Inclusivity is more than just a buzzword in today’s business world. When an organization fosters an inclusive culture, it creates a work environment where employees feel valued and empowered to contribute their best work.
This is the main reason a survey from BCG shows that inclusive organizations report 19% higher revenue from innovation than those lacking in diversity. Insights from Deloitte show they’re also twice as likely to meet or exceed financial targets and three times as likely to be high-performing. That’s on top of the benefits inclusive organizations see in areas like employee engagement and retention.
The bottom line is that inclusivity is good for business—but it’s not something that forms on its own. A diverse workplace culture that instills a sense of belonging in its employees requires leaders who prioritize empathy, equity, and respect. While leaders using any style can demonstrate these traits, there are three styles that are particularly well-suited to establishing an inclusive culture: transformational leadership, servant leadership, and collaborative leadership.
Defining traits of inclusive leadership
Inclusive workplace leadership can be broadly defined as a leadership style that creates an environment where all team members feel respected, valued, and empowered to contribute their unique skills and perspectives. This is done by actively fostering diversity in the workplace, building trust between levels of the organization, and ensuring fairness and inclusiveness in decision-making processes.
If you’re curious how leaders can create a more inclusive workplace culture to improve the workplace for employees, you may find it helpful to review some of the common inclusive leadership traits that these individuals typically share, such as:
Empathy and emotional intelligence
Someone who has empathy is able to understand the feelings, perspectives, and experiences of others, even those who have a very different background than their own. Emotional intelligence is a related term, referring to someone’s ability to recognize, understand, and manage their own emotions, as well as to interpret and influence the emotions of others. Between them, these two traits enable inclusive management practices by fostering trust and enabling deeper connections and understanding that lead to more meaningful workplace relationships.
Self-awareness
There are multiple ways that self-awareness contributes to leadership styles that promote diversity and inclusion. For one thing, it’s one of the key ingredients of emotional intelligence, enabling leaders to understand their own emotions, strengths, and weaknesses. People who are self-aware also actively seek feedback and stay open to the input of others, especially as it relates to their personal biases and areas for growth.
Active listening
When leaders practice active listening, this demonstrates respect for their reports and a genuine interest in the perspectives and experiences of others. This is essential for building an inclusive workplace culture, enhancing feelings of belonging across the team. Team members who feel heard are also more likely to trust their leader, making it more likely they’ll contribute their input openly and feel psychologically safe in the workplace.
Transparent decision-making
Inclusive decision-making in teams can be challenging, especially in larger organizations where it isn’t always possible to get input from everyone. Transparency goes a long way when you’re creating equitable workplace practices. Leaders who are transparent communicate openly and honestly with their teams, sharing whatever information they can and explaining their decision-making process with their teams. This builds trust that the decisions leaders make are in service of the greater good, helping to build a more inclusive and psychologically safe workplace environment.
Cultural literacy
Promoting equity in the workplace doesn’t mean creating a homogenous environment. Instead, it’s about recognizing and embracing the unique qualities and perspective that each individual brings to the team. Cultural literacy, also known as cultural intelligence, is what allows a leader to recognize and appreciate these differences, as well as to adapt their communication style and behavior to effectively connect with people from differing backgrounds.
Adaptability
When a leader’s mindset is fixed, this closes them to new ideas or different ways of thinking, limiting their ability to adapt their leadership style to better support workplace diversity or meet the changing needs of an evolving workforce. In contrast, leaders who stay adaptable are able to respond constructively to criticism or feedback, enabling them to better navigate uncertainty and manage change.
Accountability
When leaders hold themselves accountable for their role in building a more inclusive workplace, this sets the tone for the organization. It creates an environment where everyone is encouraged to admit and own up to their own mistakes or biases, in the process fostering a culture where inequities are identified, discussed, and corrected, rather than pushed into the shadows. This makes accountability one of the best practices for leaders to foster workplace inclusion
Growth mindset and continuous learning
Having a growth mindset means that you never consider your learning journey to be finished. Instead, people with this mindset are always striving to improve and expand their skills and knowledge. This is crucial when empowering inclusive work environments because it keeps leaders open to learning more about different perspectives or systemic biases, and makes them willing to adapt their strategy to better meet the needs of a diverse workforce.
3 leadership styles that promote diversity and inclusion
Leaders using any style can employ leadership techniques for an equitable work environment. Even those in more rigid hierarchical structures can lead with integrity and empathy to create a work environment that empowers everyone on their teams to feel like they belong and are valued in the workplace.
With that said, though, there are some leadership styles for inclusion that tend to be especially effective at creating equitable workplace practices. If you’re a leader with the goal of transforming workplace culture through inclusive leadership, here are three leadership styles that will be especially effective for achieving this goal.
1. Transformational leadership
Transformational leadership is among the top leadership strategies for inclusivity because the focus of this style is all about empowering teams and helping to develop individuals to reach their full potential. The focus of transformational leaders is to inspire and motivate their team members to strive toward a shared vision while encouraging continuous growth and innovation. They do this by setting high but achievable expectations that challenge their teams to excel and grow, acting as mentors and coaches as well as managers.
The first step to effectively leading in a transformational style is to articulate a compelling vision that inspires commitment and enthusiasm across the team. They also encourage team members to take creative, innovative approaches to achieve this vision, supporting risk-taking and the input of diverse perspectives to solve problems and push the team toward its goals.
Another key point of transformational leaders is that they’re not only concerned with the success of the business. They are equally invested in the advancement and development of the individuals they lead, showing genuine respect for and interest in their needs and goals. They also don’t exempt themselves from the high standards they set for team members, holding themselves to the same ethics and values they expect employees to adhere to. As a result, they serve as role models as well as mentors, modeling the integrity and commitment they expect from their team.
The personalized support and value-driven decision-making inherent to transformational leadership make it very effective at supporting workplace diversity and inclusion. Feelings of loyalty, trust, and belonging in teams under transformational leaders are high, and they effectively cultivate a culture of open-mindedness, creativity, and innovation that fosters stronger team bonds and makes employees feel more connected to their work and the goals of the organization.
2. Servant leadership
A servant leader prioritizes the well-being and growth of their employees over their own personal ambitions. Their focus is on empowering others, fostering collaboration, and creating a supportive workplace where everyone can thrive. The natural alignment between this approach and values like equity, belonging, and respect puts it among the best styles of leadership for diversity and inclusion.
Some people misunderstand the goals of servant leadership. It doesn’t mean that there are no expectations or standards for workplace behavior. Rather, it means the leader sets these standards based on what will best serve the needs of both the organization and its employees, rather than creating them based on their own preferences. This often drives a higher commitment to upholding those standards because employees know the workplace rules are put in place to ensure their success and that of their company.
Servant leaders exhibit many of the traits highlighted above as ways to lead with empathy and inclusivity in the workplace. This includes a commitment to both their own ongoing growth and that of others, an emphasis on building community and trust bonds across their team, and a high degree of empathy and self-awareness. They actively listen to their team members to identify their needs and adapt their approach to match, proactively elevating marginalized voices and creating an open environment where diverse voices can be heard and valued. This results in higher engagement, a stronger sense of belonging, and more autonomous, empowered employees who are driven to contribute their full talents to the workplace.
3. Collaborative leadership
Under the collaborative leadership style, the emphasis is on teamwork and shared decision making that leverages diverse perspectives and input to achieve collective goals. This is done by promoting mutual respect, open communication, and active involvement from all team members when shaping strategy or making decisions that will impact the entire team.hat
