Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging (DEI&B)

Employee Resource Groups, also known as Engagement Resource Groups, are voluntary, employee-led groups that focus on the experiences and perspectives of people of a particular race, ethnic or cultural background, gender, gender identity, religion, age cohort, sexual orientation, history of disabilities, military service, or other affinities. They foster a diverse, inclusive workplace aligned with the organizational mission, values, goals, business practices, and objectives. Quartz currently offers eight ERGs:

• Black Voices at Quartz
• Blended
• Diverse Ability
• Allies of LGBTQ+
• Hispanic/Latinx
• LGBTQ+
• Military Service Member
• Quartz Women United

For us, making sure our services are culturally and linguistically appropriate is one way to improve the quality of services provided to all individuals, which will ultimately help reduce health disparities and achieve health equity. Being intentional about health equity requires respect and responsiveness: Respect the whole individual and respond to the individual’s health needs and preferences.

Read more about our efforts to make health equity a reality through NCQA accreditation.

To provide accessible communication, services, and products, we are intentional about providing an equitable member and employee experience. Our work is in alignment with CMS requirements of providing certain communications or member materials in a preferred language or alternate formats.

As an opportunity for colleagues to become more aware and educated about diversity, equity, and inclusion topics, we offer employee lunch-and-learns on various DEI&B topics.
We prioritize preparing our employees to foster inclusive relationships with an emphasis on belonging. Some of the topics we integrate into our learning and development:

1. Microaggressions
2. COVID-19 and Health Disparities
3. Cultural Humility
4. Anti-Racism
5. Neuro-Inclusivity
6. Implicit Bias
7. Gender Identity
8. Cultural & Linguistic Diversity
9. Enhancing Belonging
10. Inclusive Leadership

We are intentional about diversifying our vendor pool, starting with identifying qualified vendors, not to the exclusion of non-diverse vendors.

What is a diverse supplier, and why is it important?

1. Diverse suppliers are a business that is at least 51% owned and operated by an individual or group that is part of a traditionally underrepresented or underserved group. Common classifications are small-business enterprises (SBEs), minority-owned enterprises (MBEs), and woman-owned enterprises (WBEs). Over time, the definition of diversity has expanded to businesses owned by other minority groups, such as LGBQT+, veterans, and proprietors with disabilities (Harvard Business Review, 2020).
2. Inclusive procurement also delivers broader societal benefits by generating economic opportunities for historically underrepresented communities.

Giving

In 2021, we developed a committee, Quartz Cares, to focus our philanthropic efforts on ways to eliminate health disparities, particularly those related to race and ethnicity.

Learn more about the impact of our efforts.

Workforce

Quartz is an employer partner with the Latino Academy of Workforce Development, developing bilingual customer service training for individuals seeking to re-skill and change career paths.

Equitable Access

Quartz has teamed up with the National Fitness Campaign on a statewide partnership to expand free access to world-class fitness by bringing The Fitness Court® to communities across Wisconsin. Through this campaign, we aim to help create equitable access to outdoor exercise programs for communities around the state.