Too often, inclusion in the workplace is reactive.
We respond to problems after they’ve arisen, whether it's something small, like an employee requesting an adjustment to their workspace, or something much larger, like a discrimination lawsuit. But reactive inclusion can often end up deepening exclusion, especially for those who already face discrimination in the workplace as a result of systemic and historic injustices.
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As a brown disabled man, my experiences of exclusion started when I began compulsory education and continue even now as I find myself as CEO of Diversity and Ability, an equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) consultancy led by and for disabled people. Even within the EDI sector, people of colour and neurodiverse people are expected to carry more than our peers owing to colonial structures.
We navigate inaccessible environments, brush off microaggressions and challenge exclusionary attitudes. We spend our time at work carrying the same mental load required of us in every aspect of our lives; educating others about the barriers we’re facing, and fighting to be included. This mental load means that when we do face barriers, we don’t feel comfortable sharing them, and in that space we’re at risk.
Here’s how we can ensure an anticipatory welcome for everyone.
Anticipate
Build your systems with diversity and inclusion in mind. This starts from recruitment: are your job descriptions presented with neurodiverse candidates in mind? If your only adjustment is adding a disclaimer at the bottom of your job descriptions that you welcome diverse applicants, you’re not doing enough.
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Carefully analyse the language you use, the imagery you choose, and the methods through which you assess candidates. Using clear and inclusive communication and accessible recruitment measures doesn’t just help you attract diverse talent, it helps you retain it.
Demonstrate
Inclusion isn’t just down to your HR, EDI or culture teams; an anticipatory welcome can’t happen without leadership buy-in. Ensure leaders visibly champion diversity and inclusion by making it a core responsibility of their roles. Modelling the right behaviours is crucial, whether it’s demonstrating inclusive communication practices, advocating for the use of assistive technology and tools or addressing instances of racism and ableism.
When leaders show their commitment to listening to – and learning from – the experiences of black and brown disabled and neurodiverse people, they set a tone of inclusion for the whole organisation.
Recalibrate
Inclusion doesn’t have a final destination; making someone feel welcomed is a consistent effort. It’s impossible to get everything right all the time, but it is possible to make it easy and comfortable for our employees to tell us when we get things wrong. Make sure you are actively seeking feedback, not just passively receiving it.
Read more: Make D&I about changing organisations not individuals, say experts
Develop mechanisms so you can regularly reach out to your employees – both in teams, and individually – to ask for their input on workplace practices. Use diverse and accessible methods for feedback collecting to account for the diversity of thought and communication styles within your organisation. Otherwise, you’ll only hear from those who feel safe enough to share.
Recognise what a gift it is for your employees to give you feedback about how you could help them thrive at work. Reward them for their time, effort and honesty by communicating openly about how concerns are being addressed.
Moving from a reactive stance to one of anticipatory inclusion, we create workplaces where everyone can thrive. For black and brown neurodiverse employees, this change can transform a sense of exclusion into a sense of belonging.
By Atif Choudhury, co-founder and CEO of Diversity and Ability