Do bright minds think alike?
Three experts (TU Delft, government, and the business community) discuss a particular proposition. This time round,
we talk with:
Text Saskia Bonger
When is the workplace diverse and inclusive?
Van Gennip “When people from all kinds of different backgrounds listen to and learn from each other.”
Salvadó “It’s about diversity of thought, meaning that you have various perspectives, ideas, and approaches in your organisation.”
Bharosa “You have diversity if people and ideas are not excluded. We are inclusive when we embrace these differences.”
Why are diversity and inclusion important?
Salvadó “Diverse teams come up with the best solutions. All kinds of diversity contribute in this regard: sex, culture, religion, nationality, age, social class, and neurodiversity, to name just a few.”
Van Gennip “If you work in an environment where you feel at home, then you feel better, perform better, are more creative, and get sick less frequently.”
Bharosa “It’s the right thing to do, and it allows you to choose from a larger pool of people.”
How can organisations communicate the importance of inclusion?
Salvadó “Through inspiring leadership and role models at all levels in the organisations.”
Bharosa “If you make the relationship between your diversity goals and your strategic goals clear, then everyone understands its importance.”
Van Gennip “Include people around you who think differently than you and have different backgrounds.”
Should you make inclusion in the workplace compulsory?
“If you had asked me that same question 30 years ago, my answer would have been ‘no’, arguing that if you’re good, you’d make it anyway. By now, I’ve learned that it doesn’t always work that way. Women’s quota requirements do work. However, not everything is clearly measurable. Managers should take on the responsibility for making their own teams diverse.”
“Making things compulsory doesn’t work. People are naturally inclined to resist change, but if you make its importance clear to them, you can get them on board. You can also call people’s attention to their behaviour, for example by organising inclusive meetings where everyone feels safe and can have their say.”
“This is partly covered by article 1 of the Constitution, which deals with equal treatment. The real question is what exactly you intend to enforce in addition, and how to measure it. I’m not saying you should never resort to enforcement, but I do think we can achieve much more by focusing on the benefits and necessity of diversity.”
‘It starts at the top. HR can define measures and policies to create the right conditions. But ultimately everyone is responsible
for creating an inclusive work environment’
In your experience, which measures work the best?
“The argument ‘We couldn’t find anyone’ is really outdated. Formulate your job vacancy announcement differently, publish it on a different date, present other applications, and formulate an inclusive standard. It can be effective if someone from a different team looks over your shoulder when you’re recruiting, since that person can come from a somewhat different organisational culture. Also make sure you include at least one ‘diversity applicant’ in the process. If they’re not chosen, they may make it through the door next time. And sometimes specify: for this position, we are choosing a woman or a person with a multicultural background.”
“It’s important to have a combination of measures that strengthen each other.You need to set a good example at the top, hire diverse people, show that inclusion is valuable in concrete examples, and make sure you encourage female talents in their career development. You also need to be proactive in creating awareness, working
to encourage changes in behaviour, and pointing out the consequences of people’s behaviour. We have established a programme focused on inclusion, with various types of training and a ‘speak-up day’ which is a series of videos in which people share their personal stories.”
“As a Diversity Officer, I have people around me who speak with people in the Faculty and listen to their issues. Based on their input, we discuss whether we need to update our plan for diversity and inclusion or enter into a two-way dialogue. After all, a plan like this needs to be translated effectively into practical action. So you need to take this plan to the people concerned, and not just have management look at it every now and then.”
‘At the present rate, it’ll take another 125 years before there are as many women as men at the top, let alone persons with a bicultural background. I would therefore argue for a mandatory women’s quota. The time has come to set hard targets’
Who is responsible for getting these sorts of measures off the ground?
“Ultimately, employers are responsible for their own recruitment policy. The Government, however, can set laws and goals, for example on jobs for persons who are disadvantaged on the job market. And the Government can also make it clear to employers what it expects from them.”
“It starts at the top. HR can define measures and policies to create the right conditions, but good leadership remains essential. And ultimately everyone is responsible for creating an inclusive work environment.”
“Within a faculty, the dean is responsible. For TU Delft as a whole, the Rector is responsible.”
How do you change a culture so that everyone can feel at home?
“Of course it takes some time, but that should not serve as an excuse for not changing. You need to have the mindset to want to change things. You can then make agreements with each other on the culture you wish to have and act accordingly.”
“Besides setting a good example from the top, we have defined the behaviours we expect from our employees. Processes and policy need to encourage these instead of frustrating them.”
“By proactively working with each other and creating positive experiences. There are a great many big issues that we can deal with more effectively if we invest more time and energy in better understanding each other.”
What can different sectors learn from each other?
“That definitely needs to happen, as we are facing such major challenges as a society. The best scenario is when organisations sit down and share their challenges. Best practices are inspiring, but the best way to learn from each other is by daring to share stories about things that did not go well at all.”
“Challenges are never the same everywhere, which means that you can never simply copy solutions from others, but you can definitely learn from each other. That an inclusive culture is the best basis applies to all sectors.
As a business community, we could work more effectively with government to create the proper collective conditions, for example by reducing wage differences or improving childcare conditions.”
“There is a kind of diversity industry of people who give training. They connect experiences and can encourage cross pollination. I am in contact with diversity officers at other universities. One of the things we do is discuss how we can best formulate more inclusive job vacancy announcements and job profiles.”
How long will it take before real diversity and inclusion are facts of life?
“At the present rate, it’ll take another 125 years before there are as many women as men at the top, let alone persons with a bicultural background. I would therefore argue for a mandatory women’s quota. The time has come to set hard targets. I do think that much will change over the next decade, also because a large generation of women are almost at the top of their careers. If they too make more inclusive appointments, we will see a large shift in momentum.”
“We should not just sit back and wait. All of us are responsible. We need to make sure that everyone feels heard and appreciated, and feels safe and welcome.
That will greatly accelerate matters, because it then becomes easier to recruit a diverse group of persons, give them appropriate career opportunities, and retain them.”
“These things take time, because we’re talking about major changes. If you force things too quickly, there’s a risk that people will feel they have not been heard and taken into account, and that will generate opposition. You need to really discuss matters with people, and that takes time, but I’m sure they will then realise that diversity and inclusion will only benefit the organisation. So I’m not all that impatient, even though I definitely don’t think we should just sit back and relax. I hope my children will end up living in a much more diverse society.”
Do you want to comment on this article or do you have good habits for diversity and inclusion in the workplace? Mail to [email protected].