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Creating Inclusion Strategies
Presented by Desiree Adaway of The Adaway Group
Desiree AdawayFounder, The Adaway [email protected]
Bridgett CollingDirector of Content Strategy, [email protected]
The Adaway Group
The Adaway Group provides you with the tools and support you need to help your organization adapt and thrive within periods of change.
■ Select specific resources to help you get your project or program launched more quickly and
efficiently
■ Increase employee retention by helping teams see the connections among their talents, actions and
missions
■ Identify and invest in the parts of your organization that are working well so you can grow your areas
of excellence
■ Lay the groundwork for future initiatives by clarifying core mission priorities and honing your
organization’s ability to pivot and adapt to emerging opportunities and challenges
■ Prepare your people to manage difficult individuals or situations
See3 is the digital agency for do-gooders.
We work with nonprofits and social causes, activating people to change the world. We develop videos, websites and digital strategies to deliver on goals like fundraising, advocacy, awareness, recruitment and more.
Terminology
Diversity
The wide range of national, ethnic, racial and other backgrounds of U.
S. residents and immigrants as social groupings, co-existing in
American culture. The term is often used to include aspects of race,
ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, class and much more. The term
simply describes the presence of individuals from various backgrounds
and/or with various identities.
InclusionAuthentically brings the perspectives and contributions of all people to
the table, equitably distributes power, and incorporates their needs,
assets and perspectives into the design and implementation of
processes, policies, activities, and decision-making.
What drives people out the door?
“It is typically NOT the headline grabbing incidents that drive most workers,
people of color or LGBT folks out the door. Research shows that the last straw is
typically just another slight after an extended period of enduring daily micro-
insults against them.”
- Giving Notice, 2007
Different types of diversity
Diversity Recruitment Goals
Organization wants:
● To hire a diverse and qualified staff
● Fill their talent pipeline
● Meet an organizational and societal goal
● Make their organization better by offering skills, perspectives that
strengthen the organization
Candidate wants:
● A job that uses their skills and offers opportunities to learn and grow
● Open commitment to diversity- leadership, coalitions/stakeholders,
staffing
● Subtle cues that the organization understands diversity and inclusion-
business case, statements, etc.
The “Good Fit/Culture”
Question
Accept that it is natural behavior to hire candidates that look, believe, act like we do. It is safe and it is the default.
But when someone offers a different perspective, background, etc. and considering if they are a “good fit” , ask:
When is being different bad and when it is just “different”?
What is the result that we need and are their different paths to get there?
● when someone raises an issue that causes discomfort, the response is to blame the person for raising the issue rather than to look at the issue which is actually causing the problem
● emphasis on being polite
● equating the raising of difficult issues with being impolite, rude, or out of line
● making a mistake is confused with being a mistake, doing wrong with being wrong
Ways being ‘different’ can be equated with being ‘bad’ on teams
● those with strong documentation and writing skills are more highly valued, even in organizations where ability to relate to others is key to the mission antidotes
● little time, energy, or money put into reflection or identifying lessons learned that can improve practice, in other words little or no learning from mistakes
● requiring people to think in a linear fashion and ignoring or invalidating those who think in other ways
● impatience with any thinking that does not appear logical to those with power
Ways being ‘different’ can be equated with being ‘bad’ on teams
● continued sense of urgency that makes it difficult to take time to be inclusive, encourage democratic and/or thoughtful decision-making, to think long-term, to consider consequences
● frequently results in sacrificing potential allies for quick or highly visible results, for example sacrificing interests of communities of color in order to win victories for white people (seen as default or norm community)
● little, if any, value around sharing power
● power seen as limited, only so much to go around
● reinforced by funding proposals which promise too much work for too little money and by funders who expect too much for too little
Ways this shows up in leadership
Pulse Check
Where do you see your team or orgs reflected in the past two slides?
What is your organization losing by not doing this work?
How do you support a culture of inclusion?
● Understand that discomfort is at the root of all growth and learning
● Welcome discomfort as much as you can
● Create opportunities for staff and leadership to be uncomfortable together
● Deepen your political analysis of racism and oppression so you have a strong understanding of how your personal experience and feelings fit into a larger picture
● Don't take everything personally
● Understand the link between defensiveness and fear (of losing power, losing face, losing comfort, losing privilege)
Get uncomfortable
● Takes time to make sure that your staff work and efforts are appreciated
● Develop a learning organization, where it is expected that everyone will make mistakes and those mistakes offer opportunities for learning
● Cultivate leadership which understands that things take longer than anyone expects
Develop a culture of appreciation
● Include power sharing in your organization’s values statement
● Discuss what good leadership looks like and make sure people understand that a good leader develops the power and skills of others
● Understand that change is inevitable and challenges to your leadership can be healthy and productive
● Don't require nor expect those who raise hard issues to raise them in ways you find acceptable, especially if you are using the ways in which issues are raised as an excuse not to address the issues being raised
Share Power
Questions?
