Having invested much of my time in leadership training, I’ve realized that inclusivity is a significant factor in ensuring a business thrives amid challenges, changing demands, and evolving environments. In this day and age where diversity is encouraged — almost obligatory — in most business settings, it can be easy to get confused and have many false assumptions about the concept.
Inclusive leadership development is more than just ensuring all races and genders are represented in your organization. It’s more than just a numbers game. True inclusivity is about making everyone feel equally involved and supported in the workplace regardless of who and what they are.
Let’s take a closer look at what true inclusivity and diversity in the workplace are all about and why these can easily be confused with simply welcoming everyone from all walks of life into the organization. We’ll also discuss the benefits of fostering authentic, inclusive leadership and how this can help your business grow, thrive, and succeed in a demanding and dynamic environment. I will also give pointers on effectively promoting inclusivity in your leadership style.
Inclusive Leadership Development Defined
Inclusive leadership development refers to training leaders to adopt and influence an open, engaging mindset where new ideas and perspectives, even the most divergent ones, are always welcome. Inclusive leaders are aware of their personal biases, inclinations, and philosophies, yet they continuously and intentionally work toward playing these down to give way to diversity and rule out discrimination.
Misconceptions on Inclusive Leadership Development
What comes to mind when you hear the word “inclusivity?” Most people will probably say it refers to gender and race. They’re not entirely wrong, but these aspects are mere pieces of a whole pie.
A common misconception about inclusive leadership is that everyone is welcome and encouraged to join the organization. Some companies even go as far as ensuring all genders, nationalities, races, and ethnicities are represented. They see this as a good indicator of inclusivity, so they set off deliberately searching for people to contribute to this notion of an inclusive workplace.
However, this concept of inclusivity is flawed. When businesses fall into this inclusivity trap, they risk having incompetent, ineffective people in their workforce. As a business owner, you wouldn’t welcome a Hitleresque leader into your company, would you?
The reality is inclusivity and diversity encompass many more aspects, such as:
- Age
- Sexual orientation
- Physical abilities (and disabilities)
- Political affiliation
- Educational background
- Cultural background
- Mindset
Benefits of an Inclusive Leadership Development Plan
The foundations of inclusive and diverse leadership are humility, compassion, and empathy. They encourage their team members to get involved and be more invested in various business functions. This promotes a positive work culture where everyone feels like an integral part of the team, valued and appreciated, and where they can be their true selves.
An inclusive leadership plan unveils many benefits for the business, including:
- Increased motivation
- Better job satisfaction
- Low employee turnover (20% of an employee’s inclination to stay in the company is due to an inclusive work culture)
- Quicker and smoother adaptation to change
- Increased employee engagement
- Increased efficiency and productivity
Inclusive Leadership Development Best Practices
Here are some great pointers on how you can foster and promote inclusivity in your organization:
1. Promote Social Awareness and Self-Awareness
The best way to start inclusive leadership development training is through social awareness and self-awareness. You can begin by identifying conscious and subconscious biases or blind spots for each participant. Start with these questions:
- What are your thoughts on inclusivity?
- What factors contribute to an inclusive workplace?
- Do you believe inclusivity is essential in an organization?
You can then move on by targeting participants’ emotions through healthy dialogues and self-reflection:
- Have you experienced discrimination in the workplace? How did it make you feel?
- Can you identify exact workplace scenarios where prejudice or discrimination were unchecked?
- Have you ever allowed your personal biases to get the better of you? How do you think the other person felt?
Storytelling is a great way to break the ice and encourage more people to share their insights. Here are a few tips to go about it:
- Prepare a box with small index cards inside. Each card contains a word, phrase, sentence, or scenario about inclusivity in the workplace.
- Arrange everyone in a circle. You can use chairs or sit on the floor.
- Draw a card from the box. Read the words aloud and ask participants if they have anything to share regarding the topic.
