Employee Resource Groups (ERGs)
ERGs are voluntary, employee-led groups made up of individuals who join together based on common interests, backgrounds, or demographic factors. These groups operate differently from one company to another but commonly incorporate both professional and social networking activities. Some benefits of ERGs include the ability for employees to find community among other employees who share their identities, interests, and/or concerns; increased employee satisfaction and retention; and leadership opportunities for individuals from traditionally underrepresented backgrounds.
Below are some example names of ERGs that may be of interest to you if you are part of the listed affinity communities:
Asian/Asian American/Pacific Islander:
- InspirASIAN
- Asian Pacific Professional Network (APPN)
- Asian Society for Innovation and Achievement (ASIA)
- South Asian Professional Network Association (SAPNA)
Black/African American:
- Black Employee Network (BEN)
- Black Insurance Professional Network (BIPN)
- Black Originators Leaders and Doers (BOLD)
- Black Professional Group (BPG)
Faith-based:
- Faith Friendly & Allies (includes Christian, Sikh, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, etc.)
- Muslim Employee Business Resource Group
- Christian Employee Resource Group
- Inter Belief Network (IBN)
- Jewish Employee Network
- Agnostics and Atheists at Work
- Faithforce – Community for All Faiths
First-gen professionals:
- Young Professionals Network (YoPros)
- Early Career Network
- Rising Professionals (iRISE)
- Recognizing Emerging Professionals (REP)
- Young Business Professionals Employee Resource Group
International Students:
- Multicultural Professionals Network (MPN)
- Cultures Connected Employee Resource Group
- Multinational Employee Resource Group (MERG)
- Bridges Employee Business Resource Group
- International Employee Network
Individuals with Disabilities:
- Abled and Disabled Allies Partnering Together (ADAPT)
- Disability Employee Resource Group
- disABILITY Outreach and Inclusion Team
- Disability Interest Forum
- True Ability Employee Resource Group
Latinx:
- Hispanic Leadership Network (HLN)
- Hispanic Organization for Leadership and Achievement (HOLA)
- Latin Diversity Network Employee Business Resource Group
- Hispanic Action Network (HAN)
LGBTQ+ community:
- Pride Impact Network
- Employee Alliance for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Empowerment (EAGLE)
- Pride Partnership
- Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Ally Employee Resource Group
- Unity
Native American/Indigenous:
- The Intertribal Council of Employees
- Native American Employee Business Resource Group
- Native American Professional Network (NAPN)
- Council for Indigenous, Relevance, Communication, Leadership and Excellence (CIRCLE)
Undocumented:
- Multicultural Leadership Network
- Diversity & Inclusion Leadership Council
- Multicultural Employee Business Resource Group
- Diversity Network
- Key Business Impact and Networking Group
Veterans and Service Members:
- Military Community Network (MilCom)
- Vets & Supporters Employee Resource Group
- Military Support & Assistance Group (MSAG)
- Veterans Leadership Council (VLC)
- BRAVE
Women:
- Women’s Initiative Network (WIN)
- Women’s Leadership Alliance
- Women in Search of Excellence (WISE)
- Women Connect Employee Business Resource Group
- Women’s Affinity Group
Note: Not all companies use the term “Employee Resource Groups” or “ERGs.” Names vary widely, but some other common ones include Business Resource Groups, Diversity Networks, Colleague Resource Groups, and Team Member Networks. The easiest way to find out which groups an employer maintains would be to look this information up on their website through the search bar or typing into Google “Employee Resource Groups at (Company Name).” If a company has ERGs, you will usually find a page with a list of them in the search results, along with a brief mission statement of each group.