Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) play a pivotal role in fostering inclusion and belonging within organizations. But how do you ensure that ERG events are impactful and aligned with both the group's mission and company goals?

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In our latest Epoch Live Webinar, Keith, Epoch’s Co-Founder and COO, was joined by Angie, Epoch’s Product and Design Lead, to discuss exactly that. Together, they showcased how our customers like Salesforce, Workday, and Reddit leverage Epoch to seamlessly manage and scale their ERG programs.

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Here’s a recap of the key takeaways!

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Building strong Employee Resource Groups

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Keith kicked off the webinar by breaking down the essential components of a successful ERG. 

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ERGs are identity-based groups that support employees who share a common background or interest, whether that’s race, gender, sexual orientation, disability status, or more. However, running a successful ERG requires structure and planning. 

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Here are some of the key elements of an ERG charter:

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• Purpose and mission statement

• Membership guidelines

• Event planning and budgeting

• Metrics and accountability

• Governance and compliance

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ERG leaders also face common challenges, including limited budgets, low engagement, and lack of leadership buy-in. Keith stressed the importance of proving the value of ERGs to leadership and building a sturdy foundation for these groups to thrive long-term.

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Aligning ERG events with broader goals

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Once you have the group’s structure in place, how do you keep things on track? 

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Event programming should always align with the ERG’s charter, your company’s DEIB strategy, and overall business goals. This alignment helps ensure every event is not only fun and engaging but also impactful.

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An important takeaway here: automation is your friend. By reducing time spent on administrative tasks, ERG leaders can focus on creating visible, meaningful events that leave a lasting impression on employees.

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Tracking ROI and proving the ERG business case

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One of the most important aspects of running an ERG program is demonstrating its impact. 

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Angie discussed how Epoch makes this easy by providing data and insights that help companies track ERG event performance. With Epoch, customers can measure key metrics like:

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• Event participation rates

• Most and least active members

• Spending per member

• Overall engagement levels

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These insights allow ERG leaders to prove the business value of their events and make data-driven decisions for future programming. 

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External stats back it up, too! Research shows that 83% of employees in effective ERGs feel a strong sense of belonging, compared to just 59% in less effective groups. And we all know that a sense of belonging drives engagement, retention, and even recruitment.

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Simplifying ERG events with Epoch

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Epoch simplifies ERG event management by automating many manual workflows. Key features include:

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• Seamless integration: Create and manage ERG events directly on Epoch, with integrations for announcements and reminders through Slack, Teams, and email.

• Automated membership management: New members are automatically added to relevant Slack channels.

• Easy discovery: Increase awareness across the whole company with a centralized dashboard for events and communities.

• Feedback collection: Measure engagement with membership analytics, custom surveys, and attendance tracking.

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By automating arduous tasks like membership tracking, event creation, communications, and feedback collection, Epoch allows ERG leaders to focus on what matters most: creating engaging and impactful events!

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‍For more information on how Epoch can transform your ERG event management, book a demo today!