If you’ve ever been bullied at school, you’ll understand the feeling of being made to feel like an outsider. But how would you feel if the same thing happened at work every day?
For many people, this is the reality of their working life. Being ignored in team meetings, not receiving any recognition for their work, and being made to feel like they don’t belong, just because they were born with a different skin colour, country of origin, combination of chromosomes, social background, or sexual preference.
Our natural inclination is to seek out those that are most like us, often based on physical characteristics, interests and beliefs. It’s a trait that originates from our earliest ancestors, and it’s also one of the biggest barriers to creating a more inclusive workplace.
Becoming more aware of the way our minds work
If we travel back far enough in time, we would find a small group of early humans fighting for survival against the elements, natural predators, and other small tribes. The ability to instantly recognise and respond to threats in our environment is what kept us alive. It’s also why we form an opinion of someone within the first few seconds of meeting them.
This ability served us well when we were living in close-knit groups that depended on each other for survival, but it has little use in the modern world. We live in a global society that is more diverse and interconnected than ever, and even though we’ve come so far as a species, our brains have struggled to keep up.
Left unchecked, our brain will find ways to categorise other people into “us” and “them”. In order to build a truly diverse organisation, it’s necessary to acknowledge the way our mind works and make a conscious effort to connect with people outside of our tribe.
The challenge is moving from a fear-based mindset to one that embraces curiosity about other people. We might share the values of where we work or both believe in the company’s mission. On a deeper level, we probably share one of the many fundamental needs that make us human, like a fear of rejection, and the need for a sense of belonging.
This requires a level of trust and vulnerability that is only possible as the result of an inclusive culture where people are free to express themselves in the most authentic way.
Cultivating an environment of psychological safety
Imagine having to change your name at work because other people struggle to pronounce it, not being able to talk share your life with colleagues because you’re in a same-sex relationship, or having to hide your religion because it makes other people uncomfortable.
Research from the Center for Talent Innovation shows that 37% of African-Americans and Hispanics and 45% of Asians, say they “need to compromise their authenticity” to conform to their company’s standards of demeanor or style.
This relates to a concept called covering, in which people feel the need to suppress parts of their identity in order to conform. Some examples of covering include:
Changing the way you dress or groom yourself to blend into the mainstream
Suppressing behaviours and mannerisms that might be associated with a specific social group or culture
Avoiding opportunities to engage in activism or be associated with a specific group of people that are outside the mainstream
In many cases, this happens because there’s a lack of psychological safety, which is when we’re able to suggest new ideas, make mistakes and voice concerns openly without fear of negative consequences to our self-image, status or career.
It’s the responsibility of managers and senior leadership to set an example for the rest of the company. They need to ask for feedback, encourage people to express their opinions and act on it accordingly. Rosanna Durruthy, LinkedIn’s Head of Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging, highlights the importance of training managers so that they feel empowered to lead people who come from different backgrounds and experiences.
Yes, demographic diversity is important, but if you’re only focused on the percentage of different genders and ethnic groups, without addressing your culture, it’s unlikely you’re going to experience the benefits that come from diversity and inclusion.
Introducing guidelines to build a more diverse organisation
Changing the way we behave takes time, which is why it’s equally important to design systems that minimise the role of bias in hiring and promotion.
Hiring is the most obvious process to address, which can involve setting quotas for people from different backgrounds, or making sure that interview panels themselves are more diverse. It’s one thing to see that a company cares about diversity and inclusion on their website, only to be met by an interview panel made up entirely of white males.
Another area that needs to be addressed is growth and development. A lack of diversity at the most senior level is in part due to recruitment practices, but it also highlights the lack of a clear progression pathway for women and ethnic minorities.
One of the most effective ways to address this problem is through better internal sponsorship. Mentoring programmes in particular can provide support to people from underrepresented groups that want to move into more senior positions. Without this support, it’s all too easy for people from different backgrounds to be overlooked by managers that sponsor those most similar to themselves.
Moving from diversity to inclusion and belonging
Diversity and Inclusion is about looking past our differences in an attempt to build a more inclusive and accepting place of work, but it’s important to understand the impact it can have on your business – if only as a way to start the conversation.
Companies with diverse leadership are more innovative, generate more revenue and outperform the competition. It’s also been proven that there’s a linear relationship between racial and ethnic diversity and better financial performance in the United States.
The thing most companies don’t realise is that these benefits only happen when you tap into the diversity of thought that only comes when people are able to express themselves freely.