Embrace the mosaic of human differences to build a thriving workplace culture.
Imagine building a business with only carbon copies of yourself. Sure, there are days you wish you could replicate yourself to get more accomplished, but even the best leaders need to be surrounded by people who complement their skills, background, personalities, and viewpoints. It is only by actively seeking and maintaining diversity that you can balance an organization and drive future success.
Diversity alone isn’t enough though. You can’t rest just because all the right boxes are checked. No matter how your organization looks, there must be a culture of inclusion, not just tolerance. An inclusive workplace is one where every employee is understood, valued, and given opportunities to thrive. Only then will you see the multitude of benefits that come with a commitment to diversity.
The Diversity of Diversity
An individual is a complex compilation of inherent traits, environmental inputs, learned skills, and behaviors. In other words, their uniqueness goes far beyond race, gender, socioeconomics, sexual orientation, and religion. So, in addition to these things, be sure to also consider the broader aspects of diversity that could make your team or organization stronger and more whole.
Attract and Retain Top Talent
Today's workforce demands a diverse and inclusive work environment. It’s critical for attracting and retaining top talent. Not only will people be drawn to your company, they will be better equipped to understand and serve a diverse customer base, and more likely to stay if you are committed to those principles.
Feed Creativity and Innovation
One of the most significant benefits of a diverse and inclusive workplace is that it encourages creativity and innovation. When employees from different backgrounds and work talents come together, they bring unique perspectives, ideas, and experiences that can lead to new solutions and approaches to challenges. A more productive and successful company with an engaged and satisfied workforce will result.
Recognize and Address Behavioral Bias
Every individual has a certain degree of behavioral bias that needs to be recognized and addressed. It can be challenging to detect, but without an awareness of its influence, it could lead to discrimination and exclusion. The focus should be on skills, experience, and abilities, not race, gender, or other personal characteristics. By providing training and resources to employees, companies can help individuals recognize and address their own biases and create a culture of positivity and inclusion.
Set the Standard
Diversity will always take an effort and require an active and conscientious plan to create the ideal environment. Otherwise, it would be easy to fill our teams and organizations with sameness to the detriment to ourselves and others. Here are some suggestions on how management can set the standard:
Create a diversity and inclusion committee. This committee can develop strategies and initiatives to promote diversity and inclusion, monitor progress, and measure success.
Provide regular diversity and inclusion training for all employees, including management. This training should cover unconscious bias, cultural awareness, and creating an inclusive workplace culture.
Foster a culture of open communication where all employees feel comfortable sharing their ideas, experiences, and perspectives. This can be achieved by creating open-door policies, encouraging feedback, and valuing diverse opinions.
Review and revise hiring practices to ensure they are inclusive and bias-free. This can include using diverse recruitment sources, creating diverse hiring teams, and avoiding language in job postings that may discourage certain groups from applying.
Implement diversity metrics and goals to track progress and hold management accountable for creating a more diverse and inclusive workplace.
Encourage and support employee resource groups. These groups can provide a safe space for employees to connect and share their experiences and advocate for diversity and inclusion initiatives within the company.
Evaluate and revise policies and procedures to ensure they are inclusive and promote diversity. This can include policies around promotions, flexible work arrangements, and accommodations for disabilities.
The Next Level
The DNA Behavior web app is another tool available to leaders who are committed to building diverse teams and organizations. Our Team Report can be especially useful to filter, align, and assign people to a role according to their unique abilities and communication styles. We can even provide insights into their relationship with money and tolerance for risk. Top-performing teams have strengths in all behavior areas, and these features can help you fill any gaps in the behavioral diversity of your team or organization.
We’ll help you learn more about your own inherent strengths and challenges. Then, you can invite others to go through the same process to discover their personal behavioral characteristics and work talents. You can use that data to help create a more diverse workforce with an improved understanding and respect for what everyone brings to the table.