Embracing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the Workplace

Everyone lives within a cultural setting. Culturally, each person within a sect is a developmental resource with unique abilities. People develop when they are culturally united. Culture is seen to be a way group of people live. Meaning, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion evolves around culture, and a practice in our daily engagement be it societal or the workspace. This makes the subject not so new.

The only new element introduced in our workspace is projecting Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) as a business strategy. Considering the workspace, businesses and organizations can thrive so well when employees are seen as unique with great potential without discrimination, bullying, and abuse in any form.

People who seem to be rejected in a particular setting are seen to be misfits due to several factors not excluding, age, gender, socioeconomic class, race, colour, language, disability, and beliefs they hold on to. People who are accepted into a particular cultural setting feel recognized, appreciated, loved, and treasured.

Their views are recognized, accepted, and respected regardless of how they look like or what makes them exceptional in terms of values. They feel as part of a team and go by rules or acceptable behaviours of the setting. Each employee’s view is important and hailed. This makes employees feel highly spirited; they work and act as a team without fear of being judged, bullied, or laughed at because they have a deformity.

Constructive criticisms improve their self-esteem rather than demoralization. People who practice diversity, equality, and inclusion uplift rather than being thrown with condemnation and umpired based on their disability or deformity. Though Diversity identifies people culturally and allows differences to be recognized through inclusion and support, benefits in several ways are shared equally without discrimination.

This leads to better decisions and helps employees to flourish. Each time people see each other as diverse but relevant, have access to equal opportunity or resources, and their views are respected without being bullied and discriminated against, it’s a strong indication of a workspace and an environment of Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion.

Every business that desires to succeed in the 21st century cannot disregard the huge benefits of diversity, equity, and inclusion in its workspace. It is a crucial wake-up call and a grave concern for organizations and businesses that wish to sustain success to consciously create awareness and practice Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion (DEI) at all levels of their operations.

Forgetfully or unconsciously, business executives or leaders feel powerful and fail to recognize Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) as a developmental tool. Often, based on their mindset as being “powerful”, complacency and pride, they fail to give a listening ear and their judgement seems biased and an attack as an alternative of support and encouragement to the vulnerable employee.

Leaders use their position to segregate, disapprove competencies and sabotage the growth of the individual anytime they feel threatened with the truth. This attitude may be seen in some colleagues too.

They find ways to bully their team members because of influence from a leader, an attempt to please leadership or the “I came before you” disorder. Employees are unable to speak out due to fear of non-renewing of contracts, sacks or withholding of even benefits.

Employees face all forms of threats. Employees are unable to even try innovative ways to improve productivity because of fear. Until leaders focus in bringing out the best in people and practice Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), the workplace will continue to be challenged with discrimination, bullying, stigmatization, and abuses of all forms not excluding sexual harassment.

Forward-thinking organizations accept everyone as unique to build synergy and help create a better workspace among teams. Management likewise the employee is required to create an inclusive workplace culture, encourage diversity, and action equitable Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) strategic initiatives, and practices.

What Diversity, Equality and Inclusion Is at The Workplace

Businesses now consider Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion (DEI) as a professional developmental tool globally because businesses are now interconnected. Without Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), it will not be possible to advance in growth in these contemporary times. The workforce will stifle likewise the business operations.

Considering the workspace, Diversity includes recruiting entities with diverse races, gender, sexual orientations, religions, ages, socioeconomic statuses, and disabilities to create a workforce that influences the business community it aims to serve.

Equality aims to achieve equity and opportunities that focus on attempts to eradicate disparities among diversified employees. It embraces all ages, sexual orientations, people with or without disabilities or deformities and religious sects.

Examples may include age, sex, and position differences at the workplace. Relegation of competencies due to deformity or a disability. Recruitment based on tribalism rather than competences. Business or organizational policies should aim at creating, supporting, and enforcing policies that seek to achieve similar or equal results for everyone.

Inclusiveness seeks to get a diversified team to undertake a task in coordinated efforts with improved operational returns. Inclusion also ensures every individual’s voice is heard, respected, and individuals’ contribution counts in the general business success.

How Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Improve the Workplace

Several benefits are derived from Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) practices as it is a developmental tool for businesses in this era. Well-implemented policies on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) facilitate growth and the general success outcome of a business. These may include the following at the workplace environment:

1. Heightened recognition and motivation of individual efforts
2. Heightened creativity and innovational efforts of individuals
3. Improved perceptions of fairness on management or leadership decisions
4. Satisfied customer care with open support for all clients or customer base
5. Within team members, there is strong elimination of bullying, victimization, all forms of harassment and abuses, and discriminations

Ways to Encourage Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at the Workspace

Interestingly, whiles businesses and organizations are naturally seen to practice Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), it will take a conscious effort and the need to fully implement and achieve DEI aims. A lot of organizations on paper or on their websites inform the public and employees of their practice, but they fail to really implement. Implementers like the Human Resources management department need more committed efforts to create awareness, implement policies on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) that will make the workspace more valuable. The HR department is typically the place where most policies are initiated.

