With our extensive experience at PREDIXA in the field of #DiversityAndInclusion stretching over 20 years - it is our firm belief that it all starts with an #InclusiveCulture.
But what does that actually mean?
In its simplest form; it is defined as a supportive, nurturing culture, where everyone feels valued; can bring their ‘whole self’ to work; wherein they feel able to express their diverse opinions without #Discrimination, #Recrimination or #Prejudice.
Successful inclusive cultures encompass the following:
- A clearly defined purpose supported by everyone: because when values are clear, the decisions are easy.
- ‘Washing the stairs from the top’: commitment, support and accountability of the management team that flows throughout the organisation.
- Teams of people holding different views: employees who will ‘culture-add’ rather than ‘culture-fit’.
- Amplification of the ‘quiet voices’: ensuring the people who usually don’t feel comfortable expressing their opinions, feel heard.
- Encouraging the ‘courageous’ discussions: permitting vocalisation of the ‘microaggressions’ to challenge and change the underlying behaviours and norms.
- An approach of continual improvement: where employees participate in developing policies - creating a culture of listening, learning and testing.
With an inclusive culture, where people feel fully valued and able to express differing views... the magic happens! Allowing the diversity of thought to bubble to the surface, fighting conformism and promoting creativity, which impacts innovation; customer understanding; competitive positioning; staff engagement; organisational performance; staff absenteeism; internal and external reputation and more... ultimately driving increases to the top and bottom line.
Of course, changing a culture takes time and is not without challenges. But at www.predixa.ai we strongly recommend implementing an inclusive culture first, since without this supportive, nurturing foundation, tackling other diversity issues without understanding the root causes of the imbalance is not sustainable.
What are your experiences of inclusive cultures?
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