Tolerance and inclusivity in the workplace

Tolerance and Inclusivity: A Moral and Ethical Obligation That is Also Good for Business

Expo 2020 Dubai celebrated Tolerance and Inclusivity as its theme week for the week of 14^th to 20^th November 2021. The theme week was marked by various events that highlighted this very important topic in terms of all its constituent aspects: inter-cultural tolerance, understanding and coexistence, gender equality, and so on. In that context, let us look at the issue of tolerance and inclusivity in business and in the workplace, one of the most important topics in the global business world today.

Beginning with the topic of Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) influenced, inspired and in response to  the Civil Rights movement in the 1960s in the US, it has rightly grown in importance around the world with each passing decade, with ideas and concepts such as  ESG  (for Environment Social Governance) and the like giving it concrete actionable frameworks to implement and actualize.

Why should a business build a diverse, inclusive, and tolerant workplace? The answer in a nutshell is that it is the right thing to do. How and why that is so is because in the first place, it is – or ought to be – the business’s moral obligation as a responsible citizen of the modern world, a world whose values provide the backbone of business opportunity and success.

But beyond just a moral obligation, the second reason is that it is good for business! Numerous research studies from a range of sources from Gallup to Rutgers University and MIT's Sloan School of Management have documented the value of diversity, tolerance and inclusion to business performance and success.

All these studies show that businesses with employees and other stakeholders from different racial, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds function more effectively than more culturally homogeneous ones. And is seen to be more accentuated the larger and more complex a business is. Problem-solving, conflict resolution, and creativity are three areas where diverse workplaces consistently outperform homogeneous ones.

This is also intuitively easy to fathom at two levels. First, diversity of any kind – racial, ethnic, gender, cultural or sexual – increases the pool of talent and the quality of input. The sheer variety of perspectives and attitudes contributes to better problem solving and more creative solutions. Conversely, homogeneity thus bears the opportunity cost of non-access or lower access to these vital inputs. Secondly, given that people are widely acknowledged to be the primary ingredient of business success, it stands to reason that accepting and respecting their cultures and individual values, beliefs and lifestyles brings out the best in them and leads to increased productivity. Conversely, intolerance demotivates talent. And of course, it is major impediment to attracting talent , particularly young talent of today who are increasingly more values-driven and socially aware and conscious in their choices , whether as consumers or as part of the workforce.

Building a Diverse, Tolerant, and Inclusive Workplace

So how do you build a diverse, tolerant, and inclusive workplace for your business ? Here are a few concrete steps and points:

1. It begins at the top. First of all, senior Management must lead by example in their own individual lives and behaviour. That means they must ensure equality and fairness in how they deal with staff irrespective of cultural and individual background and that their own behaviour is beyond reproach. They must hire leaders who hold and realize the importance of these values.
2. Put it in writing. Include diversity, tolerance and inclusion in your mission statement. It needs to be clear to all stakeholders that this matters to your business. Set expectations accordingly to both internal and external stakeholders, including customers and suppliers. Have a vision statement that unites employees under a common business vision and purpose.
3. Audit - and address. Businesses must constantly monitor their staff composition to check for shortfalls or skews in their workplace vis-à-vis the overall population. They must evaluate whether these are merited or not and address any imbalances accordingly
4. Zero tolerance policy. Set up and implement a zero-tolerance policy against discriminatory, insulting, or other culturally insensitive acts and behaviours. And act upon it!
5. Build awareness internally. Inculcate and drive in tolerance and inclusion as important values through both day to day working and formal training
6. Keep an open door. Encourage employees to share feedback, ideas suggestions. Provide them with secure and confidential channels to voice their problems and concerns including to report insensitive, discriminatory, or otherwise inappropriate behaviours.
7. Make it a continuous process and a culture. Tolerance, diversity and inclusion cannot be a timebound It needs to be a continuous and ongoing process, continually improved and adjusted over time, and built into the DNA of the business. Encourage employees to be open minded and to be curious about – and understand - the world and its complex diversities. Again, lead by example!
8. Part of everyday work. Implement policies and programs that make tolerance and inclusion a part of daily office life. From multicultural teams to discussion forums for diverse opinions, and from celebrating diverse festivals to granting culture-specific holidays, let actions speak louder than words!
9. Smart incentive systems. Proactively reward employees for actions that further the values of tolerance and inclusion, for e.g., reward leaders for diversity in their individual team hires.
10. Wise conflict resolution. Conflicts stemming from cultural misunderstanding or miscommunication are common in multicultural organizations. Know how to deal with them knowledgeably and skillfully to bridge the gaps in a transparent and fair manner without punishing or belittling anyone or hurting sentiments

Tolerance and Inclusivity at MBG – and how we can help your business

Diversity, tolerance and inclusivity are core value at MBG Corporate Services – as a successful multinational business, it could not otherwise! We are an Equal Opportunity employer with a deeply ingrained culture of meritocracy and mutual respect.

And we are constantly striving to improve even further. For example, at our UAE offices, we have active plans to increase the number both of Emiratis and of women in our staff. This includes a committed target of having 50% women employees by 2025. The process is well underway, and the share has grown significantly in the last two years alone.

As a leading business consultancy and advisory, we are well placed to help you with your tolerance and inclusivity goal, along with other ESG measures, for your business. Contact us to learn more.