Creating
Inclusion Strategies
Presented by Desiree Adaway of
The Adaway Group

Desiree Adaway
Founder, The Adaway Group
desiree@desireeadaway.com
Bridgett Colling
Director of Content Strategy, See3
bcolling@see3.com

The Adaway Group
The Adaway Group provides you with the tools and support you need to help your
organization adapt and thrive within periods of change.
■ Select specific resources to help you get your project or program launched more quickly and
efficiently
■ Increase employee retention by helping teams see the connections among their talents, actions and
missions
■ Identify and invest in the parts of your organization that are working well so you can grow your areas
of excellence
■ Lay the groundwork for future initiatives by clarifying core mission priorities and honing your
organization’s ability to pivot and adapt to emerging opportunities and challenges
■ Prepare your people to manage difficult individuals or situations

See3 is the digital agency for do-gooders.
We work with nonprofits and social causes, activating people to change
the world. We develop videos, websites and digital strategies to deliver
on goals like fundraising, advocacy, awareness, recruitment and more.

Terminology

Diversity
The wide range of national, ethnic, racial and other backgrounds of U.
S. residents and immigrants as social groupings, co-existing in
American culture. The term is often used to include aspects of race,
ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, class and much more. The term
simply describes the presence of individuals from various backgrounds
and/or with various identities.

Inclusion
Authentically brings the perspectives and contributions of all people to
the table, equitably distributes power, and incorporates their needs,
assets and perspectives into the design and implementation of
processes, policies, activities, and decision-making.

What drives people out the door?
“It is typically NOT the headline grabbing incidents that drive most workers,
people of color or LGBT folks out the door. Research shows that the last straw is
typically just another slight after an extended period of enduring daily micro-
insults against them.”
- Giving Notice, 2007

Different types of diversity

Diversity
Recruitment Goals

Organization wants:
● To hire a diverse and qualified staff
● Fill their talent pipeline
● Meet an organizational and societal goal
● Make their organization better by offering skills, perspectives that
strengthen the organization

Candidate wants:
● A job that uses their skills and offers opportunities to learn and grow
● Open commitment to diversity- leadership, coalitions/stakeholders,
staffing
● Subtle cues that the organization understands diversity and inclusion-
business case, statements, etc.

The
“Good Fit/Culture”
Question

Accept that it is natural behavior to hire candidates that look,
believe, act like we do. It is safe and it is the default.
But when someone offers a different perspective, background,
etc. and considering if they are a “good fit” , ask:
When is being different bad and when it is just “different”?
What is the result that we need and are their different
paths to get there?

● when someone raises an issue that causes discomfort, the response is to blame the
person for raising the issue rather than to look at the issue which is actually causing the
problem
● emphasis on being polite
● equating the raising of difficult issues with being impolite, rude, or out of line
● making a mistake is confused with being a mistake, doing wrong with being wrong
Ways being ‘different’ can be
equated with being ‘bad’ on teams

● those with strong documentation and writing skills are more highly valued, even in
organizations where ability to relate to others is key to the mission antidotes
● little time, energy, or money put into reflection or identifying lessons learned that can
improve practice, in other words little or no learning from mistakes
● requiring people to think in a linear fashion and ignoring or invalidating those who
think in other ways
● impatience with any thinking that does not appear logical to those with power
Ways being ‘different’ can be
equated with being ‘bad’ on teams

● continued sense of urgency that makes it difficult to take time to be inclusive,
encourage democratic and/or thoughtful decision-making, to think long-term, to
consider consequences
● frequently results in sacrificing potential allies for quick or highly visible results, for
example sacrificing interests of communities of color in order to win victories for white
people (seen as default or norm community)
● little, if any, value around sharing power
● power seen as limited, only so much to go around
● reinforced by funding proposals which promise too much work for too little money
and by funders who expect too much for too little
Ways this shows up in leadership

Pulse Check
Where do you see your team or orgs reflected in
the past two slides?
What is your organization losing by not doing this
work?

How do you support a
culture of inclusion?

● Understand that discomfort is at the root of all growth and learning
● Welcome discomfort as much as you can
● Create opportunities for staff and leadership to be uncomfortable together
● Deepen your political analysis of racism and oppression so you have a
strong understanding of how your personal experience and feelings fit into
a larger picture
● Don't take everything personally
● Understand the link between defensiveness and fear (of losing power,
losing face, losing comfort, losing privilege)
Get uncomfortable

● Takes time to make sure that your staff work and efforts are
appreciated
● Develop a learning organization, where it is expected that
everyone will make mistakes and those mistakes offer
opportunities for learning
● Cultivate leadership which understands that things take longer
than anyone expects
Develop a culture of appreciation

● Include power sharing in your organization’s values statement
● Discuss what good leadership looks like and make sure people
understand that a good leader develops the power and skills of
others
● Understand that change is inevitable and challenges to your
leadership can be healthy and productive
● Don't require nor expect those who raise hard issues to raise
them in ways you find acceptable, especially if you are using the
ways in which issues are raised as an excuse not to address the
issues being raised
Share Power

Questions?

Thank you!
Desiree Adaway
The Adaway Group
desiree@desireeadaway.com
Bridgett Colling
See3 Communications
bcolling@see3.com