Kathleen Gabriel

One step that isn't mentioned in these answers: get software to help you. Sure, you can put a lot of stuff into spreadsheets and get reasonable data, but that is time-consuming and hard to update. Find a performance management platform that is appropriate to your company size and complexity, and get your managers onboard with using it. This gives you a database of information that is not only current, but will show trends over time.

As others here have said, assessing your metrics is an important step. Equally important is to communicate with your employees. Get their feedback on what kind of diversity gaps they're experiencing, the ways they do and don't feel included, the opportunities that seem clear for one group but not another. Pay attention to who speaks out the most and whose ideas are heard and acted on.

Even with employees experienced with technology, a new platform can be confusing or daunting. Make sure that you're training all users with enough time for repetitive use so that they will feel comfortable with the new system quickly.

Experience is key in making a decision for your career path. If you can, find a generalist role that allows you to engage with the areas of HR that you are most interested in. Shadow higher-level employees who can show you the scope and function of each specialized role; this will help you figure out the difference between a job that sounds good, and one that is a good fit for you.

It's hard to work and go to school at the same time, but most of us returning to education don't have the financial ability to quit working while we complete a professional degree. When I was getting my MS HR while working full time, I was lucky enough to have a train commute that I used for studying. Think creatively about how you can use your time, and how to prioritize all the things you need to get done in a day, a week, and a month.

Since the miscommunication stemmed at least in part from virtual work, take the usual steps of following up and additionally address what can be improved in your virtual meetings. Would accommodations like captions or AI meeting summaries help? Is an active chat helping or harming your team's ability to work together? What was really at the heart of this communication glitch, and what can you do to ensure it doesn't happen again?