Not surprisingly, when I asked for blog suggestions what I heard back almost immediately was … [drumroll] …communication. Only this time it was suggested I focus on ‘giving everyone an opportunity to sit at the table’.
My mind immediately shot in at least 3 different directions. Firstly, I remember several personal experiences in the military where everyone had an opportunity to ‘sit at the table’. How did it work? What happened? Was it successful? Secondly, how was that impacted by the organizations process in finding, choosing and securing leaders (this will be featured in the next blog). Thirdly, what about sharing that ‘table information’ throughout the organization (covered in Elite Maui Team Building Newsletter,
Volume 1 Issue 5, Look for Ways to Add Value)
Wait a minute. I can almost hear someone saying, “every table has finite space.” While that is ultimately true, has anyone bothered to figure out just how big the table actually is? The fact of the matter is the size of the table never matters as much as representation at the table.
Diversity can easily be determined by counting the demographic makeup of an organization. However, the inclusion piece is a little more challenging. According to the global management consulting firm McKinsey & Co. Inc. inclusion is defined as the degree to which organizations embrace all employees and enable them to make meaningful contributions.
A better question would be: Is everyone represented at the table? To be clear, the proverbial “table” is where leadership organizes its self by presenting, discussing, and releasing information that will subsequently be shared throughout all levels of the respective organization.
If we can agree: A decision is only as good as the data used to make the decision… Then it would make sense to gather as much data as possible.
On one hand: Not all organizations seek to continuously collect information from their respective workforce.
On the other hand: Organizations that actively seek input from their entire workforce are capable of making better decisions, make appropriate changes to meet the needs of their people and move the organization forward.
I have witnessed firsthand that the benefits of ensuring inclusion can and does positively contribute to the overall organization culture. Hear me out on this one, it will be well worth it…
How did it work? I served in the Air Force as a Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) specialist and the position allowed me to sit in multiple senior leadership meetings. Senior leadership meetings are limited in the size, and consist of the following: Overall Base Commander, a hand full of other commanders and three Air Force members that are not commanders.
The non-commanders in the meeting are: The Senior Enlisted Non-Commissioned Officer, the lead Chaplain and the EEO Officer (or designated Non-Commissioned officer in charge of the EEO Office).
Over and over again while participating in these senior leadership meetings I noticed that the representation (by the other commanders) of different specialties and disciplines are beneficial because it allows for the representatives to offer the perspectives of their group concerning: day-to-day operations, emergencies, inspections, etc. Each member is allowed to openly contribute information to the conversation when and where relevant. I would love to say that senior leadership meetings have representatives that are a demographic representation of our nation. However, that is not always the case. The military does not use a person’s race, religion or other personal characteristics when making assignments.
What happened? During those senior leadership meetings, the EEO Office openly shares information on issues/concerns that may present issues within the workforce population. The reason this can be done with a certain measure of confidence is there are two tools that allow the correct message to be shared and they are:
1) Quality of Life Checks
2) Unit Climate Assessments
In short Quality of Life Checks are performed by EEO personnel conducts a visual assessment of the shopping locations across the base and ensures there are adequate hygiene (haircare, skincare, etc.) products, greeting cards, magazines, etc. that are representative and meets the needs of the base personnel. The EEO specialist would also randomly interview a cross-section of customers by gender/race to get their impression of the items/services being offered and record the information anonymously.
The Unit Climate Assessments are where the EEO personnel conducts an assessment in each workplace. The full blown assessment begins with an online survey that consists of 40 questions designed to evaluate six different areas (Cohesion and Pride, Motivation and Morale, Supervisory Support, etc.). It is offered to everyone and they are encouraged to anonymously evaluate their respective working environment. The follow-up to the online survey is one-on-one interviews. A random sampling of the organization is selected (using race and sex) and individuals are invited to participate on a voluntary basis; all information is captured anonymously.
The findings from the Quality of Life Checks & Unit Climate Assessments collected over a six month period. Further, both Quality of Life Checks & Unit Climate Assessments
they are combined with the noted trends identified and it is provided to Senior Leadership biannually. By capturing and providing the information above for over a decade and a half made three things perfectly clear:
1) Leaders don’t know what they don’t know until they realize they really don’t know it.
2) In general, when people feel they are not being heard... they are personally challenged to perform at their best.
3) When leaders acknowledge their employees concerns, identify actions to address those concerns (as needed) and are willing to keep the communication flowing…the changes made will have more meaning to the employees.
Was it successful? Yes, for the most part. I have seen the process result in positive and not so positive outcomes…as always, it depends on what/how leadership receives, processes and engage with the information. I am speaking from personal experience when I advocate for the importance of everyone having a seat at the table. When leaders that make a concerted effort to cultivate an environment where inclusion is a priority they collectively make better decisions and improve the overall work environment.
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