The evolving role of inclusion

Advocating for inclusion has gained significant ground in recent years but leaders have grappled with pressures on why inclusion is important. What does it truly mean to be inclusive? Do inclusion efforts affect business performance, resilience and long-term value, or is framing it as a business case the wrong argument? Are there other goals we should be considering?

These are just some of the questions debated at London Business School’s recent Think Ahead ‘Should business be inclusive?’ as panellists from the world of academia and business delved into how inclusion shows up in financial outcomes, decision making and leadership behaviours.

Joining the discussion were Kathleen O’Connor, Clinical Professor of Organisational Behaviour and Faculty Director, Executive Education at LBS, and LBS alumni Jesper With-Fogstrup (JEMBA2011) and Tokunboh Ishmael (MBA97). Jesper is Group CEO of Moneypenny and Tokunboh, an Impact and ESG Investor/Gender Lens Innovator and Investor, is the Founder and MD of Alitheia Capital. Sadiya Ansari, author and journalist, moderated the discussion.

A poll of our Think Ahead audience revealed that over half (51%) of respondents feel that the strongest argument for prioritising inclusion in business is better quality decisions. An additional 27% believe that inclusion allows businesses to attract and retain talent and a further 22% feel that ethical responsibility is the strongest argument for prioritising inclusion.

Real-world examples referenced during the discussion showed that diversity of perspectives can indeed improve decision making. The example of a business losing sales because an all-male team had decided on impractical changes to feminine hygiene products demonstrates the clear need for businesses to think about diversity of perspectives to better meet the tastes and preferences of their target customers.

It is also clear that inclusion has a vital role to play in attracting and retaining talent because belonging is a fundamental human psychological need. Studies show that when managers use inclusion practices, employees feel a greater sense of belonging which makes them more engaged at work. When people are more engaged at work, they are more likely to show up every day and give 100%. They are more resilient in the face of challenges and consequently deliver more. If employees feel unhappy, they are less productive and, in many cases, simply vote with their feet, which leads to costly recruitment outlays.

Ethical responsibility and good business are not mutually exclusive. Access to market is a key definition of inclusivity because by making products more accessible and more affordable, you open up more access to essential services for people. You also see the benefits in your bottom line. Inclusivity is an investment in creating a business that will be more resilient and more robust. So how do you do it?

Inclusion practices fall into two buckets:

1. processes and procedures

2. culture-driven norms.

You can use processes and procedures to level the playing field when it comes to bringing people into organisations, such as using blind CVs to remove anything that is not predictive of how well people can do a job, such as names, universities, affiliations, addresses, dates.

Culture-driven norms are what a manager does every day to get the best out of people. It’s about listening, creating psychological safety, making people feel that they can speak up. Leaders who make people feel included do commonsense things such as treat employees with respect, solicit ideas, coach employees informally and show gratitude.

Inclusion doesn’t need to be complicated. You don’t need to employ an expert to tell you how to do it. Jesper framed his view of inclusion very simply. What would I do if people came to my house? How would I make them feel comfortable?

By checking in and seeing if people are being treated in the way that we’d like to be treated ourselves, inclusion becomes less of a framework and more a key part of the DNA of your business.

Key takeaways:

• Inclusion can drive performance by opening up markets to more people, which lifts the economy

• In some cases, there’s a bifurcation between the global north and global south in terms of priorities

• Having a broad tent of decision makers provides representation

• When the quest for inclusivity becomes a tick box exercise you run the risk of groups of people not feeling included

• Changing policies to benefit one specific group often improves the lot for everyone, eg flexibility of work, pay structure, ability to be yourself

• Inclusion is about intentionality, listening, devolving decision making and giving people agency

• Culture is key. It’s easier to be attentive and intentional if you’ve created the psychological safety that allows people to speak up. The clearer you are about your culture, the better as it allows you weed out people who don’t want to be part of it.

At the end of the day, making sure that employees feel comfortable means they will want to work for you and will deliver for clients. Maybe the real question is not ‘Should business be inclusive?’ but ‘Why should business not be inclusive?’