The wide smile and sparkling eyes mask the fear of not fitting in. Fear that your name could be ridiculed, or your faith could see you shunned from social events.
This tends to happen when companies invest in diversity, without thinking about inclusion.
Why is inclusivity important?
Inclusive companies are twice as likely to meet or exceed financial targets compared to non-inclusive firms and are three times as likely to be high performing. They also experience greater creativity and innovation, according to research.
To achieve these gains, inclusion must be a prominent part of your DE&I efforts.
Hiring more women, Black people, Muslims and other marginalised groups won’t make a significant difference, if they don’t feel welcome and empowered in your workplace.
In fact, it could further divide your team. Research shows that people who feel uncomfortable being their true selves at work, experience greater work stress and worse performance.
Some 79% of Black people fall into this category, admitting they feel they must bend themselves out of shape to fit in at work. Even 45% of white, heterosexual men – the most widely represented group in many UK and US workplaces – say they do the same.
What is inclusive leadership?
The role of inclusive leadership is integral for ensuring all team members feel a valuable part of the company. Great leaders who drive inclusion ensure that all employees are respected, supported and rewarded for their contribution to the company.
The common trait of inclusive leaders is their willingness to speak openly to their employees about why inclusivity is important to them, and to actively listen to their team’s stories and concerns.
Keys to becoming an inclusive leader:
1. Build psychological safety
When employees feel safe to express their true selves, they’re more creative, confident and contribute more to the company.
Inclusive leaders cultivate this feeling by responding to ideas with curious questions, encouraging healthy dissent and asking others for advice – then acting on it.
Pay close attention and try to identify potential identity threats to your colleagues. This includes incidences where you think an individual may have been stereotyped or deemed less capable due to their social identity.
2. Mitigate unconscious bias
Bias is natural and unavoidable – our brains make thousands of subconscious snap judgements every day. Instead of trying to eliminate it (impossible), be aware of it.
Strong communication is essential. Make it clear to your team that workplace inclusion starts with ourselves. As a leader, when disruptive situations occur, avoid putting people into ‘angels’ and ‘villains’ categories.
This is counter-productive and can quickly create a gaping divide in your workplace. Instead, mitigate bias in decision-making by setting clear criteria early on what is and isn’t acceptable behaviour, gathering data to keep track of what’s happening and taking time to evaluate each situation objectively.
3. Call it out
In an inclusive culture, everyone should feel comfortable enough to challenge discrimination – and you’re the role model. Inclusive leaders take a growth mindset position and look at each scenario from an objective point of view, while being clear and transparent to the team. Don’t rush your decisions.
Instead, assess whether the incident was an honest mistake or a malicious act. For the former, it may be an opportunity for the perpetrator to apologise and learn from the misstep, while malicious acts would require severe punishment.
4. Manage your micro-messages
Exclusion is pernicious because many cases are unintended. Subtle, unconscious behaviours known as ‘micro-messages’ make people feel included or left out.
Try to display more ‘micro-affirmations’ such as eye-contact and asking for input, and watch out for ‘micro-aggressions’ like sighing or checking your phone when they’re speaking. Ask yourself every day – is my door half open or half closed?
5. Practice pivoting
Once you’re aware of your own micro-aggressions, you can spot when others are at risk. Reverse exclusion as it unfolds by ‘pivoting’ the situation: legitimise opposing views and ask questions to draw out dialogue.
This will protect both parties and help everyone to ‘lean in’. As a leader, you can use your own privilege to speak openly to peers using the language and social cues they can relate to.
This enables them to tell their own stories on why they think the way they do and reflect productively on how they can use their position to help marginalised groups feel welcomed in the workplace.
Are you keen to learn more proven strategies to developing diverse and inclusive working environments delivering high-performance?
Read our free DE&I whitepaper and learn the scientifically proven approach to corporate diversity and inclusion.
