We often think of workplace diversity and providing equal opportunity in relation to discrimination, and the demographic makeup of our team according to factors such as racial background and gender. However, any individual difference creates a diverse team so it is crucial that we foster an inclusive organisational culture that enables people to share and celebrate their entire self.
The Diversity Council of Australia (DCA) contends that inclusive organisational cultures exist when all employees (4):
Feel respected and valued for their differences
Have a sense of connection and belonging
Have opportunities for career advancement and development
Can contribute their skills and ideas to the organisation
Research by the DCA (3, pg. 51) has shown that inclusive cultures are strongly linked with workplaces that are both mentally healthy and psychologically safe.
Encouraging inclusivity and expression of diverse opinions and skills has also been shown to increase productivity, innovation and most important to help everyone feel included, like they are adding value and that they are respected in the workplace. This is another way that we can prioritise and increase employee wellness.
Fostering an inclusive culture can be particularly difficult for industries and organisational environments that are not typically very diverse. Unfortunately the norms and expectations of these cultures do not empower all individuals to thrive at work.
A prime example of this are male-dominated industries such as the construction industry. The industry’s cultural norms of toxic masculinity, long hours and rigidity discourages many women, who typically have greater unpaid care responsibilities (2), from entering and remaining in the industry.
This industry has seen a decline in female representation over the last 20 years, with women now only making up 12% of the construction workforce (2).
Inclusion is good for Business
compared to those from non-inclusive cultures, employees from an inclusive organisational culture were:
“5 times more likely to innovate”
“3 times more likely to be highly effective”
“3 times more likely to provide excellent customer/client service” (3)
Inclusion is good for employees
compared to those from non-inclusive cultures, employees from an inclusive organisational culture were:
“5 times more likely to be very satisfied with their job”
“3 times less likely to leave their current employer” (3)
A study for the Harvard Business Review (1) showed that teams with diverse perspectives and thinking styles are better at problem solving and managing new challenges.
“More diverse and inclusive workplaces see an 83% improvement on innovation, a 42% improvement in team collaboration, and a 31% improvement in the ability to respond to changing customer requirements.”
Mr Colin Radford, CEO of the Victorian WorkCover Authority, contends that ensuring that employees feel included and valued are the principal features of a mentally healthy workplace.
“Employees who feel equally valued for who they are, as for what they do, will generally contribute to a positive and inclusive workplace culture.
Respecting and celebrating diversity in all of its forms, including diversity of thought, and recognising and addressing intersectionality in eliminating discrimination and promoting inclusiveness are also critical”
“Diversity is good for business because it leads to better workplace cultures, higher levels of productivity, better problem solving and better creativity”
“Not a conducive work environment”
Watch this video of Emily Trevaskis talking about young and female engineers being put off from the industry and her optimism that many small changes will lead to long lasting effect. Emily took part in The Integrated Approach pilot program at the McConnell-Dowell Decmil Joint Venture project.
It is critical that we foster an inclusive workplace culture that recognises the value of a diverse range of personal characteristics and perspectives, and enables their expression without prejudice.
In the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System (3, pg. 51), CEO of the DCA Lisa Annese highlighted that the leadership skills required to create an inclusive workplace culture must be actively developed, as leaders are not innately equipped with these skills.
One way of developing these inclusive practices is by engaging in participative leadership. To learn more about participative leadership click here.
It can be useful to have a checklist to determine how you are travelling here:
Examine whether there are conditions or norms that exist within your workplace culture that act as barriers to participation and engagement for some employees. This could include a lack of flexibility for individuals who have more demanding caring or religious responsibilities.
Ask and listen to employee opinions in an approachable manner so they understand that their perspectives are valued and will be listened to.
Regularly facilitate open group discussions to enable all employees to share perspectives, and reinforce a cultural norm where constructive opinions and debate is appreciated and respected.
Call To Action
It is important that we extend our understanding of diversity and inclusion to consider all of the factors that differentiate us and our experiences, including beliefs and thinking styles.
In recognising the value of these differences we can reap the benefits of having an inclusive workforce, and create a positive organisational culture that improves wellness and enables all employees feel safe and valued.
Additionally, it is important to reflect on whether there are norms and practices that exist in your organisation, that may lead to some individuals feeling that their individuality is not valued and respected, or prevent them from thriving both at work and externally.
The following activities will help increase equal opportunity, diversity and inclusion in your workplace.
Acknowledge the problem and take steps to address it:
Acknowledge lack of diversity where it exists
Facilitate ongoing feedback
Track progress over extended periods of time
Use objective criteria when hiring, training and promoting employees:
Adjust how you screen and search for candidates
Encourage group decision making on hiring, training and promotion decisions
Establish mentorship programs to grow diversity
Make diversity training available for managers
Assess company policies and practices:
Put equality policies in place
Change your grievance and complaint system
Identify and prevent unconscious bias
Identify and avoid indirect discrimination
Be proactive on a daily basis:
Check your language in communications
Celebrate all religions and cultures
Acknowledge holidays of all cultures
Make it easy for employees to participate in cross-team activities and groups
Mix up your teams
Actively bring in other perspectives/expertise and seek dissenting views.
Taking it Further
Many organisations are working on collaboration in order to improve cohesion. However, when doing this it is important that you don’t sacrifice constructive conflict and robust debate.
When we have an organisational culture that enables a diverse range of beliefs and opinions to exist and be articulated, these ideas may clash and lead to conflict and debate. Poorly managed conflict and debate can undermine collaboration and wellness.
However, when conflict is managed skillfully and effectively it can become constructive and enable us to address problems before they escalate and become detrimental to wellness.
Therefore, it is important to consciously seek diverse input from individuals with different perspectives and demonstrate empathy when hearing their responses.
Click here if you would like to learn more about encouraging constructive conflict and debate.
Where to Now?
Sources
Diversity Council Australia, 2021, https://www.dca.org.au/