O
ON TOPIC
LEARNING FROM
ORGANISATIONS
AT
THE VANGUARD
I
OF INCLUSION
ncreasingly, business
leaders are focused on
building organisations
that are not only diverse,
but inclusive. The evidence
correlating diversity with improved
business performance is clear.
Diversity, though it can be hard to
achieve on its own, is just a start — all
colleagues need to feel included in
order to contribute. And building
inclusive workplaces is tricky.
Research by Heidrick & Struggles
among 412 executives across
different regions, functions and
levels of seniority reveals the
breadth of the gap between
corporate effor ts to ensure
employees feel included and
the perceived contribution of
diversity and inclusion (D&I) to
business success.
It also identifies the ‘D&I
vanguard’ — a group of companies
closing this gap — within the
countries surveyed (Australia,
Canada, France, Germany, Mexico,
Spain, the UK and US). Notably, the
companies in the vanguard group
96 // Future Talent
generated a five-year revenue
compound annual growth rate
(CAGR) 62% higher than that of the
other companies in the survey. What
are they doing differently?
Analysis suggests two key
differences. First, these organisations
more often align D&I goals with the
commercial aims of the business
and monitor progress toward these.
Second, they take more formal
and specific steps to build
inclusion and link it to business
strategies.
The more often participating
companies reported taking these
actions “to a large extent”, the more
t hey s a i d t h at D & I wa s a
significant contributor to their
business success.
Why do some
organisations’
diversity and
inclusion efforts
seem to contribute
more significantly to
commercial success
than those of others?
Research by Heidrick
& Struggles reveals
interesting findings.