So, what’s next? You have now decided to take a journey in increasing your employee diversity, but no doubt you have some questions or concerns. Some of the questions we’ve heard are: How will this new employee learn their job? Are they going to fit in? What if they aren’t performing up to expectations? Are there safety concerns? These are all very legitimate and common concerns and for several years CAES has collaborated with the business community to identify and address these concerns. We had identified that we needed to build our program not only around the candidates we represent, but also around the Business Diversity Leaders that we partner with. We recognized that it was important that we continue delivering excellent service to our candidates but also worked to increase our focus and strengthen our capacity to deliver a variety of wide ranging post placement and follow up services. As part of those services our Consultants can accompany the candidate to their first few shifts to help with any initial training or on-boarding. Prior to securing employment, the Career Consultants have worked with the candidate to understand any barriers that they may have to learning a new job, and so the Career Consultant may make suggestions around accommodations or assist in implementing learning strategies. During the first shift we assess any safety concerns and ensure that the employee is aware of any hazards they may come into contact with. We also work with the employee to develop natural supports and build an understanding of workplace culture. As we move along, Career Consultants follow up with the employer to address any concerns related to performance or to provide support for training. As we like to say “it’s business as usual” – the skills used to supervise and retain diverse staff are skills you likely already possess and utilize with your current staff. However, we provide ongoing, free HR consultation with the employer to develop strategies to overcome any sort of issues that may arise. These services are always tailored to the employer’s needs in order to foster job retention and build the capacity of the workplace to get the most out of diversity.