Why Inclusion Comes First

The approach to diversity in our workplaces is constantly changing. While there are various acronyms for this work (DEI, EDI, I&D, EDIB), at Inclusity, we think that inclusion matters most. We believe this so strongly that we’re steadily shifting from DEI to use the acronym IDE, which places inclusion first. Making sure that Inclusion comes first forms a a strong foundation for a company’s culture, employee engagement, sense of belonging, and recruitment and retention efforts.

Inclusion Leads to Diversity

Over the years, a lot of emphasis has been placed on diversity with the assumption that inclusion will follow. However, once you bring diverse individuals on board, what is their experience of the workplace culture? If it’s not an inclusive workplace, diversity and belonging just won’t thrive.  This is why inclusion comes first, or at least why it should.

Diversity refers to the traits and characteristics that make people unique while inclusion refers to the behaviors that ensure people feel welcome. Inclusion is the conscious effort to support diversity. To sustain a diverse workforce, people have to be taught how to manage, lead, operate, and hire in an inclusive way, which creates an environment in which everyone feels comfortable to be themselves. If you get this right, you’ll naturally attract diverse talent.

Belonging Follows Inclusion

Let’s introduce another letter to the IDE framework – B for “Belonging.” It’s a goal of IDE efforts that people feel a sense belonging. It means people feel the psychological safety to bring their authentic selves to work and truly feel a part of something. Before employees can feel emotionally safe and accepted, there must be a level of inclusion so they’re not facing microaggressions, unconscious bias, and other forms of exclusion. Creating genuine feelings of belonging is a critical factor in improving engagement and performance. And making sure inclusion comes first will help diverse employees feel like they belong! 

“Organizations should focus on becoming intentionally inclusive – learning what behaviors lead to intentional inclusion,” Maria White, CEO and founder of Inclusity, shares. “Then, once they achieve that, they can set the course toward becoming a culture of belonging.”

Focus on Inclusion 

Following are five ways to make sure inclusion comes first:

Integrate inclusivity into your core values. Including inclusivity in your core values sets the tone for an inclusive company culture. It signals to both new hires and current employees the expectations surrounding diversity and acceptance within the business.

Create an inclusive workplace taskforce. Create a team of people who are knowledgeable on the topic of inclusion and have a passion for it. Encourage the team to come up with strategies that can be implemented throughout your organization.

Assess the culture regularly and take action to address concerns. Confidential surveys, focus groups, and informal discussions can help identify concerns about the workplace climate and potential solutions. Employers should ensure that a diverse cross-section of the workforce is involved in identifying problems and potential solutions.

Expect leaders and managers to participate in behavior-based inclusion training. In addition to increasing awareness, IDE workshops will have the most impact if they are behavior-based. People need to be taught how to engage in the types of behaviors that organizations would like to see.

Practice inclusive leadership. Leaders need to create a safe team environment where all employees can speak up, be heard, and feel welcome. They should embrace the input of employees whose backgrounds differ from their own, foster collaboration among diverse staff, ask questions of all members of the team, facilitate difficult conversations, and give actionable feedback.

An inclusive culture  and making sure inclusion comes first is one of the best ways to create and maintain a healthy and diverse workplace that gives employees safe spaces where they can feel comfortable bringing their authentic selves to work. Pave the way for true cultural transformation by making inclusion a sustainable part of your organization. To learn more about how to put inclusion and diversity into action, explore our services.

It’s Time to Focus on Employee Engagement

The studies are clear. Employee engagement affects business performance, and job satisfaction. But what does engagement mean and how do you drive it in the workplace?

Simply put, engagement is the connection employees feel with their organization. With decades of research on this topic, Gallup defines employee engagement as the involvement and enthusiasm that employees have in both their work and workplace. Various factors contribute to engagement, including professional development opportunities, employee wellness programs, strong relationships with colleagues, and a supportive environment in which they are valued. An inclusive, diverse culture is the foundation for high employee engagement.

When organizations capitalize on the strengths and unique value of their employees, they create a work environment where employees are truly engaged. If individuals cannot be their authentic selves at work, they won’t be as engaged and are more likely to leave, report Kenji Yoshino and Christie Smith in their book Uncovering Talent: A New Model of Inclusion. A company’s ability to attract a highly diverse workforce and build a truly inclusive culture result in increased employee engagement, reduced employee turnover, improved productivity, and greater profits. In today’s climate, companies must take proactive steps to increase employee engagement or risk losing their workforce.

