Keys to Growing an Inclusive Workforce

High on the leadership agenda for 2023 is the ability to develop, accelerate and maintain an inclusive workforce.

For our businesses to continue to provide great services, innovative solutions, and excellent customer service we need diverse perspectives, experiences and backgrounds within our businesses. Not only do leaders need a diverse business, but leaders also need to create a framework which enables diverse backgrounds and thinking to thrive.

I have identified several key areas to improving and accelerating diversity within our businesses.

Leaders vision

Firstly, leadership should have a clear vision and intention to make a difference. The leader should communicate this to the business and empower a team to make practical changes within the business to improve diversity.

Values

Review your values and ensure they are inclusive and held by your leadership and management teams. The leadership drive these behaviors, set the example, and correct or tolerate behaviors within their teams.

Measure

Integrate data and tools to set baselines and targets and measure your progress. For example, your business may have a baseline of 20% females in management and your target may be to increase this statistic to 25%. You will then enable a project to look at how this can be improved.

Develop projects

Next, businesses need clear projects with owners, deliverables, and timescales to execute the changes within the business.  These changes should be tracked regularly and have input from interested parties with a passion for diversity and making a difference.

Celebrate

Look at how your business can promote and celebrate diversity. Can someone within your business share a story of their experience or perhaps hold a culture day with food from different countries.