Since the death of George Floyd in May, dozens of companies such as Apple, Estee Lauder and Facebook have vowed to increase diversity and inclusion in their workplaces.
The diversity part seems straightforward enough. But what’s meant by inclusion?
As a social work scholar, I study how leaders create socially just, equitable and inclusive workplaces, particularly when they have a diverse workforce. A recent study I conducted with social policy scholar Lawrence Palinkas examined how employees perceive leaders who are inclusive – and those who aren’t.
The Value of Inclusion
Companies have long focused on trying to make their workforces more diverse. But resesearch shows that simply enhancing the representation of employees from diverse backgrounds is not enough. To fully tap into the positive outcomes of diversity, organizations need to focus on inclusion.
What does this mean?
For a start, it means ensuring all employees regardless of background feel that they are important and valued members of the team. This improves employee job satisfaction, trust, engagement, creativity, inclusion starts better management employees about making diversity
