At Culture Plus, we understand that diversity and inclusion (D&I) cannot thrive without building strong inclusive leadership capabilities. Just like any cultural shift, implementing a D&I strategy successfully depends on leaders who model and champion inclusive behaviours. When leaders set the tone from the top, organisations can maximise their returns on D&I investments.
Learn about our practical Inclusive Leadership Training.
The Role of Leaders in Driving Inclusion
Despite good intentions, many leaders overestimate their ability to lead inclusively. Research, consistent with the Dunning-Kruger effect, reveals that leaders who are least effective in valuing diversity often overrate their skills. As a result, leaders may believe they are inclusive, but their actions might not align with their intentions.
“Leaders might intend to be inclusive, and even think they are inclusive, but their impact on others might be very different.”
Using Employee Feedback to Enhance Leadership
Employee surveys are a powerful tool for assessing inclusive leadership capabilities. By gathering feedback, organisations can help leaders uncover their strengths and identify areas for improvement. With these insights, leaders can adjust problematic behaviours, leverage their strengths, and address development areas to achieve better outcomes.
Our Approach: Assessing Inclusive Leadership with the 360 Tool
At Culture Plus, we’ve developed a proprietary 360 assessment tool to measure inclusive leadership across six traits and three capability pillars. This comprehensive approach evaluates inclusive behaviours through 27 survey items, helping leaders refine their leadership shadow.
Here’s how our tool assesses inclusive leadership:
Traits of Inclusive Leaders
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Optimism: Maintains a positive view of team members' intentions and competencies, even in challenging situations.
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Curiosity: Actively seeks out diverse perspectives to inform better decision-making.
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Emotional Intelligence: Responds with empathy during personal or work challenges faced by team members.
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Humility: Welcomes constructive feedback and challenges to improve decision-making.
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Flexibility: Accommodates varying schedules and work styles to foster trust and high performance.
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Mindfulness of Bias: Takes proactive steps to manage bias in decisions and team building.
Capability Pillars
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Building a Diverse Team: Leaders actively develop diverse talent pipelines and ensure equity in recruitment and promotions.
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Fostering Interpersonal Safety: Leaders create environments where team members feel safe to share ideas and admit mistakes without fear.
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Integrating Diversity in Business Decisions: Leaders recognise and remove barriers to participation, ensuring equitable contribution in decision-making.
Example Key Leadership Behaviours We Assess
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Actively celebrates diversity and models inclusive behaviours.
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Makes fair, equitable decisions regarding people and performance.
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Encourages and rewards speaking up about workplace issues.
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Educates themselves and their teams on D&I principles.
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Champions flexible working arrangements to challenge traditional leader stereotypes.
Empowering Leaders to Drive Inclusion
With our 360 tool, leaders gain actionable insights to enhance their inclusive leadership skills. This enables them to make meaningful changes, fostering a culture of trust, innovation, and belonging.
Originally posted on LinkedIn
Related Reading:
New Year’s Strategies for Inclusive Leadership
Practical Strategies for Leading Inclusively
The defining traits of inclusive leaders
Inclusive leaders manage these three biases
Inclusive leadership in a hybrid workplace: Does it require any specific considerations?
How to Be an Inclusive Leader: A Practical Guide for Managing Diverse Teams
The importance of psychological safety for diversity and inclusion: How inclusive leaders foster a speak-up culture
Assess Your Inclusive Leadership Capability
Developing Inclusive Leaders: A Best Practice Approach
Embedding Inclusive Leadership
Learning Solutions:
Diversity and Inclusion Training for Executives
Psychological Safety Training
Inclusive Leadership Training