How can organizations be more inclusive?
Photo courtesy of Memento Media
I have written many times about inclusion in the workplace. It is very important to me as I want to see people being treated fairly. Organizations continue to talk about being inclusive, which is great to hear, but are we really seeing it in our day to day work environments. I still see and hear about many workplace issues around lack of inclusion.
Do you have an individual in your organization that has a big ego and is more concerned with their own goals rather than those of the team or the firm? Or maybe a high profile team treats other employees like “second class “ citizens. They can be very condescending and do not treat other teams as partners. Yes this still happens frequently in many organizations
How do we change this behavior in organizations? I recommend it start with the most senior leaders if we want our teams and ultimately our companies to be successful. Here are a few recommendations for changing behavior:
Communicate a succinct message to all teams at the same time around the importance of treating all people with respect. This will avoid any confusion about what was said. This should come from the most senior person at the firm.
Hold people accountable- treating others with respect should be added to everyone’s performance review. There should be no tolerance for condescending behavior towards others no matter what team you are on.
Engage with everyone on your team. If you’re a senior leader then it is a must for you to be inclusive and treat everyone the same. Treat your B players the same as your A players.
Oftentimes management sends out surveys to find out what employees are feeling about the organization. This is great because it gives people a chance to voice their opinions anonymously. Management must also start talking directly to their people. This is the easiest way to get the feedback.
Once the feedback is received, management must make changes. If you keep getting the same responses, then you are not making the right changes. Listen to the feedback you received.
If management wants people and processes to be more efficient, then we need to work together. If people aren’t working together, we need to change the way we manage. If we don’t do this, people’s behavior won’t change and we will continue to lose talent across organizations.
Changing culture one step at a time can create organizations where talented individuals want to work!
Here’s to your success!
Rene