Embracing Diversity and Inclusion

Leadership is a critical part of strengthening the culture of diversity, equity and inclusion. Commitments from senior leaders, executives and managers signal a broader organisational commitment to diversity, increase visibility, innovation and awareness. Business leaders should plan to commit time and resources to the effort, with the long-term goal of integrating diversity, equity and inclusion into what the company does – every decision, process, project, and strategic initiative. To fully embrace diversity, leaders also need to acknowledge the benefits of a diverse workplace with the personal and professional advantages they can bring to the organisation and its employees.

Leaders must recognise the accomplishments of every employee despite their ranking or status in the company. Pick a few positive qualities from their work to make the interaction personal and meaningful. This allows every member not only to be recognised but also allows for future development. Employees keenly observe how leaders treat people outside of articulating their desire to create an inclusive workplace. There must be an alignment between words and actions. The best way to do this is through individual interactions. People appreciate being seen as individuals to the fullest extent with ideas and aspirations, diverse views and life experiences.?

Cultural intelligence, also called cultural quotient and closely related to cultural agility, is defined by the?Cultural Intelligence Centre?as, “the ability to relate and work effectively with people from different cultural backgrounds and it goes beyond existing notions of cultural sensitivity and awareness.” One of the best ways to create a culture of diversity and inclusion is to perpetuate a culture of diversity and inclusion. These are not topics to be discussed once a year at a one-hour training session in hopes that the information will stick until the next year comes around. Building a?culture?of diversity and inclusion requires constant work from leaders and team members dedicated to making this part of their foundation.

To be a positive influence that perpetuates a culture of inclusion, leaders must treat each individual team member with compassion, empathy, understanding, acceptance, and curiosity. Leaders must listen to learn and ask thoughtful follow up questions to engage in learning more about employees. Leaders need to remember that their organization’s customer/client base is likely diverse, and our world is rapidly changing in diversity every minute. Diversity is not just about the people you work with; it’s about the people you serve. Leaders must choose to embrace diversity now to keep their organizations moving into the future successfully and positively.