Frequently Asked Questions

Expanding Equity launched in 2019 as a series of live workshops with five private equity and financial services firms. The program has grown to support more than 250 companies and more than 1,000 leaders from more than 10 industries. The foundation transitioned the program to an online learning platform in 2023 so that more leaders, organizations and industries can take advantage of it. The current program is a mix of live, virtual sessions and a comprehensive online learning journey.

Expanding Equity is directly impacting about 2% of the overall U.S. workforce, or more than 3.5 million employees, through the more than 100 companies engaged. A driving force for the Kellogg Foundation in offering this program is the positive impact that Expanding Equity can ultimately make in the lives of millions of children. We know that greater access to good jobs make a difference for working families. We estimate that based on the average U.S. household size, the Expanding Equity network of companies has indirectly impacted 1-2 million children under age 18 across the United States through their DEI efforts. Read more about our impact in a three-year retrospective report.

Most leaders are in Talent or Human Resources roles, but C-suite leaders, middle managers, Employee or Business Resource Group leaders and functional leaders (e.g., communications, marketing, sales, finance, legal, operations, investments) are also represented. To date, companies from the following industries have joined the Expanding Equity network: private equity, financial services, banking, investment management, consumer goods, retail, hospitality, manufacturing, transportation and logistics, and professional services.

Expanding Equity’s topical courses and resources are available to everyone.

Our Core Program is application-based and designed for organizations who are committed to creating more opportunity, inclusion, and fairness in their work through a comprehensive, structured, measurable and actionable program. We are actively recruiting private sector, for-profit companies to apply to join online learning cohorts. Eligible organizations typically have ~100 employees, but some smaller organizations have participated in the past.

Participating teams typically include 1 team leader, 1-2 HR professionals, 1-2 functional leaders from the business, and 1 C-suite executive sponsor. The team leader serves as a primary point of contact for your organization as your team goes through the course. It is up to each organization to select this lead and their team.

If you are not a private sector company, we encourage you to sign up for Expanding Equity email updates for announcements about this new offering and additional resources as they become available.

The Core Program is relevant if you are…

• Just getting started or new to building an initial strategy to create more inclusive and fair workplaces, the Core Program offers tools to kickstart your journey;
• Making great progress in your efforts to promote inclusion and fairness in your workplace, the Core Program can help you to strengthen your strategy, refine your initiatives, and accelerate your progress;
• Well on your way and a leader in building workplaces that work for everyone, the Core Program provides access to a community of like-minded practitioners to network with and share best practices and effective strategies; or
• Experiencing a shift in your organization (e.g., a merger or acquisition), the Core Program can help you refresh your strategy and revitalize your efforts to help ensure every employee has the same level of opportunity and sense of belonging.

• A robust, field-tested framework
  Proven, data-driven strategies and resources to help you create a comprehensive and actionable talent and culture strategy
• Peer-to-peer learning and networking
  Access to a growing network of 1,000+ like-minded practitioners across industries and opportunities to network and collaborate in live and online sessions.
• Practical, action-oriented resources
  How-to guides, diagnostics surveys, a catalogue of initiatives, strategic planning templates and a repository of best-in-class resources that are timely, relevant and impactful
• Skill building
  Team-based activities and tools to help you and your colleagues grow your skills and capabilities

Expanding Equity offerings are offered by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation completely free of charge. We do ask participating organizations to complete a short, annual survey so that we can continue to refine offerings in the future and share key learnings with the field. Survey responses are confidential and not shared with anyone outside of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. For any reporting on progress and impact by the network, all data will be anonymized and aggregated.

While we highly encourage participation in the annual survey, organizations are not required to share any detailed data (e.g., HR strategies, talent pipeline analyses) with the W.K. Kellogg Foundation or other participants. Many of our offerings involve interactions with participants from other organizations. Therefore, what you share on discussion boards and verbally share in live meetings will be known by other participants. All members of the Expanding Equity network agree to a set of terms and conditions and community standards that outline expected behaviors, confidentiality, etc. If your organization has concerns regarding privacy that would prohibit your participation, please reach out to us. We have several solutions for these types of matters that we offer and deploy on a case-by-case basis.