ABSTRACT: There is a role for everybody: Engaging the whole workforce (ie critical mass) is key to ensuring success.
Building an inclusive workplace , one where diverse talent can all thrive, is on most organisation's wish list. Leaders are encouraged to adopt inclusive practices, however until all employees acknowledge and accept that they too play a vital role in an inclusive workplace culture, the probability of success will remain elusive.
Research on inclusive leader traits abound, however the critical cohort of employees are often overlooked in mobilising new behaviours which support inclusion at a peer to peer level. Few inclusion initiatives reach the employee level. Yet one's peers often witness discrimination, harassment through everyday sexism, casual racism and disrespectful jokes. Employees can struggle to know what to do. Mckesson (Jan, 2018) a civil rights activist and educator describes the cacophany of all us doing something will actually lead to systemic change - and we can start at the workplace level.
This presentation introduces a model for bystander activism in the form of a four quadrant model (see below) giving rise to options ranging from relatively passive steps through to more proactive steps of role modeling and change advocacy to positively influence culture through to more proactive measures of stepping in (support for the person impacted) to calling out the behaviour with the perpetrator/s..
Each option in the model is outlined together with considerations before action to improve outcomes and at times lower the risk to your own identify and safety. Doing nothing is not an option!
A copy of the presentation explaining the bystander action model in more detail is available by making contact through the contact page HERE
