How inclusive are you? 3 tips to improve inclusivity

Organisations are starting to realise the many benefits of having a diverse workforce. However, simply throwing a mix of people together doesn’t guarantee high performance, it requires inclusive leadership – leadership that assures that all team members feel they are treated respectfully and fairly, are valued and sense that they belong, and are confident and inspired.

Harvard Business Review research shows that putting inclusive leadership into practice directly enhances performance. 

Teams with inclusive leaders are: 

17% more likely to report that they are high performing. 

20% more likely to say they make high-quality decisions.

29% more likely to report behaving collaboratively. 

10% improvement in perceptions of inclusion increases work attendance by almost 1 day a year per employee, reducing the cost of absenteeism.

I think you would agree that these are impressive statistics! But how do you ensure that you are being inclusive?

Netwomen.co has an inclusive leadership program where we explore intersectionality, inclusion and equality in a non-judgmental safe space.

We provide support for building increased awareness, critical thinking, and application of inclusive leadership.

Before you join our next cycle of the exciting Inclusive leadership program, here are some tips to get you started on making sure you are being inclusive.

  1. Know when to ask vs when to tell

Open-ended questions that start with “what” or “how” are key to getting people to think for themselves.  Consider this simple question – “what do you want?”. This is so powerful and it will let them know that you value them.

  1. Practice Active Listening

You will be surprised what you hear. You don’t need to jump in with answers to assert leadership all the time. Be curious to learn from them.  Repeat with empathy what they have explained to you and they will open up and often tell you more. This also allows their creativity to flourish because they feel appreciated therefore will be more inclined to come up with inspiring ideas!

3. Promote Self-Discovery Opportunities. 

Always encourage this. Noticed a course or event that is relevant to what they do?  Let them know that you want to provide it for them. Have they seen a course/event that they want to do to progress their skills? Provide it for them. People create barriers in their minds that they do not know what to do, or are so overwhelmed that they see no path to success.  They accept the current reality believing it is the best they can do. Challenge them to come up with their own solutions. Encourage them with, “I know your idea is better than mine”. Offering netwomen coaching will help them with this where we address limiting self beliefs. You really can’t put a price on allowing people within your workforce to become their best selves. 

Find these tips 

helpful? In our Inclusive Leadership Program, We teach these tools and more. To learn more about our program and how to get involved, click here: 


Book a call with Pinky here

Pinky Ghadiali

Pinky Ghadiali

Want to chat? hello@bypinky.com. If you want to Create your Killer Mindset click here to book a free 30-minute discovery session online.

Navigating Imposter Syndrome

Imposter Syndrome is a pervasive phenomenon characterised by persistent self-doubt, a sense of intellectual fraudulence, and the fear of being exposed as a “fraud,” despite

Read More »