With the growing diversity of the global workforce, inclusive work environments have become an important part of organizational success. But statistics also show that diversification alone is not enough; it’s the active focus on an inclusive work culture that creates better results for businesses.
Here are 8 ways that inclusion can benefit your workplace:
1. Effective Communication
Employees in inclusive workplaces tend to have stronger interpersonal bonds, and greater ease communicating with both colleagues and company leaders, even when it comes to difficult topics. This leads to less unresolved conflict and stronger organizational cohesion.
2. Diversity of Thought and Skill
Teams with different ethnicities, ages, genders, and work and learning styles have greater access to diverse skill sets and ways of thinking, and diverse teams are actually 87% better at decision-making. Elevating all voices on your team and ensuring that everyone feels valued, helps harness diversity for greater productivity and problem-solving.
3. Creativity, Innovation, and Productivity
Inclusion means that everyone on the team feels they belong, and because of how the human brain works, a greater level of trust in the workplace generates both more creativity and productivity. Companies with inclusive environments where employees can be themselves without fear of repercussion have 50% higher productivity levels.
4. Increased Bottom Line
Improved team communication and a universal sense of belonging at work allow employees to maximize their potential and work more efficiently. In fact, inclusive workplaces have 27% higher profitability than other companies.
5. Global Collaboration & Team Connection
Valuing all global cultures on your team for the unique strengths they bring to the workplace and to D&I initiatives, creates important leverage for team collaboration. Even though diverse teams might face challenges due to having less shared context, inclusive workplaces foster open communication and mutual empathy that enable collaboration across differences.
6. Customer Satisfaction
Inclusive work cultures foster 39% higher customer satisfaction levels compared to other companies. Employees in inclusive environments are more likely to extend the same interpersonal skills to customers that they see modeled by colleagues and leaders on their team.
7. Attraction of Talent
67% of job seekers consider team diversity an important factor when choosing which companies to work for, so creating an inclusive work culture can draw high-quality candidates who expand your team’s skill set and your company’s capacity to succeed.
8. Employee Wellbeing & Job Longevity
Harvard studies show that there is a 6-to-1 return on investment for employee wellbeing programs, which includes both physical and mental wellness. Employees who work for inclusive companies report a more positive sentiment about employers and a stronger sense of company loyalty, leading inclusive companies to have 22% lower turnover rates. A healthier state of mind for all employees heightens the team’s ability to thrive.
The correlation between inclusive work cultures and better business outcomes is even further supported by data-driven Google studies that revealed the best teams were those characterized by an inclusive mindset, curiosity about others’ ideas, and an overall inclusive climate in the workplace. Making inclusion a primary part of your work culture requires concrete, actionable steps, and it’s a choice that will reap exponential benefits.
Ready to start your inclusion journey? 
