Leveraging the MERIT Model for Workplace Success
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This piece is part of an ongoing series responding to the wave of DEI rollbacks and resistance. Each article offers thoughtful strategies to help you lead in ways that increase diversity and retention—without harm. Pre-order The Equity Edge now and receive The Equity Edge Instructor Guide FREE—a limited-time offer designed to help you bring these practices into your workplace with care, courage, and clarity.
Today, we get to walk through the MERIT Model—step by step—and show how companies can make equity real, measurable, and lasting.
The MERIT Model: A Systemic Fix for Systemic Bias
For too long, companies have been stuck in a cycle of hiring the same types of people from the same networks, using the same outdated methods, and then wondering why their talent pool isn’t representative of the greater workforce. If we want real merit-based hiring, we have to start by fixing the way we define and evaluate talent. That’s where the MERIT Model comes in.
Instead of chasing identity based numbers or reacting to political pressure, this approach makes equity the foundation, inclusion the process, and retention the proof that we are moving the needle.
As I showed you last week, the MERIT Model stands for this.
M: Mitigate - fix the playing field before measuring talent.
E: Expand - open the talent pool to strengthen the workforce.
R: Reevaluate - fix broken hiring, promotion, and retention systems.
I: Include - build a workplace where people feel valued and belong.
T: Transition - move from one time initiatives into lasting workplace diversity.
Below, we’ll unpack each of these and show how to take actionable steps to leverage this model.
MITIGATE: Fix the Playing Field Before Measuring Talent
Too many jobs require a four-year degree, as we’ve discussed earlier, yet only 37.9% of the workforce has one—even when many of those jobs don’t actually require a degree to perform well. Meanwhile, most jobs are filled through networking, making it harder for skilled candidates without the right connections to break in.
That’s not merit-based hiring. That’s exclusion disguised as “standards.”
How to “Mitigate”
If companies truly want the best talent, they need to focus on skills, not outdated credentials or insider networks.
Stop requiring degrees when they aren’t necessary. Research shows that skills, not diplomas, predict job performance.
Reduce reliance on referrals. Hiring through friends and former colleagues keeps workplaces homogenous.
Train hiring managers to spot bias. Without structured criteria, decisions often come down to “gut instinct,” which favors familiarity, not skill.
Merit isn’t where you went to school, who you know, or how much access you’ve had. It’s about whether you can do the job. But until we fix the hiring process, we’ll never actually know who the best person is.
EXPAND: Open the Talent Pool to Strengthen the Workforce
Once hiring filters are cleaned up, the next step is expanding access to ensure companies are reaching the best talent, not just the most connected or traditionally privileged candidates.
Most companies fish from the same small pond. They recruit from elite schools, rely on referrals, and expect applicants to follow a “traditional” career path. This shrinks the talent pool and shuts out qualified professionals who took different routes to build their skills.
As we discussed in the earlier articles, companies with broader, skills-based hiring practices outperform competitors in innovation and problem-solving. Yet, many still cling to outdated hiring habits, assuming the best talent only comes from specific schools, companies, or networks.
How to “Expand”
Look beyond the usual schools. Partner with community colleges, trade schools, and HBCUs to tap into talent companies often overlook.
Recognize nontraditional career paths. Experience isn’t always linear—some of the best candidates gained their skills through freelancing, apprenticeships, military service, or boot camps.
Broaden recruitment beyond elite networks. If 85% of jobs are filled through referrals, that’s a red flag, not a sign of meritocracy. Posting jobs widely and reducing referral dependence ensures you’re choosing from the best talent, not just the most connected.
REEVALUATE: Fix Broken Hiring, Promotion, and Retention Systems
Even when companies bring in talent from different backgrounds, bias doesn’t stop at hiring. It’s baked into performance evaluations, promotion decisions, and leadership pipelines. If companies don’t reevaluate how they assess employees, they risk losing great talent before they ever reach leadership.
And when it comes to evaluation, most organizations reward familiarity over true potential. Performance reviews are often subjective, most of which rely on vague criteria and manager opinions instead of clear, measurable outcomes. Study says women and professionals from historically underrepresented backgrounds receive 20% less actionable feedback than their white male counterparts, making career progression harder for them.
When performance measures are unclear or inconsistent, that’s a perfect time for the bias to fill in. Employees who fit the “traditional” leadership mold get promoted, while others get stuck proving themselves over and over.
How to “Reevaluate”
Use structured, evidence-based evaluations. Require managers to back up ratings with specific examples instead of relying on gut feelings.
Track who gets promoted and who doesn’t. If a certain group is consistently passed over, there’s a problem. Hiring based on identity is illegal, and so is refusing to hire based on identity. Dig into the data and fix what’s blocking their advancement.
Make pay and promotion criteria transparent and public. Transparency reduces favoritism and builds trust. When employees know exactly what it takes to move up, everyone competes on the same terms. Also, require pay transparency to eliminate salary gaps.
INCLUDE: Build a Workplace Where People Feel Valued and Belong
If you think successfully hiring talent from historically underrepresented groups based on merit is the finish line, think again. They may face microaggressions, lack of sponsorship, or simply feel like outsiders in a workplace designed without them in mind. If employees don’t feel valued, included, or empowered, they won’t stay. Studies show that employees who feel excluded are more likely to leave their jobs within a year. Inclusion isn’t limited to a feel-good perk; actually, it’s a retention strategy.
Research shows that Black employees are four times less likely to have a senior sponsor than their white counterparts. Without support, advancement becomes an uphill battle. The same goes for women, employees with disabilities, and people from marginalized communities. They’re in the room, but they’re not truly part of the team.
How to “Include”
Address microaggressions and bias in workplace culture. Employees need psychological safety to contribute fully without fear of being dismissed or penalized.
Invest in sponsorship and mentorship programs. Mentorship helps, but sponsorship—where senior leaders advocate for employees behind closed doors—drives real advancement.
Hold leaders accountable for inclusion. Inclusion isn’t just HR’s job. Make it part of leadership evaluations and reward managers who build truly diverse, high-performing teams.
TRANSITION: From One-Time Initiatives to Lasting Workplace Diversity
Great! You’ve hired talent and increased diversity. But don’t stop there. Sustaining merit is just as challenging as hiring based on merit. None of the initial work matters if the progress isn’t sustainable. Too often, companies treat increasing diversity as a short-term project, something they can “fix” with a few hires or an annual training. But real merit can’t be achieved by ticking a checkbox. It’s a continuous process.
Workplace representation should be the natural result of a fair, well-functioning system, not a forced initiative that disappears when leadership changes or budgets tighten. When companies embed equity, access, inclusion, and belonging into how they operate, diversity becomes inevitable. It doesn’t need to be forced or performative—it’s simply what happens when the system works. The final step is making that representation sustainable through ongoing accountability and regular evaluation, so progress doesn’t stall or slip backward.
How to “Transition”
Set ongoing equity goals, not one-time identity based targets. Instead of hiring “X number of employees from marginalized backgrounds” in a year, focus on fixing hiring and promotion systems to make equitable representation the norm.
Hold leaders accountable for sustaining diverse teams. Just like revenue and performance targets, make inclusive hiring and retention part of leadership KPIs.
Continuously assess and improve. Companies track everything from profits to customer retention; why should equity be any different? Regular audits of hiring, evaluations, promotions, and pay gaps make sure that progress doesn’t stall.
Only when diversity and equity become fundamental business priorities, they stop being something companies “try” and start being how they operate. Only then true equity can be achieved. That’s how lasting change happens.
Ready to make it work for your organization? Grab The Equity Edge today and start implementing these strategies where they matter most.