How can your organization nurture an inclusive culture, creating positive employee experiences and a workplace where employees feel safe to bring their whole selves to work? Here are some options to explore:

Employee Resource Groups

Encourage and fund employee resource groups (ERGs) that represent diverse identities. An ERG group is comprised of employees with a shared background, experience, or interest, such as ethnicity, gender, or parenting. Each group builds a strong sense of belonging and community and offers a safe space for open discussions. ERG programs advance a respectful and inclusive company culture and provide both personal and professional support to participants.

Work-Life Balance Programs

The goal of work-life programs is to enhance the workplace for an increasingly diverse workforce. This could mean providing flexible working hours or options that support families, like childcare. Work-life balance means acknowledging that each employee is a whole person, with personal factors and experiences that affect their work. Supporting their needs is important for making the workplace inclusive — and that leads to greater engagement.

Mentorship and Sponsorship

We know that mentoring matters for professional advancement. For employees in marginalized groups, it’s even more critical. To ensure their inclusion, proactive sponsorship is necessary. Mentors and coaches can help mentees improve both ther hard skills that are important to productivity and soft skills that create a more inclusive and dynamic work environment.

As Rosalind Chow writes in a Harvard Business Review article, “Allies need to not only offer the emotional support of mentoring but also be intentional about identifying opportunities for sponsorship and using our social capital to lift up those who might otherwise go unnoticed.”

Inclusion Training

Providing learning opportunities to all employees can offer more than professional growth. Interactive training that delves into diversity and inclusion like overcoming biases and identifying micro aggressions enhances employees’ awareness and skills. These types of workshops are important building blocks for creating an inclusive, engaged workplace.

Celebrate holidays and events

Diversity initiatives for underrepresented cultures and backgrounds like Black History Month, Chinese New Year, and Pride Week are a valuable way to help every employee feel represented at work. Celebrating and learning about each other’s customs and traditions fosters a culture of inclusion that makes employees feel recognized and valued.

If you’re looking to drive employee engagement, start with inclusion and embrace diversity. And if you’re looking to understand just how to do that, contact us here.

Inclusity starts each inclusion training session with a “connection.” This is more than just a euphemism for those (sometimes-corny) ice breaker activities that add levity to a workshop, if little substance.

Often our connection exercises ask participants to introspect (to connect with themselves, if you will). Then comes the sharing and listening to each other, which is where the real connections start to be forged. We reveal our humanness, acknowledge our diversity, and, most importantly, realize our similarities — where we connect.

“We connect people first, as opposed to focusing on differences first,” says Maria Arcocha White, CEO and founder of Inclusity. “We start the conversation around what is common for them; that builds trust, that enables conversation, and that facilitates communication.”

In an increasingly disconnected world (in spite of the ubiquity of technological connections), these in-person activities are vital.

“Connection is important,” writes Ken and Scott Blanchard in Fast Company. “People who feel connected to their leader are more likely to feel good about their jobs, stay with the organization, and act in ways that support it. Without connection, people feel out of the loop. This leads to isolation, a lack of well-being, and possible disengagement.”

Inclusity fosters connections to deepen people’s awareness and build foundations for inclusive cultures. “Our approach brings people together, and then once we bring them together, it’s way easier to talk about the differences,” says Arcocha White. “Ninety-eight percent of people on this earth are well-intentioned, good-hearted people who want to have good relationships and want to be successful in the workplace. But they just don’t know how to deal with difference effectively.”

She adds: “When people feel heard, valued and that they belong, they engage and contribute to their maximum potential.”   

People can experience Inclusity’s positive approach to inclusion and diversity training at a Conscious Inclusion workshop. The three-hour workshop’s discussions and interactive activities help participants understand and recognize unconscious bias and how it affects culture and business productivity. Participants will then learn practical tips to be more intentionally inclusive.

It “opened eyes to things happening everyday, and now I feel in a better place to handle them,” one past participant shared. Another commented: “I have attended many diversity and inclusion workshops, and this was by far the most engaging and beneficial.”

Inclusity facilitates Conscious Inclusion workshops at businesses and organizations across the country. Talk to us if this sounds like it might be a good fit for your organization or if another inclusion and diversity training program could work for you. We’re holding a public Conscious Inclusion workshop in Indianapolis on Oct. 15 from 9 a.m. to noon, if you are interested in participating, click here or call 317-716-7678.