The world of work is always changing, and has altered significantly in the last few years. Innovation, societal shifts and many other factors contribute to this, and it is arguably what makes our workplaces so exciting. Imagine if your younger self turned up on your first day of work to be told that this was how it would be for the next forty plus years. You might get promoted but if there is no change, there is no opportunity to grow as a colleague and employee.
Sectors rise up rapidly and lose relevance just as quickly. Traditional ways of working, and the protocols that accompanied them, are mostly gone. Younger colleagues are aghast when I tell them that at one of my previous jobs, women were not allowed to wear trousers. I say we were not allowed to, but it was more of an unspoken rule, existing in a male-dominated workplace. As women were in the minority, it never occurred to us that we could question this.
The last few years have shown that the status quo can change within a fleeting period of time. They have given us the opportunity to re-evaluate how we see work and the change we can make as individuals. VUCA is a management acronym that has gained a huge amount of traction because it seems apt for how we view our world. It is short for volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity. If it is hard for a business to negotiate the issues around VUCA, what chance do individuals have? With no precedents to follow, how do you create a work ethos that can manage the many challenges and variations that come with VUCA? How do you manage ‘known unknowns’ in the absence of a culture that embraces experimentation, a culture that can only exist if colleagues feel that they are allowed to try and fail? Do you have the information and ability to deal with uncertainty? Do you encourage the sharing of that information, so that those silos that stop a full circle of capability cease to exist?
In asking all these questions, we must acknowledge that it is the collective effort of all the individuals who work within a company that equips us to handle VUCA. In creating a workplace where everyone feels valued and that they belong, we unleash power. The power of people who do not spend a huge amount of effort trying to fit in, but put that effort into creating a cohesive and collaborative workplace. The power to ask the tough questions that can push you forward but who ask in such a way that it is not seen as a challenge, but part of the way you work. A way of work that welcomes different voices, faces, experience and attitudes because the richer your mix is, the more influences can be brought to the discussion to help find new ways of solving problems.
Creating this rich mix is tough. If we are to have our own version of Avengers Assemble (forgive me, but I do work in cinema) with a cast of different characters who have their own individual talents, what do we need to do? In discussions that try to address this, some common themes appear. One of the barriers is that companies confuse policies with action. They assume that having a policy that says it is designed to drive inclusion will create inclusion. All too often, these policies are viewed as a tick-box exercise from human resources that can be safely skirted.
Certain elements of the workforce are not cognisant of the benefits of a diverse and inclusive personnel and treat it as a threat to their position or prospects. They see it as them getting a smaller slice of the pie, when all the evidence says the pie gets bigger with greater diversity. Other colleagues want to help drive change but do not know how and are concerned they will do the wrong thing. This creates two drag factors that need to speed up if we are to maintain the momentum of meaningful change; two more brakes on a process that is trying to address a complex issue that can appear intractable and deeply embedded in everything that we do. Anyone who thinks this can be changed by having a Pride week but not policies, International Women’s Day without examining their gender pay gap, is indulging in a delusion.
For change to be fully embedded, we need to have allies in every seat. Individuals who know how to create cultures that foster inclusivity and belonging, and who can create a workplace where everyone can contribute and not feel the need to be someone or something that they aren’t. In The Inclusion Edge, Mary has given the reader tools and tactics that help them become that change.
It can be hard to admit that you need support, but The Inclusion Edge can and will help you. It’s inevitable that you’ll make a mistake on your journey. That human fallibility is a key part of the process. If you take a deep breath and keep going, you will probably decide that any actions you didn’t get right, or the moment when you realised a situation was more complex than you had anticipated, are your pivots of change. In trying to create a great environment for all your colleagues, by talking to them about how you can make them feel that they belong, you’ll make a series of discoveries that will turn those issues into small obstacles in your journey towards a truly inclusive workplace.
Kathryn Jacob OBE
CEO of Pearl & Dean, Co-Author of Belonging and The Glass Wall
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