Duties and responsibilities
A Chief Diversity Officer (CDO) plays a hugely meaningful part in any business. They are primarily responsible for an organization’s strategy for recruitment of diverse and underrepresented candidates. Their typical duties and responsibilities include:
- Developing, managing, and supporting diversity and inclusion strategies
- Identifying new programs or initiatives that promote and boost diversity within the organization
- Overseeing employee complaints related to discrimination, racism and harassment
- Supporting strategic collaboration between departments and executive and leadership teams
- Addressing employee demonstrations regarding diversity and responding to staff needs
- Developing or supporting change and culture management initiatives
- Addressing any issues facing specific demographic populations
Qualifications
Ideally, a CDO will need a bachelor’s degree in a related field, such as business administration, public administration, law or liberal arts. To have the best opportunities, CEO’s will achieve a masters degree in business administration (MBA) or a diversity related field.
Skills and relevant work experience
As well as relevant experience, CDO’s will need skills such as:
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- Leadership skills, as CDO’s are top executives and must be able to lead others and implement their ideas confidently
- Interpersonal skills, as CDO’s will deal with sensitive issues. They must be able to build trusting relationships
- Organization skills, as CDO’s have a huge amount of responsibility and must be able to manage their time
- Strategic thinking, as they must be able to implement plans and strategies based on data
- Technology skills, as CDO’s will uses software to analyse numbers and data
Hours
Most CDO’s will work full time. They may often find themselves working overtime, long hours to meet deadlines. They may also travel a lot to attend meetings or meet with stakeholders.
Salary
According to salary.com the median annual salary for a CDO in the United States is $188,700. The bottom 10% can expect to earn less than $136,927 and the highest 10% earn over $299,506 per annum.
Progression
CDO’s progress from lower roles. Such roles include operation managers, operation directors, or other management roles. It takes years to progress to CDO level. Therefore, once you have reached CDO level, there is little further progression. However, you may choose to aspire to become a CEO, but your role will then be less focused on diversity and inclusion.