An organization’s culture can be the glue that helps bind together diversity and inclusion efforts.
An organization’s culture can be the glue that helps bind together diversity and inclusion efforts. Organizational culture comprises the different beliefs, values, attitudes, priorities, and purposes of businesses as well as the ways that these factors influence employees’ experience and behaviour in the workplace. While no two organizational cultures will be the same, those that are inclusive and defined by a clear purpose often produce impressive financial performances, increase collaboration, cooperation, and innovation, and provide employees with a sense of respect, belonging, and security.
Troubling attitudes and behaviours can result in toxic workplace cultures where hypermasculine competition, illegal conduct, harassment, unreasonable workloads, and combativeness prevail. On the other hand, an inclusive organizational culture that emphasizes gender equality can lead to the elimination of traditional gender roles, create better work-life balance, and enable all genders to bring their authentic selves to the workplace. Notably for women, this might mean fewer instances of microaggression or discrimination, improved career progression, and less pressure to conform; for men, this might mean reduced feelings of the duty to be successful, decreased hypercompetitiveness, improved relationships, and greater ability to balance work and personal responsibilities.
Success Factors for Organizational Culture
- Upholding an inclusive organizational culture is crucial to the success of all other gender equality attributes. Policies, procedures, and programs are insufficient if your organizational culture does not support gender equality.
- Cultivate an intentional, purpose-driven organizational culture that explicitly mentions gender equality and intersects with your business strategy. Organizations that have a strong sense of their purpose and values beyond financial performance have been shown to outperform their competition.
- Proactively manage, develop, and assess your organization’s culture. This is especially important during periods of change, transformation, and growth such as advancing gender equality in the workplace. Key indicators revolve around assessing employee experience and routine interactions, not simply monitoring existing policies or implementing new practices.
- Listen to women and diverse groups at all levels to learn about their workplace experiences and to identify toxic cultural traits. Use findings to create and uphold a more inclusive culture.
- Leaders must set the tone and be held accountable by actively demonstrating, encouraging, and role-modelling an inclusive and respectful culture, engaging with difficult discussions, promoting collaboration and open communication, and transparently evaluating progress.
Good Practices in the Private Sector
ATB has worked to embed gender equality into its company culture through the 11 ATBs – the organization’s values designed to guide action and define expectations for all employees regardless of position or rank. The 11th ATB speaks directly to upholding a company culture that supports and allows employees to be their authentic selves, and also encourages others to be inclusive allies.
ATB supports a positive workplace culture by clearly communicating expectations, and developing a wide range of initiatives designed to help all genders bring their whole selves to work, such as arranging and encouraging the use of flexible work policies, executive sponsorship of ERGs representing marginalized groups, creating a mentorship program for women, anti-racism and unconscious bias training for senior leadership, investing in a senior leadership role for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, and enabling open discussions about intersectionality.
Recommendations for Organizational Culture
- Enable collaboration among different individuals, teams, departments, and levels of hierarchy. A cross-selection of employees can introduce different perspectives to generate creative solutions while making connections between employees.
- Integrate inclusive behaviours into performance management so that actions that promote gender equality are part of how success is defined. Specific metrics in performance reviews for leaders and employees alike can hold everyone accountable for inclusion and gender equality.
- Formal use of language can impact culture. Revise policies, procedures, and other documents to address and prevent stereotypes and bias, even if they have a limited viewership.
- Build the capacity of gender equality champions, change agents, and allies – especially men. Ensure that these individuals have tools, information, and key messages to inspire others to support gender equality efforts and facilitate their participation in external initiatives (e.g. HeForShe, International Gender Champions Pledges).
- Prioritize continuous learning to manage resistance to gender equality and inclusion. Employees may be more willing to embrace new concepts if their environment supports judgement-free questions, vulnerability, and imperfection.
- Spotlight appropriate inclusive actions that everyone can do. Individual actions are more likely to resonate with employees than large, undefined declarations about changing the culture. For example, during company consultations it was noted that a “safe word” to call out instances of bias or unpleasantness could support safe and respectful culture.
