How diverse and inclusive is your workplace?
What is diversity in the workplace?
Diversity in the workplace means that a company employs a wide range of diverse people of varying gender, age, religion, race, ethnicity, cultural background, sexual orientation, religion, abilities, etc.
Whas is workplace inclusion?
Inclusion in the workplace means that no one feels left out because of their gender, age, race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, abilities, cultural background, etc. An inclusive workplace allows people to be themselves at work.
What does diversity in the workplace look like?
To achieve diversity in the workplace employers need to make sure that the people that work within and throughout their organisation are representative of the wider society.
What are the benefits of having diversity and inclusion in your workplace?
The greater the mix of people that are within an organisation, the greater the mix of skills, experiences, ideas, perspectives, and ideas. Other benefits include:
-Reduced employee turnover,
-Improved hiring results,
-Higher employee engagement.
-Increased profits
-Better company reputation
How can your company create a diverse and inclusive environment? Here are are some steps you can take:
Asssess the areas that need improvement
Assess your company’s inclusivity in these three areas
Culture– Does your company culture promote inclusiveness? What are you doing that makes your employees/your colleagues feel included? What behaviours are driving your culture?
People– Does everyone in your team really feel included? Engagement surveys could be a great way to find out how people actually feel.
Process– Do your processes including compensation, pension, etc support inclusion? Are they fair?
Educate leaders and management team
The management team is instrumental to your company’s efforts to have a diverse and inclusive workplace. Host workshops, events, and meetings to educate them on what inclusion is and why it is important. Have regular meetings to discuss strategies to foster in the companies. The management team has a great influence on the company culture, how they behave at work, the stories they tell, and how they manage people. Therefore it is very important that they are also committed to having an inclusive and diverse workplace and are educated on how to do that effectively.
Be flexible
Having flexible work arrangements can be beneficial to the development of a diverse and inclusive workforce. It allows employers to accommodate their employees’ needs and requirements more adequately. For example, having the option to work from home could help accommodate working parents, pregnant employees, etc.
Recognise and celebrate the differences
Creating a diverse team does not mean gathering a group of individuals and expecting everyone to do everything the same. In a truly diverse team, everyone should be seen as an individual. Recognise that people succeed in different ways and people don’t contribute in the same way. Recognise that everyone’s differences make the team stronger.
Hiring a diverse group of people is not enough
It is important to hire thoughtfully, but just hiring a group of diverse individuals isn’t enough if they’re not going to be treated as integral members of their team. Whether you are a manager of a team or a team member, make sure you’re truly listening to everyone’s voices. Speak up and make sure everyone’s contribution is being given the same amount of attention and consideration.
We all deserve to work in a safe, supportive, and inclusive workplace. If there is anything inhibiting your workplace you should strive to address it.
