How to measure inclusion
In this blog our Culture Specialist Katie Wynn-Jones explores why and how to measure inclusion. Katie shares some of the questions she asks of the data that organisation’s already hold, and why it’s important to go deeper, through observation and listening, to assess just how inclusive a workplace is.
Evidencing progress on inclusion is a hot topic.
Why? New rules and regulation. An issue or an incident may have been brought to your attention, possibly more than once. Perhaps you have witnessed something yourself firsthand. Regulation is evolving, particularly in the financial and professional services sectors, and evidencing progress on inclusion is necessary. By acting now, you will be a step ahead of what’s to come. It is possible to measure inclusion and do it well. It is possible to gather new insights to genuinely inform the intervention that will support the workplace to move in the right direction.
There is debate about the best way to do it. Organisations need to find their own way.
Every organisation is on their own unique inclusion journey and thus their own stage of maturity. A benchmarking exercise may be helpful, but it won’t give a huge amount of value because every organisation is unique. So how can you truly know where you’re headed?
Culture tools available on the market produce dazzling output, but don’t necessarily take you forward.
Graphs and tables alone can’t explain why something is happening or identify the levers that can influence it. You need more than employee survey responses and sentiment analysis. The good news is that new data tools may not even be required. The data you need to understand inclusion already exists, it’s just about knowing where to look and how to read it.
You need to go deeper. You need to look for patterns in the data you already have.
It is possible to go deeper within the workplace without conducting a long or costly investigation. Begin by identifying the barriers that may be preventing inclusion and the practices, both formal and informal, that may inadvertently promote exclusion. The key to this is using qualitative research techniques – systematic ways of looking and listening and immersing in a culture.
When I run inclusion culture audits with clients, I examine the people data available to me. I look at what’s communicated, by who and how often. I conduct site visits, look at what’s on the walls and how the office is set up. I talk to members at all levels from the Exec to the Front Line. Listen to their stories about how people interact, informally and formally, and about what behaviours get rewarded or sanctioned. The stories people tell each other at key moments in the workplace or online while working remotely. I examine the effectiveness of policies by understanding how they are used, by whom, and whether they are applied fairly and consistently.
Underpinning all of this are the agreed focal points of inclusion for my client. I can provide a steer based on what a regulator would expect but our analysis must be useful to the client and reflect their inclusion priorities. Whether that is improving confidence to report conduct issues, tackling bullying, racism, misogyny, or de-biasing hiring and progression process. Whatever I examine must matter and be relevant.
If you would like to talk to Katie about how Half the Sky’s approach to an inclusion culture audit can help you, please email: info@halfthesky.co.uk
In her next blog, Katie will be discussing how to translate findings into meaningful action and plans.
