Stop saying Diversity & Inclusion….
I will just say it. We should stop saying Diversity & Inclusion. I understand why it is important and I also understand that I am saying this while writing for an initiative that has the phrase Diversity & Inclusion in its title and strapline. And yet, I reiterate that we should stop saying Diversity & Inclusion. Instead, we should start saying Inclusion & Diversity. It is just a subtle switch of words. But it matters.
When we say Diversity & Inclusion, we focus on “Diversity” ahead of “Inclusion” i.e. we focus on what is different among us rather than what is common among us. We focus on what divides us rather than what unites us. And this is where the problem starts. This thinking at an organisational level leads to a misconception that the main solution to “fixing” the problem is to have a diverse workforce. What then results in a change to recruitment practices, a representative candidate pool etc and in some cases, even quota systems. While these no doubt help measure whether equal opportunities are offered to underrepresented communities in the population, taking those steps ahead of addressing the existing culture in an organisation is not just futile but in fact dangerous.
Before we start diversifying the workforce, we need to create an environment where this diversity can thrive and flourish. It should be an environment where diversity from all perspectives are respected and more importantly, listened to. People should feel valued and welcomed for their contribution and be able to express their views in a respectful manner. Think of environments where you feel that way in your own life — not just at work but in your circle of friends, families and all other groups you have encountered in your life. It will always be in a scenario where you genuinely feel a sense of belonging and you feel like one of them. In many of these set-ups, you may look, think and talk differently — but your sense of belonging comes not from the fact that you are different, but from the knowledge that the others in that set up have got your back and that you are respected equally. It is when you feel you are included in an environment, you set aside your inhibitions and freely express your views, thoughts and approaches. When those views, thoughts and approaches are valued and considered, you feel even more included and you actively seek others’ views, thoughts and approaches. This is a virtuous cycle which then fosters diversity. Diversity is thus a result of creating an Inclusive environment.
In the same set-ups, imagine if you were viewed as ‘different’ and everyone in existing set up continued their current ways and expected you to become one of them — after all there is more of them than you. One of two things typically happen — you either decide to ‘fit in’ and in the process lose your authenticity or you realise that this is not for you and therefore you remove yourself from that set-up. This is what happens in organisations that focus on simply increasing diversity and not take active steps to create an inclusive environment first. There is a false comfort from seeing all the diversity metrics moving in the right direction in the first year or two of just diversifying the workforce. All this talent will soon move one of two ways and either ‘fit in’ or ‘move out’. This then creates an exclusive environment and we are back to square one or in many cases, much worse. In today’s world dominated by social media, it doesn’t take long to see when this is happening. Just look at Glassdoor and filter on organisations with low ratings. 9 out of 10 times, the problem goes back to the culture not being inclusive.
If it is that clear, then how come many organisations are still focussing on Diversity, I hear you ask. In my view, it is for a very simple reason — Diversity is easy to measure. We are surrounded by an obsession to see tangible facts and figures, charts and graphs that all move in the right direction. We live in a world of instant gratification where fail fast and move on is lauded far more than persevere and stay on. Focussing on Inclusion is difficult because it is about a feeling. It is difficult to measure and impossible to compare and benchmark against others. It is easy to measure and report how many people in the organisation are of a certain gender, race, age, ethnicity etc. But how do you measure how many of them truly feel included and part of the organisation? And even if you manage to measure that through your engagement surveys, how do you compare against others? How do you monitor, regulate and ensure progress? You see the point.
So, if you truly want a thriving and flourishing diverse workforce, by all means, use Diversity metrics. Do compare against the wider societal metrics to understand how you can support those who are underrepresented. But stop using those Diversity metrics as the focus of your initiatives. Use them as what they should be — a tool to help measure the progress in your inclusion journey. There may be blips along the way. But if you focus on the journey, those blips will give way to smoother pathways. Focus on creating an inclusive environment, an environment where people are free to call out comments and behaviours without fear of retribution. Where people are given a chance and opportunities to understand the impact of their behaviours. Trust your people and their basic ability as humans to adapt and improve, but also be ready to let go of those who do not change their ways. Make space for new views, thoughts and approaches before inviting them in. Put Inclusion ahead of Diversity. And start that journey by literally doing that. Say, write and think Inclusion & Diversity. Not Diversity & Inclusion.
