How can you tell whether diversity and belonging strategies are working in your company? Are you second guessing yourself on whether it’s a good idea? If you can’t see the benefits yet, then maybe you have some blindspots that are blocking you from getting past the growing pains of transitioning to fully embracing diversity and inclusivity.
The first place to start should be questioning your own longheld beliefs of what should or shouldn’t be. There’s no perfect or ideal way to start this conversation as many ideas will come out. However, if you start from the thought that we all have beliefs, stereotypes, and biases, then perhaps your team will be more willing to open up and question these together.
After you’ve gone through this exercise together, it’s time to implement a couple safeties to avoid making some common mistakes with diversity and belonging. However, by avoiding the most common pitfalls, you can create a work environment that is safe and allows every teammate to thrive.
Would You Like That?
Let’s be honest. Diversity and belonging confronts us with ideas we’ve come to think of as facts. Beliefs that go a little like, “Someone from this ethnicity, nationality, gender identity, sexual orientation, etc. is better at X than a person from this other group,” are usually long held and come from our own background. We can’t see our own privilege when we haven’t confronted our own past and differences. Because of this, we need to be careful of expecting someone from a different background to “fix” everything wrong with the company’s culture, efficiency, or any other issue or challenge.
Before pointing a finger at anyone else or doing an uncomfortable seminar where half of your employees are dozing off, think about your own biases and prejudice. We need to look deep within ourselves before asking anyone else to do so. Doing this will help you come up with strategies and conversations that can lead to growth and create a work environment where every team member feels valued, seen, and respected.
What Are Your Hopes?
Don’t expect one hire to become your entire diversity and belonging initiative. This route requires strategy rather than quick solving. More than just expecting diversity and belonging to be part of the hiring process, it also needs to be part of your everyday interactions, meetings, and even business goals. This does not mean you need to hire a consultant on the subject specifically, but your People team could benefit from training against bias. Everyone needs to get involved.
It’s not just about optics, but also accountability. What happens after? It can’t all fall on the shoulders of HR managers. Each department and team should include action items to ensure this until it becomes a part of company culture.
Getting Deep
It’s a constant process where a deep understanding of our own stories and upbringing might need to be deconstructed. Think about how certain words or actions might affect those around you. It’s not only a question of whether these did hurt someone else. It’s the ongoing evaluation of whether you are giving each and every member of your team the dignity and support they deserve.
Unconscious bias in the workplace can take many forms: who do you assign particular tasks to and why? Who do you assume might need more support or training? Do you ever jump to conclusions about someone without any previous experience or evidence? It’s okay to realize this. We all have these biases. When we see them, they’re easier to correct.
C-Suite Involvement
Your team wants to know that you are also doing your best to get this right. By being a part of initiatives and actually getting involved, C-suite execs can actually build stronger connections with their teams and even inspire new actions and improvements in culture.
Rather than worrying about getting it wrong, it’s important to think about getting it done. DEIB often remains in a concept and planning stage rather than being set in motion. It can take a while to get it just right, and even then it’s a constant transformation and evolution towards reaching the goal of every member of the team feeling supported and seen. Strategize ways to incorporate initiatives company-wide but go beyond the whiteboard and into the way meetings are being held, customer interactions, and every aspect of the business. The more you care enough to put in the effort, the closer your company will be to getting to your diversity and belonging goal.
