Employers are still feeling the pressure to compete for the best talent in a continuing tight labour market, despite the challenging economic headwinds from the rising cost of living and doing business. This is driving a renewed focus from astute employers, keen on revamping workplace leave policies, office perks and other inclusion initiatives as a clear signal they want to support and retain their people.
As employers look to invest in greater diversity, equity and inclusion policies, the phrase ‘bring your whole self to work’ is often promoted as central to the workplace culture the organisation is trying to foster.
But without an inclusive leadership culture, these policies will fall well short of their potential.
And you don’t have to look far to see the result of employers failing on inclusive leadership, even from those with generous policies and the best intentions of being socially progressive.
Take parental leave policies for instance. Twenty years since being outlawed in Australia, pregnancy and caring discrimination continues to linger (both out in the open and behind closed doors) across employers large and small, and it is acutely felt by new parents pre, during and post parental leave, especially when returning to work. Likewise, for those caring for loved ones with a disability, long term illness and aging relatives.
New data from the University of South Australia, released in August, found that 60 per cent of mothers returning to work after parental leave believe their opinions are often ignored, that they feel excluded, and are given unmanageable workloads. Incredibly, many workplaces still lack basic facilities to support new mothers, with a quarter of those surveyed saying their workplace does not provide appropriate breastfeeding facilities.
Further, the UniSA researchers found that one in five new mothers were refused their requests to work flexible hours or from home. Thirty per cent of pregnant women surveyed said they received no information about their leave entitlements.
Almost a quarter (23 per cent) of women said they felt they needed to hide their pregnant belly at work, and 13 per cent of respondents said they were treated so badly during their pregnancy, leave, or after returning to work, that they had no option but to resign.
Similarly, mothers are not alone, other studies show fathers also report feeling a lack of access and empowerment to be involved in caring duties including utilising flexible work, parental leave and caring policies to contribute to their caring responsibilities because it isn’t culturally acceptable, or safe to do so, in their workplace.
The above results are often symptomatic of a failure of inclusive leadership, not necessarily the policy itself.
It’s fair to say that even those employers who offer great parental leave policies aren’t immune from instances of overt and covert caring discrimination. Employees often report that it’s their relationship with their manager, how understanding and inclusive they are, that makes or breaks the policy intentions.
Whilst workplaces often focus on policy inclusions when designing them, employees are often being left short-changed and let down by leaders ill-equipped and trained to manage the diverse and inclusive needs of their people.
Who are the inclusive leaders?
Inclusive leadership is the foundation of underpinning a workplace culture that cares for its people, its customers and its community.
Inclusive leaders recognise the need for policies, and embrace practices that ensure those announcing a pregnancy, taking leave or returning from leave have the options in place to provide the best possible transition to becoming a working parent.
Inclusive leaders support and enable a workplace culture that encourages all team members to navigate work and life commitments effectively. Inclusive leaders create workplaces where it’s widely understood that there is a zero-tolerance policy to harassment and discrimination of all forms, including against pregnant women, new parents, and anyone with caring responsibilities.
Inclusive leaders will proactively recognise the challenging periods and moments that matter to an employee and pre-empt where and how they may need extra support. These leaders will listen to the needs of employees, and will actively engage to determine what, if any, issues are cropping up that may be creating barriers and address them.
Inclusive leadership is an emerging area, but one that’s essential for meeting the modern demands of the workplace.
But few leaders have these skills. Just five per cent of the 24,000 leadership assessments by consulting firm Korn Ferry resulted in leaders classified as “inclusive” – meaning barely one in 20 leaders have this skill.
This is despite separate research by Harvard Business Review finding that the number one determinant of an “inclusive workplace” is leadership, ahead of an employer’s mission, policies, practices and co-worker behaviours. March 2020 research found that what leaders “say and do” makes up to a 70 per cent difference as to whether an individual reports feeling included or not.
Proactive over reactive
Other recent studies highlight the importance of inclusive leadership for enabling diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) generally across an organisation. Elizabeth Broderick’s recent review of the culture at EY, called following the tragic death of Aishwarya Venkat, highlighted how even in big firms with competitive employee benefit policies and HR resources, people can feel excluded.
One key finding from Broderick’s report into EY was on just how variable leadership was across the firm, with some employees experiencing “exceptional leadership” and others experiencing “sub-optimal leadership”, resulting in each person’s experience being shaped by the “leadership lottery”.
Broderick’s review surveyed 4,500 current and former EY employees across Australia and New Zealand, finding that one in four do, at times, feel excluded. It found that 15 per cent of employees have experienced bullying in the past five years, while ten per cent had experienced bullying, and eight per cent had experienced racism.
Among Broderick’s 27 recommendations is to review key performance indicators to include expectations that all leaders achieve a certain level of people leadership capability, including in leading diverse teams, in order to be eligible for progression.
Broderick also suggests introducing further measures for accountability on staff retention, such as by sharing the cost of excessive turnover back to the service line. Additional recommendations include developing the firm’s approach to leadership through training, coaching and mentoring on people leadership, including ensuring that leaders gain awareness of the impact of their style on those they work with.
As Broderick notes in the EY report, “Leaders at all levels of an organisation establish and influence the culture, but committed and courageous leadership at the top, where power is concentrated, is particularly critical for driving any cultural transformation process.”
We’ve seen at Family Friendly Workplaces how leaders who embrace inclusion become champions for change. They inspire others to follow, and they create workplaces that support the mental health, safety and wellbeing of employees and their families.
Too often, we see employers relying on Employee Assistance Programs to address issues that emerge in the workplace, alongside office perks like free lunches, gym memberships, yoga rooms or one-off office days and initiatives, like the upcoming (and still very valuable) ‘R U OK Day’. While these initiatives do have a place, they often sit on the side of reactionary approaches, and/or put too much onus on the individual to try and sort themselves out.
Employers need to be proactive and see the responsibility they have for their own workplace cultures. They need to focus on ‘prevention’ rather than attempting to cure issues that occur, and that’s where inclusive leadership is so important.
Teaching inclusive leadership
So can inclusive leadership be taught? We believe it can, especially with so much research and analysis now available on how to promote these skills, and given the analysis now available on leaders who have successfully led with this approach.
According to Dr Juliet Bourke from the University of NSW Business School, there are six core pillars of inclusive leadership. Leaders who embody these principles can drive cultural change. They can improve employee engagement and also achieve better business outcomes. Helpfully, these pillars all begin with the letter ‘C’, and include curiosity, cultural intelligence, collaboration, commitment, courage, and cognisance.
This form of leadership intentionally seeks out, listens to, and acts on diverse perspectives. Under this approach, leaders will make equity a workplace priority, challenge bias and behaviour (including language) that lacks inclusivity. They will understand the need to accommodate different needs and communication styles. They will recognise that every individual has varying priorities and responsibilities. They will be aware of the need for workplace flexibility and will actively demonstrate working flexibly themselves.
Achieving all of the above obviously takes a huge effort, an open mind and a continual appetite for learning and self-discovery. But the benefits are enormous for what an inclusive leader can personally achieve, as well as the value they bring to others and their organisations.