Broad generalizations are great polling fodder. A poll we ran asked 'Do You Believe Women And Men Have Equal Career Opportunity?' and, as expected, a majority of folks sided with 'No.' However, a great number of people also responded 'Yes.' That gave me reason to pause — not as many people voted 'No' as I expected, which must mean there is a lack of awareness out there.
It's time to have that conversation with your whole team, or start with just a few trusted colleagues, and look at how you may be pulling opportunity out from under the feet of a select few, inadvertently, of course. You should ask yourself questions like:
- Are we deliberately inclusive about the events we host?
- Are we deliberately inclusive about the language that we use?
- Do we consider the differences in strategic approach, learning styles, and comfort levels of our team?
- In light of these differences, how do we create a welcoming culture and attract potential rockstars?
- Do we communicate why we've chosen to make intentionally inclusive decisions?
Most often, the culprit of a lack of opportunity is the culture. I repeatedly hear assurances from management that there is zero tolerance for discrimination and everyone here is given equal opportunity. It's more nuanced than legal issues — your team isn't as culturally aware as you envision them to be, and they aren't hearing this important message from you.