To Have Inclusion You Need Involvement
Deanna Singh
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Expert Speaker & Consultant, Chief Change Agent of Four Purpose Driven Enterprises, Author of Actions Speak Louder ??
Uplifting Conversations provides impactful tools for all to thrive through a diversity, equity, and inclusion lens! Have ideas about what we should discuss next week? Let me know in the comments using #UpliftThisConversation or email me at [email protected]
To Have Inclusion You Need Involvement
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Some of the most common questions I get about inclusivity have to do with involvement. How do I get everyone involved? How do I ensure people from underrepresented groups don’t bear the entire load for this work? How do I move from making this seem like a chore and make it become something people enthusiastically support? What do I do with people who don’t seem to want to be involved? For questions like these, here are some possible strategies.
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Delegate ?
Inclusivity measures require some focus. It’s important that people with the most passion, interest, or skill for this work have some role where they’re able to concentrate on it. Maybe that’s the DEI officer, the head of HR, or a handful of people who lead employee resource groups. They are important for being able to bring experience and expertise to develop informed opinions. At the same time, they must make it clear that inclusivity is everyone’s responsibility. They might have the opportunity to concentrate on it more than most, but everyone else can’t just throw up their hands and assume inclusivity is “an HR thing.”
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Collaborate ?
To get greater participation, there must be greater collaboration. Identify the skills of others and find ways that inclusivity initiatives can overlap with them. In the professional world, people have steep incentives to avoid tasks they haven’t perfected. This is especially the case when it comes to DEI. With all the social, political, historical, and psychological factors this work involves, most will avoid it, fearing it’s beyond their skill set. Overcome this tendency by appealing to what people already do well. Find folks who are good at accounting, scheduling, and planning. Take intimidatingly large initiatives that can make people feel out of their depth and break them up into bite-sized tasks that build on people’s strengths. Maintain participation by setting people up for success, and make diversity programs successful by building on the diverse skills of your people.
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Individuate ?
Beyond collaborating in ways that build on people’s competencies, also find ways to appeal to their individual personalities. It’s important to give people tasks they can handle which will produce the little victories that will lead to bigger ones. At the same time, however, maintaining widespread involvement will require more than the confidence-boosting that can come from feeling competent. You must also find ways to help people from different backgrounds find their individual reasons for wanting to do this work. Instead of overwhelming them with your reasons for why they should support inclusivity, give others room to find their own reasons. Make plenty of room for listening sessions and reflective exercises where people define inclusivity for themselves. No matter how excited you are about the research you’ve just done, give them space for articulating the benefits of inclusion on their own terms. Give them opportunities to explain how to create inclusivity in their own way, and they’ll be more likely to participate.?
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Connect ?
Beyond giving others space to find their own reasons, be sure to give room for them to find personal connections with others. Find ways to strategically connect people with groups that will inspire sustainability. Some organizations structure their efforts into teams, grouping people together according to professional tasks. Others do the same according to social identities, drawing from ERGs and other affinity groups. Many look to the leaders that people want face time with, recruiting the leader as a way to draw in those who want time with them. In your company, it might be paying attention to different personality types, finding ways for inclusivity to draw on the relationships that make initiatives that can make this work fun. In all the focus on operations and KPIs, make programs that create personal connections like mentorships and sponsorships as well as peer-to-peer programs that help people learn about the experiences of people from other social groups. Whatever the case may be for your situation, achieve greater involvement by paying attention to the people that you’re grouping together.
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Inclusion that allows abstention ?
Perhaps the hardest part about inclusivity and involvement is deciding what to do with people who withdraw. It can be easy to assume they aren’t participating out of apathy or defiance. In these situations, it can be tempting to respond with forcefulness. But sometimes this lack of participation might have deeper reasons. If people say they don’t know how to achieve this work, sometimes you should believe them. Instead of demanding immediate results, maybe there’s a genuine need for more training and planning. Sometimes you have to push people further than they think they can go, but you also can’t push people further than they can actually go. Sometimes people’s resistance is authentic. There might be personality, psychological, or life situations that keep people from doing this work. Because of this, I recommend that you create opportunities. Show the benefits of this work. Provide options for people to personalize it. At the same time, leave open the option to make these initiatives voluntary. In many situations, universal requirements can backfire, leading to the feeling that inclusivity is imposed upon them. The work of inclusivity seeks to fight structures that unfairly exclude people who want to be included. Sometimes, however, inclusion also requires that you let people reserve the right to exclude themselves.?
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Conclusion ??
What about you? What other strategies have helped you get greater involvement with your inclusivity efforts? What techniques beyond delegation, collaboration, individuation, connection, and allowing abstention have made these initiatives resonate with people?
I challenge you to take note of your life strategies and, we’d love to hear from you!
Our fellow cohort has something to say...
Marsha Ellis Jones is the Executive Vice President and Chief Diversity Officer for The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. Deanna and Marsha dive into a conversation about the current work environment known as “The Great Experiment”.
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TOPICS IN THIS EPISODE:
- Emerging issues in the DEI space
- The need for creating new policies for retention in this era of employment
- Addressing the importance employees place on the values of an organization
- Inclusion in a remote work environment
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Bachelor of Commerce - BCom from Nizam College at Hyderabad Public School
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Great read!
Excellent article, Deanna! As a job placement specialist and a job developer for individuals with disabilities, achieving inclusion definitely takes a village! I have seen the best results when everyone on the team is committed and clear on the overall vision and value of the mission.