SHOULD ORGANIZATIONS BEGIN WITH INCLUSION OR DIVERSITY?

Reading time: 6 min

Many organizations are looking to improve their DEI or DEIB+  efforts at the moment. Plenty of research has gone into proving the value that this can offer, and it’s well-recognized that diverse teams make better decisions and get better results  in many cases. However, a lot of organizations are floundering when it comes to getting started. Indeed, getting started may be the most difficult step if you’re in an organization that’s traditionally not geared for DEIB+ .

Where do you begin? Do you focus on bringing in a more diverse workforce first, hoping that exposure to different perspectives will naturally improve cultural understanding? Or should you prioritize inclusion first, ensuring that your organization fosters a welcoming environment where diverse talent feels valued and wants to stay?  

There’s no right or wrong answer;  strong arguments exist on both sides. Some believe that diversity must come first to bring in fresh perspectives and drive change, while others argue that inclusion should be the priority so that diverse individuals feel truly valued and engaged.

However, we come down on the side of inclusion first for a number of reasons. Let’s take a look at why putting inclusion first creates an environment where diversity can truly thrive!

It attracts diversity naturally

It’s both fairly evident and scientifically proven  that simply mandating diversity quotas isn’t very effective. It leads to perceptions of tokenization and often frustration. It can even cause alienation between different groups. While taking steps to hire from a diverse talent pool is unquestionably key, especially if you’re from a very homogenous organization that needs to play catch-up, the best approach is to naturally increase your attractiveness to diverse populations.

The best way to do this is to increase the inclusivity of the organization. This can be done in a myriad of ways. Creating gender-neutral bathrooms will help LGBTQIA+ individuals feel more comfortable. Promoting more black employees to management roles will demonstrate racial diversity and reduce bias in the hiring processes. Cracking down on harassment will encourage women to apply.  Establishing a prayer room and flexible vacation days may make you more attractive to people of certain religions.

Many organizations underestimate how creating a culture of acceptance throughout the organization, from top to bottom, can improve their chances of hiring from a diverse talent pool. Becoming known as an inclusive organization will make you much more attractive.

You can take this further by making sure that hiring language is inclusive and interview experiences are obviously fair. Eliminate gendered language or racial language. Add diversity to your hiring committee. Offer candidates opportunities to state their pronouns without forcing them to do so.

You’ll retain diverse individuals

There’s no point in attracting diverse people to your organization if they’ll soon feel alienated and leave again. It’s therefore crucial to think about inclusivity exercises as the first step. If people join your organization but feel unwelcome, they are not likely to stay for long. This lack of welcome can be in both subtle and obvious ways, but if it’s a factor, it’s likely to drive people away, no matter how diverse your hiring processes are.

By making a point of reviewing your DEIB+  efforts before you start bringing on diverse individuals, you can eliminate these problems before they occur. Think about the ways in which your workforce might expand and try to anticipate the challenges that might be encountered by those joining. How can you make sure they are able to voice any concerns they have in ways that feel safe and effective? What obstacles can you remove before they join to maximize their comfort?

It can help to survey the workforce you currently have when weighing up these questions, as there may be things you haven’t thought of. However, make sure you’re considering all different elements, including how to minimize bias at a management level.

You’ll be doing the work

All too often, minority groups get asked to do the work of improving DEIB+  efforts. While it’s crucial for organizations to listen thoroughly to these individuals and include them in DEIB+  initiatives, it’s equally important not to put the burden on their shoulders. It shouldn’t just be on them to identify and solve problems, while the organization only focuses on listening to feedback. Organizations need to be proactive and seek solutions themselves.

It’s often tempting to let issues continue until somebody actively complains about them or puts in the effort to make a change, but doing so is a DEIB+ issue in itself! When minorities are burdened with all the work of changing unfair situations, they’re doing a disproportionate amount of the work.

Furthermore, depending on diverse employees to do this causes another issue: the organization misses out on learning opportunities because it’s not taking a proactive approach. Instead, organizations should look for ways to increase their sense of inclusivity issues, bringing in outside help if necessary. Learn about common problems and find ways to identify these in your own organization. Your DEIB+  initiatives are much more likely to be meaningful and effective if they come from the top, rather than being initiated by workers.

The great thing about this approach is that it means you’ll be proactively looking at inclusivity, rather than depending on your minority employees. This creates a problem-solving atmosphere that everyone is likely to benefit from, and means that inclusivity efforts are often much broader and effective. It also establishes a culture where it feels safe for minorities to raise issues.

How soon should diversity follow?

There’s no set amount of time you should wait before you start trying to increase your diversity too. A lot of it will depend on how many issues your organization has that need resolving.

If you’re already up to date on many of the key problems and you’ve laid the groundwork to ensure diverse employees are set up to succeed, you might start working on your hiring practices straight away. If you have a lot of work to do, however, it’s better to start with an organization-wide assessment to see what areas need improving. You can then begin implementing meaningful change that will ensure incoming employees enter an environment where they will be supported and valued.

From there, you can begin a collaborative process, allowing your workforce to tell you about issues as they arise, and prioritizing responsiveness as you go forward. At this point, you’ll be moving from the inclusion-then-diversity approach into a combined, collaborative initiative that lets you elevate both your inclusion and diversity efforts simultaneously. You’ll be eliminating problems as they arise, and creating a landscape for diverse individuals to thrive in. However, without starting with inclusivity, it might become more challenging to reach this point, which is why organizations could view this acronym as IE&D, rather than the other way around.

That said, does it really have to be either/or? Perhaps the real key is to focus on both at the same time, building inclusion as you bring in diverse talent, ensuring that one reinforces the other.

What’s your take? Should organizations start with inclusion, diversity, or both?

Time to get hands-on!

Organizations can determine whether to start with diversity or inclusion by conducting a Leadership Simulation Exercise, where decision-makers experience both approaches in real time. Participants are divided into two groups, one prioritizing diversity first by hiring more diverse talent without major cultural changes, and the other focusing on inclusion first by strengthening workplace belonging before actively increasing representation. Each group navigates real-world scenarios, such as hiring for leadership roles, addressing retention issues, or implementing DEI strategies, allowing them to see the consequences of their approach in action.

After the simulation, a structured debrief session helps leaders reflect on what worked, what didn’t, and whether a combined strategy might be more effective. This hands-on experience moves beyond theoretical discussions, helping organizations make an informed, experience-based decision on whether to prioritize diversity, inclusion, or both simultaneously.