Features
A Blueprint for Inclusion
Kellye Whitney, 07-11-2010
The Responsibility Revolution: How the Next Generation of Businesses Will Win by Jeffrey Hollender and Bill Breen features a blueprint for revolutionizing responsible businesses.
The six principles discussed in this plan to build purpose-driven companies capable of meeting 21st-century business challenges can be easily adapted into a blueprint for building inclusive cultures.
1. The mission matters. Inclusive organizations understand that what the company stands for, its purpose and values, is often more important than its products or services with regard to promoting inclusion. According to Hollender and Breen, “When organizations stand for something big — something that truly matters to people — they sharply differentiate themselves from their competitors.”
2. Dare to wear the see-through. Transparency is important for inclusion, and not just because the world has a clear lens — the Internet — through which to see a leader’s every move. Openly admitting that the organization may need work to build the type of inclusive environment that will promote innovation and creativity, and better enable diverse talent to thrive and contribute, can do much to engage leaders and their direct reports and ensure their buy-in and participation in initiatives.
3. The company is a community. Profitable, effective companies work like a community. “Talented people, animated by the community’s sense of purpose, provide the brainpower for generating breakthrough ideas and the firepower for getting them out into the world,” according to Hollender and Breen.
4. Bring consumers inside. Truly inclusive companies “know that ‘no one is as smart as everyone.’” To compete in today’s fast-paced global marketplace, every possible asset, opinion, suggestion and point of view must be leveraged for bottom-line impact. That means no employee with a viable idea, no matter how different, can be ignored. Companies leverage the power of diversity “by giving up control” and being flexible with more traditional management and performance structures.
5. Make it real. A company that wants to be truly inclusive will put that goal at the top of all its various agendas so that its actions align with its declaration of intent.
6. Build a corporate consciousness. No organization can embed inclusion into its culture without first creating a vision of what that means and what it looks like.According to Hollender and Breen, “That requires developing a high degree of clarity about what matters most to the company, then bringing that knowledge to bear on important strategic decisions.” «
– Kellye Whitney
