Insight is the virtual newsletter for Schneider-Ross, the global diversity consultancy where I am Director for Applied Diversity and Inclusive Leadership.

The newletter can be accessed here.

Hopefully you will find something interesting and informative. There's a bit of a theme around inclusion in this edition which we know is a huge issue for many organisations at the moment. Inclusion and Inclusive Leadership is the mainstay of much of our work and we are delighted to be able to share with you an interview with Debbie Laybourn, Group Head of Diversity and Inclusion at Vodafone.

This edition also showcases our new Inclusive Leadership Feedback Tool^TM, our growing role in India and shares our thoughts on elite organisations who are increasingly using inclusion as a means of leveraging better business outcomes.

I look forward to hearing from you with your comments and feedback. You can contact me here.

Applying a Diversity Lens to Improve Business Performance

The Business Excellence Model is a tool many organisations use to assess the strengths and weaknesses of their business. It looks at both the results being achieved and how the organisation is delivering those results (enablers) see below.

I’ve found that applying a diversity and inclusion lens through this model can be helpful in identifying priorities for action. The version of the model shown below was developed with leaders of a financial services business in India. It helped to condense their business arguments and structure debate about diversity-related changes that would benefit the business. Clearly, this example is high level and for the whole business. Individual units then drill down into an assessment which is more specific to their unique role.

I find it really helpful to start with the results needed from the customer’s standpoint and work backwards (to the left). That way, diversity-related investment in people and processes is aligned with business priorities.

Whatever business model your organisation has – this way of thinking should be helpful.

Interested in more discussion about this?

Contact me here