Inclusiveness is THE leadership quality you need to cultivate
Why do organizations lump Diversity in with Inclusion?
Questions that are on my mind today:
Why do organizations lump Diversity in with Inclusion?
Okay, I do understand…. But does it serve an organization to lump them together? I often hear people talk about diversity as the “mix” – that’s casual for counting the who’s and what’s. Diversity is about who’s being hired and promoted and what their backgrounds / characteristics / identities are (disability, gender, ethnicity, etc.). And inclusion is about the how.
How welcoming is the workplace for people who are not from the organization’s (or society’s) dominant group? I see inclusiveness as an art. It’s the music of your workplace and if you’re really inclusive, you can follow that music from everyday encounters into the behaviors and performance reviews. You see, a truly inclusive workplace fully integrates those values in all its norms, rules and systems for reward and advancement.
So, I do understand why organizations lump D&I together. But now it’s time for my big HOWEVER… wouldn’t it make more sense to make Inclusion one of the more important, if not THE most important, skill for Leadership?
Please name one skill that Leaders need more, especially in this day and age:
Communication – well, I’d say inclusiveness is part of the art of communication. You need to communicate your goals clearly and you need to win buy-in. If inclusiveness is front and center in Leadership, you make everyone an insider in your mission.
Motivation – nuff said.
Creativity – We all know that inclusiveness encourages a diverse workforce to be more innovative and studies show, more profitable.
Inclusion, or the more active, inclusiveness is at the heart of being a leader. As a leader, you want to include everyone in your dream, your vision, your strategy and tactics. That can’t happen when people are at the table but they’re not encouraged to share everything they’ve got just because they’re not of the majority group. Let’s do this. This is why I make the films and courses and workshops I do.
I’d love to hear your thoughts. Although I’ve turned off comments because of robots on the web, please email me. I’ll continue in another post another day.
More From Our Blog…
I have a disability but I am disabled by society.
For the past 6 months, I’ve been working on my e-Learning courses to make them accessible for all learners. This has been quite a journey. I used to think that I had a handle on accessibility as long as I added captions to my videos. But that was just a very small...
Diversity Is the Lifeblood for All Companies, but Is Diversity Enough?
“It's hard to imagine an economy driven by Latino and Latina growth when leadership at the board level and in the C-suite is far less than 5% Latino and Latina. That gap - between the face of leadership and the face of the economy to come - is a vast strategic issue...
Microaggressions… We have a lot to Learn
To be human is to be flawed, but our struggles have the remarkable potential to transform us. By addressing our mistakes and remaining open to learning, we broaden our understanding, increase our empathy and build our capacity to do better the next time. ...
Cristela Alonzo Reminds You That Your Microaggressions Were Never Okay
“I can’t say anything anymore”. That was the complaint from a participant in an online workshop on microaggressions. We had just watched a montage that weaves together common microaggressions and expressions of confusion and pain among those targeted and bystanders....
Focus on DEIB to Thrive During the “Great Resignation”
The “Great Resignation” continues along its historic path with 47.8 million workers quitting their jobs in 2021, which represented a record-setting average of nearly 4 million each month. As of March 2022, 8.6 million people quit their jobs this year. ...
How To Be an Ally in the Workplace
Article written by Gina Miller: Gina Miller has committed herself to social justice for over a decade through her writing and community activism. She and her husband have led educational programs, service projects, dialogue workshops, blogs and rallies through...
The 21-Day Plan for Disarming Microaggressions
Wins the IMA Best in Class Award for Advocacy
I’m delighted to announce that The 21-Day Plan for Disarming Microaggressions has won the Interactive Media Awards (IMA) Best in Class Award in two categories, “Advocacy” and “Training”. The Best in Class Award is the highest honor bestowed by IMA and represents the...
SunShower is a Communicator Award winner
The 21-Day Plan for Disarming Microaggressions with Dr. Derald Wing Sue has been selected by the Academy of Interactive and Visual Arts to be recognized as a Communicator Award winner! It’s a wonderful honor and we’re thrilled that this online,...
Lack of diversity in AI development results in predictable problems, yet they persist
There are articles every day about software programs that have embedded biases. How does this happen? It shouldn’t be a surprise when the teams that write the code are mainly white men. Unless those teams are working to disrupt their unconscious bias and include...
Toxic behavior that affects morale and retention
I came across an article in Fast Company (LINK) by Melinda Briana Epler, the author of How to Be an Ally: Actions You Can Take for a Stronger, Happier, Workplace. Melinda makes many excellent points about microaggressions and non-verbal bullying. She writes about the...