Follower's Role in Maintaining an Inclusive Organizational Culture / Sage Publications.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Obi, Greg, author.

Sage Publications, author, issuing body.

Series:

SAGE skills: Business.

SAGE skills: Business

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Organizational behavior.

Physical Description:

1 online resource

Place of Publication:

[Place of publication not identified] : Sage Publications, 2023.

Summary:

In May 2023, the Ohio State Senate passed Senate Bill 83, which bans diversity, equity, and inclusion training efforts at public colleges in the state, among many other restrictions. The bill passed with a sweeping majority along party lines. That same spring, Anheuser-Busch's share value took an estimated 20% loss, amounting to about 26 billion (Saul, 2023), because of boycotts of its products and dumping of the company shares. Protesters were upset with the company for producing a personalized Bud Light beer can for a transgender social media influencer. These actions and many others highlight the controversy surrounding issues of diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, and accessibility (DEIBA) not just in the United States but indeed around the world. Given these actions, you might wonder why you should bother developing skills to create an inclusive workplace? The simple answer is that it pays to do so! A diverse, inclusive workplace where everyone has a true sense of belonging makes for a happy workplace and leads to organizational profitability. A 2023 report by McKinsey & Company found that organizations with a culture of diversity, equity, and inclusion (the study focused on gender and ethnic leadership) are more likely to beat businesses that are not in terms of financial performance, employee retention, and workplace harmony. This Skill discusses organizational cultures and how they are established as well as the role of leaders and followers in developing and maintaining the organization's culture, especially an inclusive culture. Readers will learn how to assess whether an organization's culture is inclusive and the parameters for measuring such success. Diversity, equity, and inclusion are the deliberate efforts of acknowledging and making those things that make an organization different become the strengths of the organization. This is done through the conscious process of giving each member of the team in an organization or society the ability to contribute to their best ability by removing the barriers that otherwise would have excluded them. Diversity is about recognizing, acknowledging, accepting, and affirming the things that make individuals different, including their age, race, gender, skin color, sexual orientation, physical or mental abilities, education, socioeconomic status, and other characteristics. Equity is not about giving individuals equal opportunities; rather, it means ensuring that all employees are provided with fair and equal opportunities based on their individual needs. Equality is about sameness, which is achieved by giving everyone the same things, but equality only works if everyone has the same starting point. For example, if an organization that desires to go digital buys the same type of brand-new computer for all employees, it has only achieved equality, not equity. If some of the employees are not computer literate, those employees are automatically disadvantaged, even in the face of equality. Equity is about first providing computer literacy training for the few and then buying computers for everyone. Equity is about removing all the barriers that can hinder people's ability to participate, thus ensuring that all can take advantage of the opportunity. It is about everyone getting the support they need. Equality is sameness, whereas equity is about fairness. In creating an equitable workplace, leaders must be bold enough to recognize that not all employees are afforded the same opportunities by nature and social forces. Equity begins with a conscious effort to address the imbalance of opportunities available to them. Inclusion or inclusivity is the appreciation, recognition, and use of the different skills and talents of the entire workforce irrespective of their background or social identity. It is also about equal access, voice, and opportunities for everyone, especially those who belong to traditionally marginalized groups. All human beings have a voice and a say in the affairs of life. However, traditional institutional forces have stifled the voices of those who belong to marginalized groups. The result of this is that societies and organizations have great talents, skills, and knowledge sitting idle and waiting to be tapped. Therefore, for an organization to be successful, it must make a great effort to tap into all the talents and skill sets of its workforce. This starts by building a workforce where everyone is welcome and listened to and their opinions are factored into the organization's decisions. Belongingness and accessibility are about ensuring the physical layout of an office is conducive to all, the images and symbols used do not have any macro- or micro-level aggressive undertones, and the language used is respectful of everyone's feelings and values. Successful organizations, often led by visionary people, have recognized the value of this pool of talent and skill by working toward a well-diversified workplace where equity, inclusion, and belongingness thrive.

Notes:

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.

ISBN:

1-0719-5254-4

9781071952542

OCLC:

1438731331