Women’s Equality Day: No glass ceiling in sight from the edge
It's Women's Equality Day, but it'll be 135.6 years before women and men reach parity on a range of factors, versus the 99.5 years cited in 2020.
If the buzzwords are true, strategies like inclusion and diversity are leading priorities for companies in 2022 – and with good reason. A recent Glassdoor study found that 67 percent of job seekers look for diversity when considering employment.
Diversity encompasses a range of demographics, including race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, age, socioeconomic status, and physical disabilities. Adding inclusive policies that provide equal opportunities for employees ensures that employees from all backgrounds can be confident that they’re supported within their workplace.
It’s a win-win situation.
There’s been an increased pressure for businesses to improve their bottom line, and the data doesn’t lie, so why hasn’t inclusion and diversity taken off within organizations?
How can companies place serious efforts on inclusion in the workplace while also keeping pace with target goals?
Let’s discuss each point and how it pertains to blending diversity and inclusion with the company’s focus.
It's Women's Equality Day, but it'll be 135.6 years before women and men reach parity on a range of factors, versus the 99.5 years cited in 2020.
International business leader Dr. Anita Sands nailed the impact of belonging versus inclusion when she said,
“Put another way, diversity is a fact (the numbers are what they are), inclusion is a choice (you decide whether to include someone or not), but belonging is a feeling that can be enforced by a culture that you can purposefully create.”
For example, successful onboarding isn’t limited to HR. Instead, every team member must take part to ensure a coworker feels like everything they hoped this job — this company — would be is how it is.
“If there is a misalignment between your organization’s values and the behaviors your employees exhibit, then your accountability structure is likely misaligned and needs to be rethought,” added Harvard Business Review contributors Paige Cohen and Gretchen Gavett.
“When your staff feels a sense of belonging – which means they feel comfortable speaking up, asking for help, sharing new ideas, and respectfully disagreeing and examining differing opinions without penalty – it shows in their job performance, company loyalty, staff morale, engagement, productivity, and professional growth within the organization.
If you have some doubts, then it’s time to re-examine your work culture and discuss how your employees see their role in facilitating it.
Do you know how to manage Millennials and Gen Z at work? You should - they already make up almost half the full-time workforce.
Most employees would agree that there are boundaries we just shouldn’t cross – and we have no tolerance policies for those things. But as a member of your organization, you can take more action. Ask yourself: are you living your values?
Specifically, if you say you care about gender balance or working parent balance, do your current work schedules and meeting times reflect the alignment to that, or are you leaving people out unintentionally?
Finding a balance between incorporating inclusion while reinforcing clear boundaries takes some thought and preparation, but supporting an authentic, employee-centric value system isn’t complicated. For instance, enacting a no-tolerance policy against hostile, discriminatory behavior that targets coworkers based on gender, age, sexual orientation, religion, etc., is something employees can all agree is a good thing.
As business leaders, we’re responsible for integrating policies that strengthen and move the company forward. And that change begins with the behaviors of C-suite right on down the managerial line.
Tired of being written out of their own narrative, difficult women get comfortable holding the reins of power.
From onboarding to day-to-day operations, your company’s purpose and strategy should be integral to your work culture. “To obtain meaningful results that matter without causing more problems than it solves, inclusion must be strategic, rooted in your existing organizational identity, values, and business goals,” explains Susana Rinderle.
As industries across the board witness a drastic change in how their company must adapt to survive, the need for innovation is evident – and the data makes clear that by creating a culture of inclusion, innovation skyrockets.
“Organizations need to take every opportunity to communicate what is expected of their leaders,” explains Dr. Melissa Thomas-Hunt, Airbnb’s head of global diversity and belonging.
Transforming work environments to harbor diverse thought, differing life experiences, demographics, and professional backgrounds reinforces a company’s united commitment to growth. And that paves the way for a positive, supportive, and profitable future.