Though open-door policies encourage employees to share their pressing issues with management, a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) support and enforcement system, should help individuals to feel free to speak with people they fully trust and are not judgmental. HRs should try to remove any obstacles that do not improve Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) in terms of channel of communication. The department of HR should reconsider its channel as open to all employers. Employees shouldn’t be restrictive to speak with a line manager or supervisor who may be the bully unconsciously.

Abuse usually yields and thrives on acts such as bullying. Bullying includes both verbal and nonverbal abuse, intimidation, embarrassment, or sabotage.

A typical behaviour in an act of bullying may be seen as being harassed in front of others even when you show signs of displeasure, teaming up and lied about, being left out in meetings where your views should be heard, team members have been told to avoid relating with you or warned against you, being turned down on leave requests even when you have a genuine reason to go and facing continuous criticism on any activity you put in your best shoot.

Often, these unkind acts lower the self-esteem of the employee.

Employees who face such challenges get gripped with fear, they stifle, coil, become anxious, feel powerless, and sad. The act meted on them psychologically affects their mental health and being, their productivity level reduces, and they are seen to be incompetent and absent-minded. Bullied employees lose touch of their creativity and innovations. They feel hopeless and sometimes isolated. They always suffer emotional and physical stress and panic whenever decisions are to be taken around their work. Bullying can be in the following forms.

 19 Act of Bullying at the Workspace

1. Consistent intimidations or manipulations, use of profane or any form of verbal assault on an employee.
2. Demeaning comments that may include element of insults.
3. Use of punitive reproach in the presence of other team members.
4. Use of negative comments that influence and reduces work performance.
5. Using retributions and being mean against a whistleblower.
6. Using position or authority to make someone unhappy.
7. Deliberate exclusion of people to undertake activities that they should be part.
8. Exclusion, marginalization, or applying some silent treatment in the workspace.
9. Personal attacks with threatening remarks.
10. Consistent reporting of individuals to superiors
11. Regularly being assigned with unfavourable or unreasonable roles at odd times.
12. Teaming up to ensure someone fail a task.
13. Not fully resourcing an employee to undertake some vital tasks yet expecting result.
14. Casting slurs on ethnic, sexual, gender, deformity, or religion.
15. Taking undue credits on work you didn’t do
16. Facing undue interruptions, gossip-mongering and betrayals
17. Sharing private information electronically or among colleagues without consent
18. Behaviours that undermine work progressions, such as withholding or delaying in providing important job-related information and assistance.
19.  The use of rude nonverbal gestures like rolling of the eye, finger pointing, staring or battering.

 Best practices for creating DEI in the Workspace

1. Involvement of Leadership: High-level managers should be involved, serve as models and be advocates to understand the drive as Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiative implementers. Their understanding and actions help the organization to improve its operations.
2. Motivate, and Reward Employees: This may include events that recognize positive impacts on diversity and attracts emulation by all employees. This helps leadership to take stock and recount the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) has a developmental tool of growth in business.
3. Educate and Ensure Open Communication: Educate, encourage employees to speak up, create modalities that will help all employers to fully understand their roles, expectations, and impotence of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI). Provide constructive feedback that promotes growth of the business and the individual and remember that, establishing polices that fully ensure all voices are heard and respected is key to ensuring DEI goals are understood.
4. Improve Engagements of Employees at all Levels: Increase opportunities for employees to meet, discuss and attain Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) standards at all levels. Speak and have discussions on platforms and in groups where employees and leaders meet. This allows or pave way for other people to promote healthy standards at the workplace.
5. Improve an Inclusive Work Culture: Employees who feel appreciated, know their voices are heard and matters to management, have a sense of protection and foresee an environment that is fair and inclusive is highly motivated. The individual adheres and in return respect rules, leadership, and work culture. There is little or no rebellion or belittled. Employees feel less stressed, and their creativity and innovations are sharpened.
6. Improved Diversity of Ideas and Background: Regardless of who one is, the strength or capabilities, age, colour, disable or deformed one is, a truly diversified work environment foster positive workflow. Employees create more innovation activities; employees feel motivated and see each other as a coupling effect. No one is left behind and there is retention of workforce and growth.
7. Improved Equal Opportunities and Workplace Practices: Employees acquire practical experiences that improve the rights, opportunities, and resources to all individuals. There is no segregation, and this foster confident growth to all. Employees again can distinguish between fairness from bias judgement during decision-making.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

John Asokomfo Afful also known as Jaafful aims to uplift and provide socio-psycho support globally to individuals and organizations! He desires to drive on the positive mindset that’s within every individual. Illuminate communities and performances of the individual as well as convey the very best possible positive information and proficiency into writing. He is the CEO & Founder of Jaafful Creations.

He started his writing skills in 2002 but become active and prolific in 2017 after hitting rock bottom and bouncing back using the power of positivity mindset. Jaafful has a background in journalism since 2005, a technical and content writer, a database administrator, marketer, and an entrepreneur.

He is so passionate about helping individuals boost their mood, train their brains, and improve their life socio-economically. His interests and hobbies include spending time with his family, writing and scoring music, horticulture, travelling and general creative arts. Jaafful has dramatically transformed his life in many fields of expertise. He is a philanthropic and easygoing.