In celebrating the Martin Luther King, Jr holiday, we must remember that while we have come a long way, we still have much work to do.  The journey and efforts of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion is a journey that requires both  educating and a level of understanding.  These two things combined will hopefully lead to acceptance of humanity for who they are.  The good news is that we have made progress in diversifying our organizations, but we still have work to do to ensure people feel included in the workplace.

While often listed as the last component in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, inclusion is what is often missed in organizations.  Inclusion empowers people to be bring their full authentic selves to work to be heard and respected as a valued employee of that organization without fear or repercussions.  Unfortunately, we see and hear many instances in which companies are well represented in terms of diversity, but people are uncomfortable, or in some cases, their voices are forcibly left muted in their organization.  Does this behavior reflect an inclusive work environment? Better asked, how do we create an inclusive environment?

To answer this question, leaders of organizations must be willing and open to hearing their employees voices.  They must be willing to search, discover, and invest in changes.  They must thoughtfully pursue those answers and take action to ensure that inclusivity goes beyond the color of one’s skin or gender.

The answer to their question will require all employees to submit to the fact that the solution will not come from another email from the CEO or mandatory training.  The change will come when we all decide, as employees of an organization, to purposefully and intentionally pursue inclusion.  Will you join me in the pursuit of inclusion?