Most companies think they have an inclusive culture.
The reality is more complicated.
Many employees still spend more energy trying to fit in than doing their best work. People generally want to be included in the work that matters most to them. It is human nature.
Inclusion at work is about being seen, heard, and welcomed for all you are. That’s difficult to achieve, and more than most organizations are prepared to make real in their workplace.
Programs and protocols are only a part of what it takes. An inclusive culture doesn’t have a start and end date. It is part of every day and every interaction.
An inclusive workplace empowers everyone to do their best work, which is a collective responsibility woven into how leaders show up, teams interact, and companies communicate.
Here are a few ways to reflect on and take action to create an inclusive workplace.
Know Your Organization’s Real Ways of Working
Every organization has agreements, whether spoken or not. Look around at how everyone is engaging right now. Those attitudes and actions are what your real culture actually is. It may not match what has been written or spoken.
We recently asked 100 leaders participating in one of our leadership programs to describe in detail an experience of inclusion. The results revealed the importance of interpersonal connection, not professional ambition.
Fewer than five percent of respondents used a work example when asked to describe a time they felt true inclusion. When describing their experience of belonging, respondents noted feeling free to express their opinions, emotions, and solutions without concern for judgment, retaliation, or negative consequences.
So, how do leaders and organizations foster authentic connections and inclusion in the workplace?
Start with a reflective process that answers questions such as:
- What communication style is considered acceptable at our workplace?
- Whose emotional expressions are considered acceptable?
- How do we make decisions?
Are everyone’s ways of expressing and communicating welcomed? When people intuitively sense they don’t fit the dominant mold, they often self-edit, policing their words, masking their emotions, and presenting a version of themselves that their coworkers and managers find palatable. This is different from self-regulation or flexing your leadership styles. This is not trusting that you can be authentic.
When people don’t feel included, productivity plummets, innovation stalls, and risk-taking evaporates. The cost is high.
Reset, Reconnect, Reimagine
Inclusion isn’t a binary. It’s a dynamic experience in constant motion. It is a commitment to keeping your attention on when it is happening and when it is not. Who is in, who is not.
Reset, Reconnect, Reimagine is one way to reflect on the state of your commitment to inclusion. It starts with a pause when you sense you are off track and need perspective (reset), which takes you to a deeper connection to self, others, and the original sense of purpose (reconnect), and in doing so, expands your perspective to envision new possibilities for how sustaining a culture of inclusion can be realized (reimagine).
Reset
When people around you feel they don’t belong, feel invisible, are sidelined, or are pressured to perform a version of themselves that isn’t authentic; burnout and disengagement are inevitable outcomes. People often settle into this state silently and without external signs. It may look like quiet withdrawal, reduced risk-taking, or the slow decision to stop sharing ideas. This is an indicator that you need to pause, do a reset, and reflect on what is contributing to this experience.
Reconnect
Reconnecting may require a willingness to sit with the discomfort of what is not working, to listen without defensiveness, and to examine one’s own role in sustaining exclusionary patterns. It is confronting the gap between your commitment to having an inclusive environment and what is actually happening. This truth-telling helps get you reconnected to the original big idea.
Reimagine
The active, ongoing work of rebuilding connection on honest terms. Often, as we reconnect, new ways emerge. It is a time to innovate, reinvent, modify, and experiment. If your previous approaches to creating inclusion have not been successful, what else might we try? This is a constant process of unlearning many unconscious patterns. It will take ongoing reimagining to create a culture where people can be themselves and contribute to inclusion in the best possible way.
This is not a linear model, nor is inclusion. There is not a step-by-step solution because we are complex humans in a constant state of change.
Inclusion is Everyone’s Accountability
Inclusion is a shared commitment that’s embedded in everyone’s everyday interactions.
That’s why it can’t be achieved through an HR initiative or standalone training. To authentically include everyone, consider:
- Facilitating transformative conversations, not compliance training: Intentionally create structured, safe spaces where people can speak honestly about their point of view.
- Starting with the whole person, not just their job title: Offering development opportunities that encourage self-awareness and reflection.
- Creating team agreements: Codify shared values so each member understands one another’s differences and preferences, fostering greater understanding and increased productivity at work.
- Building shared tools and shared language: Provide a framework for self-reflection, accountability, and honest conversation.
These practices will help inclusion become part of your culture
Inclusion Has Impact
Business strategy doesn’t execute itself. People do.
You can have a brilliant business strategy, but if you don’t have people who are engaged and empowered to execute, the chances of success are dramatically impacted.
People will disengage or leave, innovation will stagnate, and business objectives will suffer.
Inclusion as a check-the-box program will not stick. Committing to the ongoing work of resetting, reconnecting, and reimagining can transform your culture.
The energy focused on fitting will be directed toward innovation, collaboration, and doing their absolute best work.
Inclusion is a continual process that helps ensure your people and your business can truly thrive.
Carol Zizzo serves as the CEO of Henley Leadership Group (https://www.henleyleadership.com/) , a premier strategic consultancy dedicated to transforming mid-market and enterprise organizations from the inside out.