Another Friday, another reason why every business leader SHOULD be a Feminist!

Yes, it’s that time again. Friday has approached and here at Wellbeing with Cari, we are counting down our top 10 reasons why every business leader SHOULD be a feminist!

Firstly, what is Feminism?

1. You do not have to be a woman to be a Feminist
2. Feminism is not about elevating women above men
3. Feminism is a movement that is in favour of equality and inclusiveness
4. If every organisation is run by a Feminist, it doesn’t necessarily mean that we have to change the current leadership – maybe just their thinking

No. 2 – Feminist Leaders do not decide what is or is not offensive to others

I want to be an open and compassionate boss, but is it really for me to decide what offends you?

I know from experience that there may be a big kick back from men who are fed up with being called ‘pale, male and stale’ – just to contextualise that, the words ‘pale’ and ‘male’ are simply not offensive (unless the sunlamp has failed to deliver on a sufficiently orange glow for you), and the word ‘stale’ while it may be annoying, it is not anti-male nor offensive – I mean, I’ve been called way worse than that, just because I’m a woman, and let’s not go into all the other offensive things people have to put up with being called, just for being themselves. I was struck by Lewis Hamilton’s comment, when asked about racism. He threw the question back at the white interviewer and asked “how often do you have to think about the colour of your skin? I think about it every time I step outside my front door.”

So guys, let’s get some perspective, yeah?

And while we are doing that, we have a good chance of making the world a better place for everyone!

Organisations MUST ensure their D&I strategies go beyond legal compliance and strive for better inclusion for ALL employees

Promoting and supporting diversity in the workplace is an important aspect of good people management – it’s about valuing everyone in the organisation as an individual. However, to reap the benefits of a diverse workforce it’s vital to have an inclusive environment where everyone feels able to participate and achieve their potential. While UK legislation – covering age, disability, race, religion, sex and sexual orientation among others – sets minimum standards, an effective diversity and inclusion strategy goes beyond legal compliance and seeks to add value to an organisation, contributing to employee wellbeing and engagement.

An annual report conducted by Jobvite (Job Seeker Nation Report 2021) interviewed 1500 workers across the UK, discovering enlightening insights into the mindset of today’s workers. According to the report, despite two-thirds of workers believing it to be harder to secure a job in 2021 than previous years due to the pandemic, the morality of diversity within the workplace would still persuade over 40% to turn down a role if the inclusion and diversity within the organisation was lacking.

This report represents the importance of exemplary D&I strategies by employers, perhaps this is making you want to reconsider your current D&I strategy? Below, I have outlined 7 best practices for improving company culture.

7 best practices for improving company culture:

  1. Establish a sense of belonging for EVERYONE – In order for an individual to offer the best of their abilities in a role, they must have a connection to an organisation or group of people within that organisation that makes them feel comfortable, that they can be themselves around. If an individual is comfortable and supported within their job, they are more likely to have greater engagement and creativity in the workplace.
  2. Empathetic leadership is key – Diversity and inclusion are often treated as a single initiative owned exclusively by HR. But for real change to happen, every individual leader needs to buy into the value of belonging — both intellectually and emotionally. Only when the entire organisational body steps up to own diversity and inclusion will a company’s D&I practices thrive.
  3. A top-down approach isn’t enough – Every employee must view clearly their role in the company culture. This means identifying the differences in employee experience and values across the organisation, so that change can be made relevant to every single member of the organisation. Only when this happens, can lasting change impact the culture of the business.
  4. Quotas don’t automate inclusion – Hiring goals may boost diversity number, however, this won’t automatically create an inclusive business culture. Too often, leaders view the task of sending out job offers to a diverse range of individuals as sufficient in their D&I strategy, this is not enough! The employee experience goes far beyond an offer letter. To retain and nurture top talent, it’s critical to take an honest look at the end-to-end employee experience, with an eye toward creating conditions that promote inclusion on a daily basis and designing ways to measure the impact.
  5. Inclusion is ongoing – not one-off training – It isn’t enough to host an annual diversity and inclusion workshop, employers need to do more to teach their employees what it means to be inclusive. What we need are employees being able to identify key moments in which to learn new habits to boost inclusivity, once these habits are put into action in an environment that supports honest conversations, real change becomes possible.
  6. Forget ‘fit’ and focus on helping individuals thrive – Unfortunately norms, power structures and inequalities rife within society become embedded into organisations and their culture. What we see frequently is a culture in which individuals are hired because they ‘fit’ a particular criteria for the role advertised, however, this restricts other capable individuals from presenting their strengths and what they could offer to the role and the business as a whole. Creating a culture where every individual can contribute their full potential requires investigating the systems and processes in your organization to uncover sore spots and blind spots, and then finding ways to reimagine them.
  7. Consider your brand – Lastly, as an organisation you must consider whether the products and services you are putting out into the world are reflecting your values, and perhaps, your biases. What is your brand saying about who you are as a culture? Are there any experiences being left out or misunderstood? The image you are presenting to the public, probably positive, must be replicated in the internal workings of your organisation. Simply put, if you’re presenting yourself as a diverse and inclusive brand – you must abide by this in everything you do!

With all of this in mind – should you be reassessing your D&I strategy?

Until next time…

That concludes No.2 of the reasons why every leader SHOULD be a Feminist… our next blog in the series will be published on the 23/04/21!