Voices of Inclusion - Conversations with Leaders Who Inspire Change
Gain valuable insights from Catherine Popowits, Diversity and Training, Inc., a leading DEI expert on how to navigate and address power dynamics and biases in leadership to create a more equitable workplace.
Can you share a specific example where you’ve seen inclusive leadership make a measurable impact on organizational culture or business outcomes?
At a large cultural institution in Chicago where I provided DEI leadership coaching and DEI training, there were African American frontline staff members who were approached at times by museum visitors making racially insensitive comments and displaying racially provocative symbols, such as T-shirts or caps displaying the confederate flag. To address this issue, the leadership of the organization developed a DEI customer service policy, in addition to their internal DEI policies, that enabled all staff members to ask for assistance from a manager when dealing with offensive visitor comments or behaviors and to share the DEI customer service policy with visitors requiring them to either cover or remove racially provocative clothing in order to be admitted to the building.
This institution’s commitment to providing a respectful environment for both visitors and staff members of all backgrounds has yielded significant rewards, as this organization has a much higher staff retention rate than many other cultural institutions in the city.
What are the most common challenges leaders face when trying to implement DEI initiatives, and how can they overcome these obstacles?
Organizational leaders are often anxious in beginning to implement DEI initiatives. They want to do the right thing, are intellectually committed to fairness and creating a level playing field, and value the retention of diverse talent, however, leaders can be concerned that discussing DEI issues – race, gender, sexual orientation, cultural differences, etc. - will create divisions among their employees rather than bringing them together into a more cohesive and productive work community. Leaders may also be ambivalent about bringing people who have different backgrounds than their own into management. It can be initially uncomfortable to work closely with peers with different ways of communicating, whether it is women favoring more collaborative decision making, younger leaders with less tolerance of hierarchy, or leaders of different cultural backgrounds who want to alter services and products in order to market them to communities with which they are familiar.
To increase their confidence and trust in the DEI process, leaders can participate in DEI leadership training, read case studies about similar companies that have successfully leveraged the diversity in their organizations to boost profits, and talk with trusted peers in organizations that are further along the DEI journey. Leaders can also read about Best Practices in professional journals and attend DEI sessions at their industry conferences. It is also wise for leaders to partner with an experienced consultant that can guide them and adapt DEI Best Practices to their unique business culture.
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