Employees are any company’s most important resource. A well-functioning team that can come up with innovative ideas and put them into practice is priceless. In the past, however, it was common for creativity, intelligence, and perseverance to be outweighed by other aspects. But today, the interest of companies in employing individuals across all groups is growing appreciably.
Expressions such as inclusion, diversity and social responsibility are derived from this. In the Czech Republic and worldwide, it is no longer just about trendy words to spruce up a company’s LinkedIn profile. See what the effort to integrate the widest possible range of human experience into corporate culture looks like in practice.
According to a number of studies, the diversity of work teams has a positive impact on the company’s productivity. If a company is full of people with the same way of thinking and life experiences, it can very easily stagnate. A plurality of opinions prevents groupthink, which can lead to bad decisions.
A diversified team is more flexible and better ready to adapt to changing conditions in the business world. A company is considered inclusive if it actively supports diversity and allows its employees to function without having to hide part of their identity. Inclusion is a huge advantage in terms of recruitment, because greater freedom in the workplace attracts many promising employees.
Diversity and inclusion cannot be underestimated in terms of building brand awareness either. Social responsibility is valued not only by employees but also by potential customers. By resisting an inclusive approach to work, a company can deprive itself of both new talent and potential profits.
One of the leading experts on diversity and inclusion in the Czech Republic is Jana Tikalová, the founder of the OPIM z.s. organization, where she has been actively focusing on this issue for 20 years. Among other things, she works together with the Council of Europe and other international companies. This is what she has to say about why diversity and inclusion are important:
“For the first few years, I dealt with this topic mainly abroad, and when I brought it to the Czech Republic sometime around 2005, people looked at me as though I was a girl from Mars trying to push an agenda that was very distant from us. There were no numbers and metrics that measured why it was important to promote diversity in companies and make sure that employees were part of the whole. It bears fruit, and there are studies that prove this. Since the inception of OPIM, we have been trying to talk about diversity in a broad context. But at that time, the discussion revolved mainly around Roma and refugees. Over the years, I have seen a huge shift, especially in the corporate private sector. Today, we are talking to representatives of companies, for example, about diversity of opinion. But we still have a lot of work to do, locally and globally. If up to 61% of employees in a company hide their identity for fear of discrimination and exclusion (Deloitte, 2019), then this alone should be the impetus for action and at least a mapping of how your employees feel in terms of inclusion. This can be a good springboard.”
Read the rest of the article at CAPEXUS site: https://www.capexus.cz/blog/diverzita-inkluze