- Celebrate and support diversity by giving employees a voice. Discuss lived experiences, create opportunities for employees to share their cultural traditions, encourage Employee Resource Groups (ERGs), set aside space for prayer rooms, etc.
- Establish formal mechanisms for clear and confidential gender-responsive reporting and remediation, and actively communicate them to all employees so they feel comfortable using them if needed.
- Provide leaders, managers, and supervisors with skills and resources, such as development workshops that discuss management and culture, communication and conflict management training, allocating time for leaders to have individual conversations with their team members.
- Be intentional and mindful when organizing formal and informal events, and be responsive to employees’ preferences and different social identities (e.g. networking that occurs during core work hours, team building exercises that do not only involve travel or alcohol).
Good Practices in the Private Sector
CAE has implemented gender equality within its organizational culture by making it a strategic priority. CAE created an Executive Diversity Council comprised of the CEO and senior executives to oversee diversity and inclusion efforts and integration at all levels of the organization, and has a global diversity and inclusion policy which applies to all CAE employees, customers, vendors, suppliers and subcontractors, and contract holders. The policy is explicitly intersectional, ensuring equal employment and advancement opportunity for all individuals, and prohibits harassment as well as retaliation against those who file grievance reports on these grounds.
Scotiabank has been widely recognized for fostering a positive organizational culture driven by its commitment to inclusion and employment equity. Meeting seven times a year, the Inclusion Council is sponsored by Scotiabank’s President and CEO and includes senior members representing each of the major business lines. This established governance framework reinforces clear accountability with established measures of success. The Council focuses on increasing the representation of women in leadership roles and underrepresented groups across the Bank and has developed a global Inclusion Narrative that aligns all employees globally across the organization in upholding an enterprise focus on inclusive and safe workplaces. More than 90 per cent of employees who responded to an employee engagement survey believe Scotiabank is building an inclusive workplace.
Assess your Organization's Culture
- To what extent is your organizational culture aligned with the organization’s approach to gender equality?
- What role do employees play in creating and maintaining an organizational culture that is inclusive and accelerates gender equality?
- How does your organization support its gender equality champions, change agents, and allies in creating and maintaining an organizational culture that is inclusive and accelerates gender equality?
- How does your organization ensure that its culture responds to the needs of all employees with regards to gender equality?
- How does your organization ensure respectful communication and interactions?
- How does your organization ensure the use of gender-responsive language throughout its systems, processes, and documents in order to prevent bias, stereotypes, etc.?
- Does your organization have clear, confidential reporting and remediation mechanisms that are responsive to the needs of different genders?
Resources for Organizational Culture
Name
Source
Type
Target Area
Goals
Target Unit
Summary
Global Compact Network Canada
Guide
Employee Support
This resource provides recommendations and resources specific to the Canadian private sector on forwarding the pursuit of gender equality in the workplace during COVID-19.
All Management
Fortune
Article
Strategy
This article illustrates eight unique ways to measure the effectiveness of a business’s diversity and inclusion programs, beyond hiring and recruitment.
Diversity & Inclusion
Our Watch
Guide
Strategy
This resource was developed to help workplaces collect, review, and respond to data about gender and diversity.
Diversity & Inclusion
Culture Amp
Guide
Implementation
This survey was developed as the result of a collaboration between B Corp Culture Amp and consulting firm Paradigm.
Diversity & Inclusion
International Training Centre of the International Labour Organization (ITCILO)
Tool
Development
The ILO Participatory Gender Audit (PGA) is a tool used to organization’s activities from a gender perspective, verifying its achievements and deficiencies.
Diversity & Inclusion
Reboot Representation
Report
Strategy
Through a survey they found insight on practices that can increase tech gender diversity through philanthropic and CSR investments.
Community Outreach
Harvard Business Review
Article
Implementation
This article discusses how organizations can use an intersectional lens to approach and normalize conversations about mental health in the workplace.
