Diversity and Inclusion - Stitching a New Fabric
Rajdeep Paul, SAFe? 6 Practice Consultant
Head of Agile Transformation SAFe? 6 Practice Consultant (SPC) | ICP-ACC | ICP-ENT | ICP-CAT | Trainer | Mentor | Coach
Introduction
There was a time when businesses used to operate in local ecosystem. Which in turn resulted in having a homogenous workforce in terms of the cultural background. The sense of belongingness was strong - both within the employees and customers. However, the way businesses operate today has evolved significantly. Holding the hands of technology and supporting economic policies, the market arena has no limit today. Reaching out to customers across the world is just a click away. As the market gets diversified, it became imperative that organization’s workforce demography also gets a makeover to cater to the diversified customer base.
In today's dynamic and interconnected business landscape, diversity has emerged as a crucial factor influencing organizational success. However, what remain eluded for a long time is the fact that diversity is not only required to build customer relations, but it is also one of the secret ingredients to create a vibrant organization culture - further resulting in employee engagement and retention. Let’s delve a bit more into this perspective.
What is Diversity?
Diversity goes beyond visible differences such as race, gender, and age. It encompasses a wide range of attributes, including but not limited to educational background, experiences, perspectives, and even cognitive styles. An inclusive workplace acknowledges and values these differences, recognizing that a diverse workforce is an asset rather than a challenge.
How Diversity impacts?
1. Diverse perspectives drive innovation:
Diverse teams bring together individuals with varying perspectives, problem-solving approaches, and creative insights. A study by McKinsey & Company (1) found that companies with ethnically diverse executive teams were 36% more likely to outperform their peers in terms of profitability. When employees see their ideas valued and integrated into the company's vision, it fosters a sense of belonging and engagement.
2. Cultural competence spurs employee satisfaction:
Cultural Competency - also referred to as Cultural Intelligence/Cultural Quotient (2) – is one of the key skills of the 21st century. Presence in different geographies is part of the success strategies of organizations. Work from anywhere is a concept that is not going to go away. These factors have enabled organizations to tap talent from different locations. Hence, we can say that it is unavoidable to not be diverse. However, if we limit our diversity to only business need basis, then we will never have the right threshold of diversity to build cultural competency within our organization. This eventually will lead to a disengagement among the minority, further adversely impacting the expansion/presence in multiple geographies. Therefore, we can say that a conscious effort to build diversity will help us to build cultural competency which further will lead to employee engagement.
3. Replicating the social fabric
An organization’s workforce demography should always match with the social fabric of the cultural amalgamation around us. If we look around us today, more and more people are moving out of their native place in search of better job, better education, better lifestyle. People from villages are moving to towns, people from towns are moving to cities. The world development report-2023 (3) shows that 184 million – 2.3 percent of world population is living outside their country. All these factors are changing the social fabric. Hence it is only logical why organizations should embrace diversity in the workforce to align and maximize engagement with this diverse population of the society where they operate.
4. Gen Z engagement
The Gen Z (people born between 1997-2012), constitute around 77% of the world's population and is expected to cover 27% of the workforce by 2025. According to the GenZ statistics for employer (4) – 77% of the GenZ workforce prioritizes Diversity for choosing their workforce. The report also mentions:
“Gen Z has grown up in a globally connected world, exposed to diverse cultures, perspectives, and experiences. They celebrate diversity, inclusivity, and equality, actively seeking to learn from and engage with different cultures.”
The Mckinsey research on GenZ in America and Asia (5) highlighted “Communaholic” as one of the key behaviors of GenZ. The research mentions:
“Gen Zers are radically inclusive. They don’t distinguish between friends they meet online and friends in the physical world. They continually flow between communities that promote their causes by exploiting the?high level of mobilization ?technology makes possible. Gen Zers value online communities because they allow people of different economic circumstances to connect and mobilize around causes and interests.”
As per Deloitte’s 2023 Global Technology Leadership Study (6) highlights:
“Younger workers, especially in tech and other industries, increasingly value diversity and inclusion where they work. When looking at this cohort, Generation Z and millennials who are satisfied with their employer’s efforts to create a diverse and inclusive culture are more likely to want to stay with their employer for more than five years.”
It is very clear, that for an organization to engage with Gen Z, they need to embrace diversity.
What is Inclusion?
While diversity sets the stage for a dynamic work environment, inclusion is the key to retaining a diverse talent pool. Inclusion refers to the extent to which every employee, regardless of their background, feels welcomed, respected, and included in the workplace culture. It is not only about equality in numbers but also having equal platform to say what they think and express themselves as who they are.
How Inclusion impacts?
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1. Fostering a sense of belonging:
A diverse workforce may face challenges if not accompanied by an inclusive culture. Employees need to feel a sense of belonging to thrive in their roles. Inclusive practices, such as mentorship programs, affinity groups, and unbiased policies, contribute to creating an environment where everyone feels valued. By doing this we can induce an emotional connect between the employees and the organization. This is paramount to achieving employee engagement.
2. Reducing turnover through inclusivity:
Research published in the Harvard Business Review indicates that employees in inclusive environments are more likely to stay with their current employers. Inclusive practices that promote fairness and equity contribute to higher job satisfaction, reducing the likelihood of talented individuals seeking opportunities elsewhere.
3. Attract new talent
In an era where attracting and retaining top talent is a competitive advantage, organizations with a reputation for diversity and inclusion have a distinct edge. A diverse workforce signals that the organization values varied perspectives and is committed to providing an inclusive workplace. Inclusion changes the inherent culture and behavior of an organization which then further spreads as word of mouth to create a positive impression among potential hires.
Conclusion
Diversity, when coupled with inclusion, transforms workplace dynamics, positively influencing employee engagement and retention. Organizations that champion diversity benefit from a rich tapestry of perspectives, fostering innovation and creativity and happy employee base.
As businesses navigate the complexities of a rapidly evolving global landscape, the embrace of diversity is not only a moral imperative but a strategic move toward sustained success.
The above figures (though few years old), show the relationship between DEI initiatives and employee happiness. At the same time, it also shows that there is yet lot to do on this regard. In last 4-5 years, there have been significant increase in awareness on this topic. However, there is still a need to take focused initiative to bring diversity and inclusion in the organization DNA. Aligning organization policies is not enough. We need to put dedicated focus on breaking unconscious bias among the employee - especially with those in the leadership role as culture can only be changed from the top.??
References
6 The transformational tech leader: Driving change to help unlock growth and deliver lasting impact ( deloitte.com )
Articles studied:
Director Leadership Development @ Beacon | People Development, Talent Strategy
9 个月Absolutely agree! Collaboration and inclusivity are key elements of the agile mindset.
Organizational Alchemist & Catalyst for Operational Excellence: Turning Team Dynamics into Pure Gold | Sales & Business Trainer @ UEC Business Consulting
9 个月Spot on! Inclusivity and collective intelligence are key elements of agility in the workplace.
Indian School of Business - Leadership with AI | Senior Manager (R&D) at Sopra Banking Software
9 个月A very well articulated and summarized. Really interesting