At Voice At The Table, we know that companies with inclusive cultures benefit from the diversity of their workforce. We also know that a more diverse workforce achieves greater business success. A key driver of business success, therefore, is having an inclusive culture.
In our view, an inclusive culture is an environment in which every individual feels welcomed and valued. It is the ideal setting in which to cultivate engagement, tap into authentic contribution, breed accountability and independent thinking and encourage learning and development. It is within this type of culture that the benefits of diversity can be fully harnessed and lead to the discovery of new markets and products, introduce innovation in processes across the entire business, attract and retain the talent of the future and develop a distinguished and sustainable competitive edge. In other words, inclusive cultures encourage diversity of thought and directly contribute to the growth of the business.
In order to create an inclusive environment that leads to the benefits described above, we first need to ‘create’ inclusive leaders that make inclusive cultures within their own teams a reality.
So what are the key ingredients of a leader who values the contribution of each team member, knows how to motivate them, and makes them feel welcome?
Here are our top 3 trademarks of an Inclusive Leader:
- Empathy
Empathy is described as the ability to understand another’s feelings as though they were your own. In other words, it’s the ability to put yourself in the shoes of another.
An empathetic person doesn’t just have the benefit of understanding why others say and do things, he or she will always strive to understand another, especially when their behaviour or statements aren’t obvious. This is a key attribute for inclusive leadership because understanding the team members’ motivation, background, preferences and behaviour traits allows the team leader to utilise team members to the best of their abilities. In doing so, the inclusive leader will not only benefit from each member’s strengths, he or she will have the benefit of engaging team members by appealing to their preferences.
Empathetic leaders will also gain the team’s trust by being able to relate to the team and by understanding how to develop and mentor them.
- Listening Skills
Listening has been described is one of the most important skills of great leadership. In an excellent article for Forbes magazine, Mike Myatt expresses as follows what we hold to be true:
Great leaders are great listeners, and therefore my message today is a simple one – talk less and listen more. The best leaders are proactive, strategic, and intuitive listeners. They recognize knowledge and wisdom are not gained by talking, but by listening… The best leaders possess the uncanny ability to understand what is not said, witnessed, or heard. … astute leaders know there is far more to be gained by surrendering the floor than by dominating it…. In this age of instant communication everyone seems to be in such a rush to communicate what’s on their mind, they fail to realize the value of everything that can be gleaned from the minds of others.
Read the rest of the article here.
In her book Are you listening or just waiting to speak? my good friend, coach and advisor Jane Adshead-Grant points out that hearing and listening are two very different processes. Hearing what’s being said doesn’t necessarily make a connection with the other person, whereas when one listens, the listener has committed his or her perception to what’s going on with the listener beyond what’s being said. This is called ‘active listening’ and requires the use of all senses.
In the context of building inclusive cultures, listening is critical. A leader who listens creates trust and commitment, and shows team members that he or she cares about them. A leader who is an active listener will also read between the lines and hear what’s not being said – a crucial skill for anyone who seeks to influence, motivate and galvanise people into action.
- Self-Awareness
Self-awareness can be described as the ability to understand who you are, to have a clear perception of your personality – your strengths, weaknesses, thoughts, beliefs, motivation, and emotions. Being self-aware allows a better understanding of others, how they perceive you, your attitude and your responses to them in the moment.
Becoming self-aware is the first crucial step to developing emotional intelligence, and emotionally intelligent people are not only successful in their own right, they are excellent communicators, leaders, thought leaders and philosophers. Becoming self-aware allows a person to take charge of their emotions and thoughts and change them.
Self-aware leaders will naturally be more inclusive leaders. They will be more aware of their innate biases, be more inclined to question their actions, thoughts and feelings, and allow diversity of thought to thrive. Being self-aware also makes it easier to retain newly-developed skills, such as listening, empathy and others, in times of turbulence or high stress. It’s during those difficult times that our leadership styles, personalities and preferences are tested and tend to revert to a more ingrained foundation. Emotional Intelligence can help navigate those tricky waters and sustain a more calm and rational approach. This, in turn, helps us to remain healthy, balanced and in control of our own emotions. Naturally, in the context of inclusive leadership, being self-aware and emotionally intelligent helps sustain the trust that we have worked to instil and lead the team calmly through periods of uncertainty, change and challenge.
So, in our view, an inclusive leader will be a master of many more leadership skills and traits, but the above 3 are the cornerstones of any leader who wants to create a culture that benefits from the valuable contribution of each person in his or her team. At Voice At The Table we understand not only the significance of this culture for the success and growth of a business, but we are also equipped to help leaders and their teams to attain an inclusive environment in which every person thrives and, as a result, delivers their best.
If you’d like to learn more about how we do this, please email us.