CEO
UN Women
Report
Strategy
This discussion paper provides guidance and insights to help employers prioritize the needs of the victim–survivors in sexual violence, harassment, and discrimination incidents.
CEO
Catalyst
Report
Strategy
This report discusses the action organizations can take to create a safe and fair work environment for all employees beyond policies and training.
CEO
Government of Canada
Guide
Employee Support
This toolis directed to employees as a starting point to analyze what constitutes harassment and determine if a situation might be workplace harassment.
All Employees
McInnis Cooper
Article
Strategy
This resource provides an overview of several provincial and federal occupational, health, and safety laws, human rights laws, employment standards laws, and criminal laws.
CEO
MERCER
Article
Employee Support
This article is based on MERCER’s 2018 “Global Parental Leave Report” and provides an overview of some of its most relevant findings.
All Management
Timewise & Deloitte
Guide
Strategy
This resource summarizes the need for workplace flexibility and identifies the key demands of the manifesto that can help the workplace adapt a flexible workforce.
All Management
The Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion
Toolkit
Development
The Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion created this toolkit to provide practical suggestions and strategies for implementing and managing Employee Resource Groups within companies.
Diversity & Inclusion
Atlantic Ministers Responsible for the Status of Women
Guide
Development
This resource provides a framework for identifying and taking action on a gender diversity strategy for the workplace.
Diversity & Inclusion
Public Services and Procurement Canada
Guide
Employee Support
This resource provides guidance for employees and managers on how to provide a safe, respectful, and inclusive work environment for transgender and gender variant employees.
All Employees
Bentley University Centre for Women and Business
Report
Strategy
This report provides an overview on the topic of men as allies in the advancement of gender equality in the workplace.
Diversity & Inclusion
EY
Strategy
This resource was developed for board members in recognition that culture is a growing priority in the boardroom.
Board of Directors
Deloitte
Report
Development
This research study looks at the perspective of men in order to advance gender equality in leadership.
All Management
HeForShe
Tool
Implementation
The Toolbox provides resources for a “Facilitator” – a male ambassador for the HeForShe program – to start the gender equality discussion among male coworkers.
All Management
Deloitte
Report
Development
This research study looks at the perspective of men in order to advance gender equality in leadership.
All Management
Catalyst
Tool
Implementation
Catalyst listed actions men can take to develop capacities as agents of change and as influential role models to male peers.
All Units
Harvard Business Review
Article
Implementation
This article outlines recommendations to address the lack of inclusion in casual networking events in the workplace or outside business hours.
Human Resources
Catalyst
Tool
Strategy
Catalyst’s research demonstrates that leaders who attempt to implement a more integrated view of diversity, equity, and inclusion are able to establish the foundation for a more innovative and collaborative workforce.
All Management
Accenture
Report
Strategy
In this report, Accenture describes the importance of understanding how employees perceive the level of inclusivity within their organizations.
Diversity & Inclusion
Society for Human Resources Management
Article
Strategy
This resource is aimed at HR professionals and discusses how successful diversity and inclusion requires a workplace culture where everyone is valued and heard.
Diversity & Inclusion
Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion
Toolkit
Implementation
This toolkit provides insight about how to establish a properly structured diversity and inclusion council in an organization.
Diversity & Inclusion
Deloitte
Report
Development
The goal of this resource is to start a conversation about moving from optics to outcomes by sharing best practices from a variety of Canadian businesses to move inclusivity forward.
CEO
Workplace Gender Equality Agency
Article
Implementation
This guide describes what a gender equality policy is, why workplaces should have one, the key characteristics of this policy, and frameworks to measure objectives.
CEO
Catalyst
Report
Development
In this report, Catalyst highlights the importance of developing an inclusive team culture, emphasizing the role of managers in encouraging a collaborative workplace through inclusive leadership practices and behaviour.
All Management
Deloitte
Article
Development
This article was developed to help business leaders close the gap between aspiration and reality in terms of achieving a diverse and inclusive workplace culture.
CEO
