and can thrive. Additionally, the group works to set goals and initiatives for these workers through recruiting, retention, equitable promotion and helping reach the broader Black community beyond Nava.

For Bryant, the importance of building up earthtones and equity within the company extends beyond company culture.

“We can’t build systems and improve access and the experiences that residents of this country are having when they are trying to access government services online if we can’t adopt internally a practice of inclusivity,” Bryant said. “Being able to bring the same principles that we have at play and the work that we do every day, that tens of millions of people depend on us to do — if we can’t demonstrate that with each other, there’s no way we can then bring those values to the work that we do.”

The impact

Juntos, another ERG, was for employees with roots in Latinx and Hispanic communities. The group meets once a month to create goals for the workspace and host town hall discussions on topics like mental health and imposter syndrome.

Yuleidy Merida Gonzalez, a content strategist who leads Juntos, said that entitles like ERGs that have the support of the company are especially crucial because they make these discussions a priority.

“Something that is really important that ERGs require is also having a company that allows you to have time to get together and have these discussions because finding time is really hard,” Gonzalez said.

At Nava, the ERGs are in touch with several departments and facilitating improvements. Currently, the earthtones are working on a mentorship program for Black employees that will roll out sometime this summer. Last year, the group hosted an event spotlighting Black American Sign Language. In 2021, Nava polled staff about naming new conference rooms and asked ERGs to identify activists they wanted to see the spaces named in honor of. Current spaces are named after James Baldwin, Dolores Huerta, Kiyoshi Kuromiya, John Lewis, Audre Lorde and Ida B. Wells. The ERGs also make sure that any written Nava policies are inclusive, with no group left out and all needs being met.

“For ERGs to be successful in organizations, [employees need] to know that they are important to reflect the employees’ experience, the employees’ involvement for those particular groups and their experience, through their work life,” Chogugudza said.

How to create your own

Chogugudza said the ERGs have drawn in many potential hires because they feel like the groups create a level of trust in the company and are inclusive. That trust yields results, as she noted that many new hires said in the onboarding survey said they chose Nava because they could tell that it was an inclusive company just from the website.

At Nava, the ERGs have executive sponsors that meet with leaders regularly. But building an ERG looks different for every organization. If a company already has a trusting culture where employees feel like they can talk to leadership, including higher-ups and the C-Suite, then those senior employees can join the groups. For those that don’t have that already, though, she recommends creating an ERG and delegating leaders that can take complaints or potential changes to superiors later, which helps give people a safe space to speak where they’re not afraid of retaliation.

Whatever way it’s established, Bryant recommends taking the time to create a group.

“If you have the desire to start an ERG, act on that desire and approach the work day by day, and use the resources that are before you,” Bryant said. “You may not have all that you need at the start, but I think that as you go along, you will develop tools and you’ll pick up various tools for your toolbox. So if you have the desire, don’t ignore it.”