- Encourage everyone to talk. Digression is certainly allowed since this encourages free-flowing, stimulating discussions.
2. Build Your Network
Building your network allows you to create unique connections and strong bonds with people who can encourage, strengthen, and support your career. However, remember that networks are 2-way streets — you must reciprocate and offer them the same assistance and commitment, too. If you have a strong network, you will most likely receive the help you need when you need it.
On the other hand, not having a solid network, especially in today’s dynamic, demanding business environment, might make you feel isolated and vulnerable.
Create diverse connections by being open to different perspectives, backgrounds, and profiles. This is also a great way to break cultural barriers and eliminate your personal biases. When exposed to diversity, you’ll realize the value of having access to unlimited information and outlooks.
3. Transparency in Decision-Making
Making decisions for the team shouldn’t be a privilege exclusively for higher management. You must involve your team in decision-making to foster trust, accountability, and inclusivity.
This also promotes cognitive diversity — the variety of ways people process information, perceive the world around them, and make decisions. When people in a team think differently, you can foster new methods of thinking, challenge assumptions, question biases, and open opportunities for innovation.
This calls to mind a friend’s story from when she briefly worked in Japan. She became friends with a next-door neighbor who owned a chain of restaurants in their vicinity. My friend was pleasantly surprised one day when her neighbor invited her to dinner and began asking for her opinions on the dishes being served.
Her neighbor humbly confessed that he was considering exploring fusion cuisine in a new restaurant and wanted her take on certain dishes since she grew up in a Western culture. My friend was flattered that a seasoned chef would consider her opinions and perspectives.
She soon realized that this was her neighbor’s secret weapon for entrepreneurial success — he valued diverse opinions and varied perspectives in his work, and that’s why his dishes were always well-loved by many.
4. Diversify Your Team
Workplace diversity is not just about skin color, race, and gender. In reality, these traits should not matter — these are all merely circumstantial factors that make up the totality of a person. Having this mindset where the goal is to represent genders, races, and skin colors in your organization only makes the concept of inclusivity in your organization inauthentic and meaningless.
True workplace diversity and inclusivity allow businesses to benefit from a broader range of skill sets, varying perspectives, and divergent experiences. People should be allowed to think differently and be free to communicate their thoughts in the workplace. They must feel comfortable and safe when voicing their perspectives, no matter how much they differ from the majority.
5. Listen and Learn!
Listening is a powerful tool in leadership. It shows your authenticity as a leader and allows you to foster trust, respect, and integrity in the workplace. You must practice active listening to keep communication lines open, encourage your team members to engage and commit to the business, and support them in achieving their full potential.
Active listening is a skill and discipline crucial in effective and inclusive leadership. You must focus your efforts and attention on striving to understand the other person while temporarily ignoring your own needs, biases, and perspectives.
Here are some tips to promote active listening:
- Focus on the message. Avoid considering personality traits or physical characteristics in formulating biases or prejudices against the speaker.
- Pay attention to body language. Gestures and posture can communicate deeper meanings within the conversation.
- Acknowledge the speaker’s critical points. This lets the speaker know you’re listening and striving to understand the message. A simple “Uh-huh” or “I see” will encourage the speaker to share more.
- Don’t interrupt. Interrupting the speaker might convey disrespect and impatience.
- Maintain eye contact. This conveys authenticity and your eagerness to understand the message.
- Avoid evaluating and prematurely passing judgment. Withhold your conclusions and criticism until after the speaker has aired the entire message.
Key Takeaways
Inclusive leadership development paves the way for workplace creativity, innovation, and diversity. A business that fosters inclusivity opens doors to a broader client base, loyal customers, and increased profits. It also helps improve employee retention and attracts top talents from across the industry.
At Sancus Leadership, we help businesses take concrete, practical steps toward promoting inclusive leadership. If you’re keen on adopting this revolutionary approach to leadership, book us a free leadership call, and we’ll help design a program tailor-fitted to your business’ unique needs.
