Written by: Rebecca Berry, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
I’ve spoken informally and candidly to many leaders from a range of industries about their real feelings towards equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI). The majority of them admit that they say all the right things because it’s expected of them, but privately dismiss it as a cosmetic necessity that can be delegated.
It’s not. Inclusive leadership that starts right at the top is essential to business success. Research has proven time and time again that diversity of thinking drives greater innovation, greater creativity, greater competitive advantage, and greater success. In 2020, the Bank of American Global Research published data showing that the average five-year stock percentage returns for the companies that scored well in diversity were more than double those of those that scored poorly.
In this article, I’ll explain why and how inclusion is the key to success for modern leaders. I’ll give examples of how it differs from traditional leadership, and offer a way to transform yourself into an inclusive leader.
So why IS an inclusive mindset the number one trait of successful leaders?
Do an online search for ‘leadership traits’ and you’ll see words such as communication, adaptability, accountability, confidence, creativity, empathy, positivity, risk taking. An inclusive mindset helps you to ace every single one of those traits. That’s why it’s the number one leadership trait to build right now.
For example, leadership communication is often presented as the ability to articulate vision, strategy and requirements clearly, so that everyone understands it and feels motivated to follow their leader and deliver the strategy.
Inclusive communication is about engaging and involving people from the beginning, rather than explaining business decisions clearly and inspiringly once they’ve been made and you’re ready to implement them. It’s being curious, actively seeking input from a wide diversity of perspectives and actively listening without judgement. It’s letting go of the need to be right, letting go of the idea that you’re paid to make the decisions, recognising and leveraging great ideas, and remaining accountable for them. And that can feel very uncomfortable indeed.
Data from BetterUp Labs shows that, compared to non-inclusive leaders, the direct reports of inclusive leaders report:
150% greater sense of belonging
140% greater perceived organisational support
90% higher team innovation
50% higher team performance
140% higher team engagement
780% higher NPS scores for that leader
And 54% lower intention to leave
An inclusive mindset enhances every area of your life, makes you a much better leader, and vastly improves your employability.
An inclusive mindset improves employability? How?
Expectations of leaders have changed dramatically in just the last few years. Gen Z are entering the workforce and they’re expecting to find an equitable, diverse and inclusive environment as a given. But they’re not. Most leaders have solidified and stuck with their leadership style over many years, and most established leadership models are based on decade-old thinking at best. How many leaders can say that they’ve deeply examined and adjusted their leadership style in light of changing expectations? Not many.
One of my clients recently told me about an interview he conducted with a potential leadership hire. My client asked what he considered to be a basic question about EDI, and the candidate became defensive and flustered. They said they’d never had a problem with anyone. They were unable to talk with any confidence or insight about why EDI matters. They didn’t get the job.
The fact is that talent and customers are flocking to the companies that are getting equity, diversity and inclusion right. Another of my clients remarked the other day that he’d met with a new potential customer, and a large part of the conversation was about my client’s company’s track record in diversity and inclusion. It was a deal breaker. Fortunately, my client’s company is very inclusive!
Be under no illusion; expectations about equity, diversity and inclusion are increasing up and down the supply chain, as well as from current and potential talent. If you get uncomfortable at the mention of EDI, if you can’t talk easily and fluently about inclusion, if you can’t explain what you’ve done personally to make your leadership style more inclusive, the job will go to someone that can.
OK, that makes sense. So, what more should leaders be doing to get inclusion right?
Building an inclusive mindset means fundamentally unlearning and relearning the way we see the world. Done properly, it’s uncomfortable, tough work so it’s not surprising that so few leaders prioritise it. It doesn’t help that diversity and inclusion training tends to be a team event rather than an individual experience. I know plenty of leaders who have attended unconscious bias training and wanted to ask questions or even challenge, but didn’t dare. It’s an emotive, delicate subject. It’s desperately uncomfortable. They didn’t want their team or the trainer to think badly of them, or point the finger of bias, so they said nothing. And nothing changed.
What does unlearning and relearning involve?
The average age of a senior leader is 40. Based on how they’ve been taught, leaders tend to prioritise and spend far more time creating and operationalising strategy than focusing on being the best leader they can be. Twenty years ago, when our average leader entered the workforce, leaders were expected to be more task-focused than people-focused, the pace of change was increasing with the quantum leap in business technology, and they were expected to be decisive and get things done. Now, leaders are expected to be people-oriented and agile, cope with constant change at a dizzying pace, and harness diverse perspectives to get to the best solution rather than impose their personal solution. It’s exhausting.
That’s why I’ve launched ‘Lean In: Inclusion Coaching for Leaders and Allies’. I know that people feel much more comfortable opening up in a private, non-judgemental environment where they can ask the questions they want to, do the unlearning and relearning that they need to, and build the confidence and motivation to lean into uncomfortable conversations. When I started to build an inclusive mindset, I unlearned and relearned alone, and it was tough! I wish I’d had someone to help me make sense of the new self-view and worldview I was building, and help me through the discomfort of navigating business relationships in the context of what I was learning.
What’s in it for me?
Building an inclusive mindset is transformative for you, your team and your business. You’ll build the best working relationships of your career. It will benefit you for the rest of your life. Be one of the leaders that gets it, and level up.
If you’re serious about doing the work that’s needed to build an inclusive mindset, contact me here. Or if you just want to chat about any of the points I’ve made in the article, I’d love to know what you think of it!
Rebecca Berry, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Rebecca Berry is an inclusion coach and consultant. She launched her consultancy in 2022 after three decades of global senior leadership roles in HR, culture and equity, diversity and inclusion. Rebecca' recently launched her signature coaching programme, 'Lean In: Inclusion Coaching for Leaders and Allies', having observed that group diversity and inclusion training isn't always the right environment to lean into EDI learning. Rebecca lives in Oxford, UK and cares for her mother alongside building her consultancy. Her mission: to make the business world a more inclusive place.
