In America today, the words diversity and inclusion are amongst the major topics in the corporate workplace. America is dominated by mainly white male leaders. In today’s society, this brings up a major issue. Where is the Diversity? Why does it seem that leadership still comes from the same group of people? When will everybody finally be included in these organizations’ top brass? These questions pose major problems to top companies across America. Inclusion is a very important part of today’s society and diversity in the workplace is not only important but beneficial to almost all organizations (Northouse, 2022). While some companies have addressed these issues very well, most haven’t. For the companies that have, the first thing that shows the change is their adoption of an inclusive leadership style.
Inclusion is defined as the extent to which individuals can access information and resources, are involved in groups, and have the ability to influence decision-making processes (Northouse, 2022, p.325). Instead of focusing on difference as a commodity, inclusion is focused on the level to which individuals feel they are part of the critical processes within their organization (Northouse, 2022, p.325). When an organization has an inclusive leadership style, it will have employees and leaders that work together to create a better environment for everyone. The leaders will promote and hire people of every background, race, gender, and age and include them in all the important conversations. These people will be properly represented in every level of management and they will truly feel like they are part of the team, rather then just a person on the outside. This will put each member in the quadrant of inclusion, as described in our text (Northouse, 2022, p.326).
A big factor in creating a diverse and inclusive environment is the mindset that CEO’s and higher executives have as they restructure their companies and policies. A major thing that these individuals should be looking for in people they hire and promote is the characteristic of positive diversity cognitions. This is defined as that holding the view that differences in perspectives, experiences, and values can enhance the overall performance of the teams was essential for success (Northouse, 2022, p.330). People with these cognitions will already be accustomed to and looking for ways to work together with others that have different perspectives then them. This will lead to great collaborative projects and a new environment that allows people who were previously considered a “minority” to be involved in major portions of these companies. It will also allow them to be put in positions of recognition where they would raise their chances of promotion. This would eventually lead to a completely diverse and inclusive organization.
If these factors are all combined and utilized synchronously, then all the original questions in this blog could be answered and plans could be developed on how to fix those major issues. I personally believe that if the inclusive leadership style was indoctrinated in all major companies that we would see a rise in diversity levels across America. I also believe most employees would be more satisfied at their jobs knowing they are included in the decision making processes of the company and that their voices were being heard and represented all throughout the company!
References:
Northouse, P.G. (2022). Leadership: Theory and Practice. Los Angeles: Sage Publications.
Hello Mathew,
I enjoyed reading this post as it was informative. I had a little bit of a difficult time as it was sort of scattered but all in all, I got the point and you make an excellent point! You mention inclusion, which is the action or state of providing equal access to opportunities and resources for people who might otherwise be excluded (Northouse, 2022, p. 234). In regards to inclusion, exclusion is also a major component that happens. Northouse (2022) states that exclusion occurs when organizations fail to see and value the unique qualities of individual members and fail to accept them as organizational insiders (Northouse, 2022, p. 326). To further explain this, when there is inclusion, there is also exclusion and it happens in organizations that don’t allow or accept diversity. You also mentioned the question, “When will everyone finally be included in these organizations’ top brass?”, everyone will be included once these inclusive leaders show that diversity doesn’t necessarily mean a bad thing, it gives opportunity to others of different races, religions, and cultures that can later be used in an organization in a positive way. Being an inclusive leader means understanding the backgrounds of these individuals and never treating them any less because they feel their skills and/or talents will not contribute to the team (Northouse, 2022, p. 328).
Being an inclusive leader also entails certain characteristics that have the ability to show that the employees are genuinely cared about and their needs are put first. These characteristics include pro-diversity beliefs, cognitive complexity, and personality factors, which all in turn have the ability to increase inclusion and diversity (Northouse, 2022, p. 329). You are correct when you state that the first change in any organization dealing with this problem is to inflict and adopt the inclusive leadership style, as it is possible with these three characteristics. Being pro- diversity is the ability to see that having diversity in organizations is beneficial and that everyone’s differences can be viewed as strengths (Northouse, 2022, p. 328). Having a cognitive complexity simply means individuals have the ability to realize there are more than one “right” answer, which can simply be solved by engaging in your organizational team and getting their feedback as to what their needs/wants are to feel more comfortable, which is an inclusive leaders job (Northouse, 2 022, p. 329). Finally, leader personality factors are the ability to be open to anything and any changes (Northouse, 2022, p. 329). Having these certain characteristics is the only way an adoption can be made of an inclusive leader.
Another thing you mentioned was how the mindsets of these individuals should be changed to seeing the differences as an important thing, you are very correct. I truly believe a change will not be made if mindsets are not solely reversed first, almost dealing with the problem at the head. Northouse (2022) states that such approaches were shown to require environments in which all employees feel valued, blue to fully utilize their perspectives and talents, and that they have an opportunity to commit and contribute to organizational objectives (Ely & Thomas, 2001, as cited in Northouse, 2022, p. 323). This being said, when the mindsets of these higher up individuals change, the process of increased inclusion and diversity is able to create positive change. Inclusive leaders should be looking for ways to positively influence their followers by realizing making mistakes in an organization is common, but owning up to the mistake to make influential change is what truly makes an inclusive leader (Northouse, 2022, p. 324).
To conclude, I enjoyed reading this post and believe there is a serious issue going on with the fact that diversity is thought to be a negative impact for companies and/or organizations. Instead, we should be looking at how these diversities have the ability to help the team grow. Employees should have the right to show that their individual uniqueness doesn’t make them any less valuable, but that their talents can contribute to the organizational objectives. Three main characteristics of an inclusive leader need to be shown for an adoption of this leadership style to effectively work, which include, pro-diversity, cognitive complexity, and leader personality factors, which all directly contribute to the necessary change needed to happen (Northouse, 2022, p. 329). Having the ability to enhance inclusion, also means there is going to be exclusion which is basically considered in-groups and out-groups. If we increase diversity and inclusion by prioritizing that everyone isn’t the same, rather unique, and their talents contribute, then exclusion has the ability to be decreased, which is what this world needs (Northouse, 2022, p. 326).
Works cited
Northouse, P. G. (2022). Leadership: Theory and practice. SAGE Publications, Inc.
Hello Matthew!
I agree with your stance and the course texts viewpoint that the current workplace norms are antiquated. Diversifying the members at the workplace benefits the organization. (Northouse, 2021) Eliminating the glass ceiling or cliff allows the opportunity for more innovative avenues to be explored for the organization. (Northouse, 2022) I believe that we need to acknowledge the facts that prejudice exists and unite to derive solutions. I have had the opportunity to explore the perspective of people against programs such as affirmative action and the threat of immigration. I have read some stories and they all appear to be rooted in fear of change and loosing access to resources. I began to understand their plights. I could see the commonalities amongst us more than the differences. While my initial opinion did not change, it allowed me to be more empathetic towards men. This has helped me to communicate with them more effectively because I understand them more and want things to be better for all of us. I understand that people across the board experience oppression and that we need to unite and uplift each other. This allows the opportunity to create more collaborative dynamics in organizations. Organizations can benefit greatly from abandoning their myopic viewpoints and strategies. (Northouse, 2022) Fostering diversity in leadership positions provides a competitive edge by enriching the perspectives intertwined in strategic planning and decision making. The old saying is the more you know, the more you grow. With diversity comes a breadth of knowledge, solution and perspectives that we all should get on board with.
References
Northouse, P. G. (2021). Leadership (9th Edition). SAGE Publications, Inc (US). https://bookshelf.vitalsource.com/books/9781071834473.