Belonging – a passing fad or here to stay?
Just what is Belonging and what are the rewards we reap - at work and in life, when we move beyond bias to inclusion and achieve belonging?
The Great Gender and Generation Disconnect, (exacerbated by covid), means more of us are reconsidering our social and psychological contract with work and fewer of us are feeling a strong sense of Belonging in our teams and workplaces. It begs the question, what are the rewards we reap when we move beyond respectful and inclusive environments – to belonging for everyone equally?
Social and Psychological Influences Changing Expectations @ Work
There are 3 factors influencing the importance of Belonging in Australian Workplaces:
1. Inclusive Workplaces have become one of the most important priorities for ANZ Workers (LinkedIn);
2. Kate Jenkins’ Respect @ Work Report was the catalyst for Australia’s updated Sexual Harassment legislation;
3. The new international standard for Psycho Social Wellbeing @ Work is resetting the standard for Wellbeing in the workplace.
Together they highlight an opportunity for companies to capitalise on creating environments where people and business thrive.
Undoubtedly, it will also give those same companies an advantage in attracting their unfair share of high performance talent, whilst increasing business performance and human wellbeing.
The Culture Continuum
All of this got me thinking about what I call “The Culture Continuum” and I’ve overlayed the business & human impacts at 3 points on the continuum: low, neutral and high.
Low Respect: $2.6B in lost productivity and between 25% and 39% of people impacted at a cost of $5K each (Deloitte Access Economics)
Neutral Respect: a host of passive aggressive behaviours impacting customers, staff engagement, productivity and retention (Pearson & Proath; Gabriel, Butts & Sliter, Connelly)
High Respect & Inclusion: creating industry leading performance through innovation, risk reduction and human wellbeing and belonging (McKinsey; DCA)
Belonging: +167% employer promoter score; +56% job performance; -50% job turnover; -75% sick leave and magnified impact for under-represented talent (Betterup)
It’s a clear and compelling picture!
And just one of the reasons the world’s most progressive companies are so focused on creating Better Business – for Belonging for us all.
What is the Belonging Code?
Cracking the Belonging Code and implementing it consistently up, down and across your organisation has been the focus of much research.
As a Leadership and Culture Expert in global multinationals, in my experience it’s the combination of Deloitte and Catalyst’s research which offer a powerful and practical guide to making it a real, rather than theoretical experience.
At a high level, people who experience Belonging @ Work are able to bring their true selves to work and experience a strong sense of community within their team. (Deloitte)
However, the biggest driver of Belonging @ Work, is alignment with your organisation’s purpose AND being valued for your “YOU-nique” Strengths and contributions.
You are valued BECAUSE of your uniqueness, not despite it!
And in my experience that’s quite uncommon.
A Personal Example of “You-niqueness”
Here’s a personal example - in my early HR career I was valued BECAUSE of my unique business background – not DESPITE it.
However, sometimes our strengths are hidden from public view.
Later, after a life experience which would have been just as valuable to my organisation as my earlier YOU-niqueness, it couldn’t be shared because it wasn’t safe to do so.
Not only did I spend time “covering” my identity, but over time, my Belonging suffered too.
Whilst there will always be private and public elements to our workplace identities, the more we can bring our true self and our ‘you-nique value’ to the work we do, the more likely we are to experience Belonging.
What can Leaders DO to Create Belonging @ Work?
The more everyone equally is able to:
contribute the strengths which make them YOU-nique, and
align their personal values with the work they do,
the more they’ll experience Belonging AND Wellbeing @ Work and in Life.
The more leaders take an individual approach to understanding the unique needs of everyone in their team, the more likely they are to create Belonging for everyone equally.
It’s also important for leaders to remember that whilst it’s been valued and valuable to have tools, time off and permission to look after your wellbeing in 2021, leaders have an outsized ability to increase it (or reduce it) - on a daily basis in the conversations they have and the way they choose to have them.
“When people unlock the unique magic, it creates happy people, loyal customers, and true prosperity for all”
Bill McDermott
Belonging is not a Trendy Fad
Belonging’s impact on top and bottom line business results as well as human needs and personal performance, convinces me it isn’t a trendy phase or passing fad.
What is the Belonging Reward for Business and People?
When everyone equally feels like they belong, it becomes safe for them to take risks and contribute their unique strengths and value.
By maximising collective intelligence, leaders create a catalyst for disruptive intelligence – which has never been more critical in our chaotic new normal.
Inclusive Leaders create Better Business for Belonging for us all - by Practicing Inclusion, Leveraging Diversity and Embracing Equity and we’re happy to act as your guide as you Crack the Belonging Code.
