How does your organization approach diversity, equity, and inclusion?
While many leaders believe they have taken adequate steps to correct or avoid inequalities in the workplace with policies, promotion, and training, all too often we hear about employees who experience some form of exclusion or inequity, including lack of promotion, outright harassment, and even worse.
Being excluded at work is not fun. Even in times when most people are working remotely, being left out can intensify a sense of alienation, which impacts our happiness and performance. This is even more critical for small businesses: according to a 2019 survey, 52% of small businesses report labor quality as their biggest challenge.
Imagine, then, the impact when co-workers and leaders ignore an ongoing problem.
What if the exclusion(s) were due to your ethnicity, gender, or sexual orientation? How do you address diversity, equity and inclusion problems in your organization?
Social psychologist and researcher Robert Livingston, author of The Conversation: How Seeking and Speaking the Truth About Racism Can Radically Transform Individuals and Organizations, (Random House 2021) writes in the September-October 2020 issue of Harvard Business Review that the real challenge is not figuring out what to do, it’s our willingness. We’re able, but unwilling. But I believe it’s a bit of both.
The biggest obstacle to hope and change is cynicism and apathy. Don’t let that happen in your organization. We can do better, and better is better.
We need to become aware of the problems, analyze the root-cause(s), practice empathy, and sometimes, make hard choices to the point of sacrifice. But in the long run, when we invest our time and effort in real strategies that work, the return on investment is worth it.
In Summary
These articles and Article Nuggets explore diversity, equity and inclusion in organizations, and how leaders and managers can foster better hiring, equality and inclusivity.
This is a brief synopsis of a 2,000-word and a 1,600-word article, and 5-Article Nuggets*, suitable for consultants’ newsletters for executives and leaders in organizations. It is available for purchase with full reprint rights, which means you may put your name on it and use it in your newsletters, blogs or other marketing materials. You may also modify it and add your personal experiences and perspectives.
The complete articles and Article Nuggets include these important concepts:
- Trickle-up diversity
- Increase accountability and transparency
- The Power of survey
- Uncover hidden hiring bias
- What you need to know about hiring technology
- Create safe reporting alternatives
- Engage all stakeholders
- Balance speed with proven strategies
- The Key to inclusion
And references to the following sources:
Stephen S. Padulla, Frank Dobbin and Alexandra Kalev, Tessa E.S. Charlesworth and Mahzarin R. Banaji, What Works (Umass.edu 2020)
Michael Slepian, “Are Your DI Efforts Helping Employees Feel Like They Belong?” Harvard Business Review (August 2020)
Request This Content
Send us an email and let us know if you’d like to receive this article, Article Nuggets* or Newsletter (as applicable.) It is available in the following formats:
- Diversity, Equity and Inclusion: Because Better is Better – 2,000-word Article, $79
- Diversity, Equity and Inclusion: Because Better is Better – 1,600-word article, $57
- Diversity, Equity and Inclusion: Because Better is Better – 5-Article Nuggets*, $89
*Article Nuggets: The same article broken up into 3-5 blog-style sections suitable for a series of blog posts or shorter newsletter articles.