Diversity and Inclusion is The New Organizational Culture

This week’s blog post will discuss how diversity and inclusion affect the corporate culture in a business. Many a times, people confuse the concepts of diversity and inclusion as one. But they are two different things. Diversity is about people’s backgrounds or physical attributes that makes them different from another person. On the other hand, inclusion is defined as a sense of belonging to cultural and environmental feelings. (Brownlee, 2019) Looking at these factors, we are able to control and manage the corporate culture based on how it is handled. Let’s look at all the aspects of diversity and inclusion that makes or breaks the corporate ethos.

Firstly, we have to identify where diversity and inclusion fir in the levels of organization culture. Edgar Shein proposed three levels of organization culture as artifacts, values and underlying assumption. (Lyon, 2017) When we view the diagram on the left about the three levels as separate, we are able to identify diversity as a value and inclusion as an underlying assumption. Diversity is a philosophy many companies and institution like to include in their values. The idea of having different people from different backgrounds and regions, makes it a well-rounded place to pursue your career. For example, Coca-Cola Company has made diversity an important factor of their global mission as, “We see diversity as more than just policies and practices. It is an integral part of who we are as a company, how we operate and how we see our future.” (The Coca-Cola Company, 2018)

On the other hand, inclusion is viewed as on underlying assumption because it has to with how as employees and customers, we are being treated equally, fairly, and most of all valued as an asset to the team. Inclusion is one of the hardest things to talk about and to fix in a company. When employees are not valued for their performance or are disconnected from various group activities, they do not feel the need to give their best to the values. The productivity within those individuals decreases, as a result. Furthermore, without inclusion the hierarchy of needs in workforce for employee isn’t met, which then forces them to look for better opportunities where their lower level needs are being met first. For example, a study on millennials showed that 47% look for both diversity and inclusion in a workforce when applying for a position. (Kochhar,2016) When we consider that astounding number, we have to acknowledge that younger generations look at these to as a deal breaker. Moreover, as a millennial myself, I have always prioritized both whenever I applied to schools and when I was looking for a place of employment. We, as employees and managers, have to be outspoken about what we need and what needs to change to advocate for others who cannot speak for themselves.

Defining the differences between the two, we also have to consider the impact it has on the culture of the organization. According to Shein, culture means stability over the course of time, and cultures emphasizes the conceptual meaning as a group. (Lyon, 2017) Applying these themes to both diversity and inclusion, the company’s culture could thrive, or it could lead to devastating results. For example, a positive organizational culture is to include every single employee on the team regardless of their socioeconomic backgrounds, gender or disability, and to reward and praise them equally as the other members on the team. In contrast, if they are not being included or they are not being commended for their contribution then they will either lose interest or permanently leave the place of employment for better opportunity. In addition, if the culture is toxic then management needs to assign accountability. Holding people responsible for how they come across other people or how they act towards others helps the culture in the organization as utmost important.

In conclusion, corporate culture is reflected through how employees feel and valued. Both diversity and inclusion are one of the most important factors that influence the culture in either a positive or negative limelight. As the new generations start making up the workforce, we understand that they require inclusion and diversity as the defining factor to work. Hopefully, businesses' will take the initiative to work smarter in making their organization an appealing place to work and make lasting business connections.

References:

Company, T. C.-C. (2018, August 29). Global Diversity Mission. Retrieved September 29, 2019, from https://www.coca-colacompany.com/our-company/diversity/global-diversity-mission.

Lyon, A. (2017, May 10). Organizational Culture Edgar Schein. Retrieved September 29, 2019, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wd1bsxWeM6Q.

Brownlee, D. (2019, September 16). The Dangers Of Mistaking Diversity For Inclusion In The Workplace. Retrieved September 29, 2019, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/danabrownlee/2019/09/15/the-dangers-of-mistaking-diversity-for-inclusion-in-the-workplace/#64a2d0ac4d86.

Kochhar, S. (2018, February 15). Millennials@Work: Perspectives on Diversity & Inclusion. Retrieved September 29, 2019, from https://instituteforpr.org/millennialswork-perspectives-diversity-inclusion/.