At Archbright, we believe creating an inclusive workplace requires continuous learning, honest feedback, and a commitment to improvement. One of the ways we measure our progress is through our IDEAL survey, which explores employee perspectives on inclusion, diversity, equity, accessibility, and leadership. 2026 marks our third year of administering the survey.
Over time, the survey has helped us better understand employee experiences, identify strengths, and uncover opportunities to further integrate IDEAL principles into our culture, practices, and services.
With an 86% participation rate, this year's survey provided valuable insights from employees across the organization. It reaffirmed that Archbright has built a strong foundation for inclusion and identified opportunities to continue advancing our work. With an overall IDEAL maturity score of 4.39 out of 5, Archbright falls within the Integration stage of the Diversity Maturity Scale, a framework inspired by Specra Diversity's Maturity Model for assessing how deeply IDEAL principles are embedded in an organization.
At the Integration stage, IDEAL is reflected in an organization’s core values, policies, practices, and day-to-day operations. Among Archbright’s key strengths, employees recognized leadership commitment, inclusive workplace practices, and a strong sense of belonging. The survey also showed growth in external engagement since 2023, reflecting increased attention to community impact and inclusive business practices.
Employees expressed interest in expanding learning opportunities, strengthening business resource groups (BRGs) fostering psychological safety, and deepening community engagement. These insights will help guide our ongoing efforts as we progress toward the Transformation stage, where IDEAL principles are fully embedded in organizational culture and serve as a model for other organizations.
As with previous survey cycles, the value of the survey lies not just in gathering feedback, but in acting on what we learn.
Following the survey, we fine-tuned our one-year action plan designed to address employee feedback and continue building on our strengths. The updated plan includes activities focused on communication, employee education, leadership engagement, community partnerships, onboarding, BRGs, and ongoing progress measurement.
Several initiatives are directly informed by employee feedback. For example, we plan to expand IDEAL learning opportunities, continue onboarding and educational programs, communicate survey results and progress more broadly, and gather additional feedback when appropriate to better understand employee perspectives.
This roadmap serves as an important bridge between employee insights and organizational action. It provides specific initiatives we can implement now while allowing us to evaluate what is working and where additional attention may be needed.
This year's survey also prompted a broader conversation about the future of IDEAL at Archbright.
Historically, our action planning has focused on shorter-term, annual initiatives like starting our IDEAL council, offering voluntary IDEAL training, or communicating internally about upcoming external workshops with our partners at the Institute for Sustainable Diversity & Inclusion. While that approach has helped us make meaningful progress, we recognized an opportunity to think more strategically about our long-term goals.
Leadership is currently reviewing a proposed three-year IDEAL strategy that would establish longer-term priorities and measurable outcomes through 2028. The intent is to define what success looks like, how progress will be measured, and how accountability will be maintained over time. We were also careful to ensure accountability is shared across the leadership team.
The proposed framework focuses on areas with the greatest opportunity for growth. For example, strengthening our BRGs would allow us to build on meaningful employee engagement already in place across the organization.
While the plan remains under development, one principle is already clear: meaningful progress requires both action and measurement.
Many organizations invest in employee surveys, but the greatest return comes when feedback is translated into visible action.
Employees want to know their voices matter. Sharing results, acknowledging opportunities for improvement, and communicating planned next steps help build trust and encourage future participation. Creating action plans, whether for one year or several years, demonstrates that feedback is informing real decisions.
At Archbright, our IDEAL survey continues to be an important tool for listening, learning, and improving. As we implement our 2026 action plan and refine our longer-term strategy, our goal remains the same: creating a workplace where employees feel valued, respected, and empowered to contribute their best work.
Organizations can partner with us to administer a DEI survey and gain valuable insights or utilize our DEI Flex service for customized support to accelerate and advance DEI initiatives without the burden of building a program from the ground up.
The most effective surveys are not those with the highest participation rates, but those that lead to meaningful action. When organizations listen, communicate, and follow through, employee feedback becomes a catalyst for a stronger culture, greater trust, and lasting organizational improvement.