Why Diversity and Inclusion are Game-Changers for Your Workplace: Make It a Reality!

This is a true story:

A couple of years ago I interviewed for a company in the Finance Industry. One of my interviewers was a C-Level in the RnD department. Wanting to be well prepared I went and read his bio, his company profile and searched a bit on his corporate history. I came across his major in university and was taken aback. It had nothing to do with finance or his current role. In fact it was so different that when the interview was coming to a conclusion and he asked if I had any questions I asked about it. How did you majored in something so unrelated and ended up in Finance for so many years now. This lead to a conversation about diversity and inclusion and it completely changed my view on this topic.

"You see" he said "If you walk into a college room and you have people of all creeds, ages, genders, races... but they all have the same background when it comes to their studies, they all went to the same ivy league school, or they all share the same growing up enviroment, is there really any diversity in that room?"

Companies tend to look at diversity from the outside. It looks good to have a variety of different looking humans to showcase how inclusive we can be, but this is far from enough to actually foster an inclusive work environment. To be inclusive you have to be willing to step out of your confort zone. Look for people that challenge you, that come from different backgrounds, different experiences, different perspectives. This diversity leads to innovation, creativity, and better decision-making. You need different perspectives to evolve.

So how can make this happen?

• Make diversity and inclusion part of your company's DNA. This starts with leadership setting the tone and showing a commitment to diversity and inclusion.
• Get educated! Offer training to employees on unconscious bias, diversity, and inclusion.
• Hire and promote fairly. Ensure that recruitment and promotion processes are fair and free from bias. Yes, technical skills are a must, but not the only deciding factor.
• Build a culture of inclusion. Encourage open communication, empathy, and respect.
• Check your policies and procedures. Review policies to ensure they don't create unintended barriers for underrepresented groups.
• Measure and track diversity and inclusion metrics. Regularly track and report on diversity and inclusion metrics to identify areas for improvement.

Let's face it, creating a diverse and inclusive workplace is not easy and will always be an ongoing process, but it's worth it! By taking steps to make diversity and inclusion happen, we can create a more productive & innovative workplace that benefits everyone. Make it a reality!