The influence of leadership is felt in every area of a business, particularly when it comes to defining company culture. Whilst everyone plays a part in building and maintaining a great culture, the inherent value system it runs on always starts with leaders.
This is why it’s crucial in any business for a tone of inclusion to be set right from the top. Leaders and managers must embed an inclusive mindset by example – by showing that they welcome, encourage and celebrate the input of every single member of their teams. After all, is anything more inspiring for an employee than feeling like they’re part of a shared identity – and one that they helped to create?
We asked Wendy Hamson,Commercial Sales Director APAC at Udemy, and Jyo Shukla, Global Head of Client Success at ActiveXchange Australia & NZ, to tell us how they embody the inclusive leadership driving their successful teams.
Wendy Hamson, Commercial Sales Director APAC, Udemy
Hi Wendy, can you summarise the role that leadership plays in creating inclusive cultures?
Leadership is absolutely instrumental: it STARTS with leadership! Whilst everyone contributes to it, the strength and depth of an inclusive culture will dilute if leaders do not set the standards and reinforce them.
A leader is responsible for building and fostering a shared team identity whilst minimising perceived status differences. It’s impossible to establish a thriving inclusive culture if a leader only seeks input and opinions from a select pool of employees, or creates an environment where only certain individuals thrive.
How has your life experience and background shaped your own leadership style?
I entered the workforce back in the late ‘90s when inclusion, diversity and culture were not on the leadership radar. As a Canadian, diversity was prevalent in our community but inclusion was never considered or discussed.
I worked in an all-male environment where I often felt alone and uncomfortable with the various male-focused sales events and locker room banter. I experienced leaders whose behaviours would see them jobless by today’s standards!
With every company I worked for, I would note the behaviours of leaders that lifted teams and provided light to each day. I also watched and learned what not to do from leaders who belittled and ignored staff deemed unworthy of their support.
All of these experiences have formed my approach to leadership. Have I made mistakes? Absolutely. Am I the perfect leader? Definitely not; but, I am clear on my true values, beliefs and who I want to be as a leader.
What are some of your favourite resources that have helped you to become a better leader?
I’ve read a lot of books around leadership, but my favourites are Dare to Lead by Brene Brown; The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni; and Radical Candor by Kim Scott.
I’ve also taken a lot of leadership courses on Udemy as the platform allows me to quickly absorb a particular topic for on-the-fly learning as well as deep immersive learning through videos and assessments.
Lastly, I wish I had realised the importance of a mentor earlier in my career as their guidance and advice is priceless. My peers and mentors have been a huge source of knowledge, allowing me to grow and evolve.
And finally, please share your best advice for navigating difficult conversations around diversity and inclusion?
Courageous conversations are hard! The best advice I’ve taken away was from Brene Brown: “Clear is kind.” As a leader, you HAVE to address any and all issues in order to give the individual, group, team etc. the best chance to grow, evolve and improve.
Jyo Shukla, Global Head of Client Success at ActiveXchange Australia & NZ
Hi Jyo, can you summarise the role that leadership plays in creating inclusive cultures?
The role of leaders is to encourage an environment where everyone thrives and all ideas are welcome, so the natural accountability for promoting an inclusive culture lies with them.
Inclusiveness in your organisation’s culture is not just a check-box, it’s an integral part of a company’s ethos that requires continual and conscious effort for it to be effective.
How has your life experience and background shaped your own leadership style?
My personal experiences have shaped the kind of leader I do and do not want to be. My fundamentals are quite simple: treat people the way you’d like to be treated and create a culture where no one is afraid to table their opinion. Also, working all over the globe with multi-regional and diverse teams has taught me to embrace the uniqueness that people’s differences bring to the table.
I love and live by Simon Sinek’s quote, “Returning from work feeling inspired, safe, fulfilled and grateful is a natural human right to which we are all entitled and not a modern luxury that only a few lucky ones are able to find.”
What are some of your favourite resources that have helped you to become a better leader?
Books (a favourite is Leaders Eat Last by Simon Sinek), online courses (there are a number of online courses on the Harvard University website on leadership, both free and not), and mentoring (both being a mentor and a mentee).
I have to say though, my biggest learnings have come from the people I work with. There is so much to learn from the way people respond to the way you think and act as a leader and my biggest lessons have come from listening and observing my surroundings.
And finally, please share your best advice for navigating difficult conversations around diversity and inclusion?
A couple of tips when addressing uncomfortable or confronting issues in this area are to give people a heads up regarding what the conversation will be about so they can prepare questions ahead of time, and setting a few guidelines. This encourages a healthy flow of conversation.
Generally, there has to be an openness in the conversation, yet a discipline in the way it is conducted. The idea is to encourage everyone to speak with intention and listen with attention.
Leadership is such a multi-faceted role, especially in our far more conscious modern world – a leader’s responsibilities go well beyond simply delegating tasks and motivating teams. So how do the leaders you encounter day to day cultivate an inclusive culture with their own teams?