All you need to know about Inclusive Leadership

PAUL NYAUSARU AND CHIEDZA KADARE

This week we turn to another form of leadership which all leaders can consider trying. This is a form of leadership that is sensitive to the needs and capabilities of others — Inclusive leadership.

Inclusive leadership is all about actively encouraging communication and collaboration with every member of the team when making decisions and solving problems.

A diverse team provides a wealth of knowledge and experience from which inclusive leaders tap from every team member’s perspective to ensure successful accomplishment of organisational goals.

Inclusive leaders are aware of their weaknesses and they counteract them by listening to and taking into consideration the views of team members such as employees, peers, direct reports, colleagues and collaborators.

These leaders are effective and confident such that they would not let their egos get in the way of working collectively with their team.

Ingredients of inclusive leadership

λ Be a Good Communicator

Effective leaders need to be able to communicate with people from all walks of life. This means using language that everyone can understand and taking cognizant of different cultures and communication styles among the team.

λ Foster Collaboration

Leaders need to be able to work with team members of different abilities. This means being open to different ideas, perspectives, and ways of doing things. Adopting such an attitudes opens up to different perspectives that can add value to the team’s product.

λ Be a Creative problem solver

A good leader also needs to be a problem solver who is creative and includes everyone in solving problems. This means thinking without the box and coming up with solutions that are aggregable to everyone.

λ Foster Commitment

An effective leader is one who is committed to inclusion. This means making a conscious effort to seek out diverse perspectives and including everyone in the decision-making process. This is key in creating an ownership culture within the team where every team member fees valued.

λ Be Courageous

Leaders need to be courageous when it comes to inclusion.

This means being willing to stand up for what’s right, even when it’s not popular. Effective leaders are no yes people who just go with the wind.

λBe Sensitive to Cultural Issues

Leaders need to be aware of and sensitive to different cultures. This means understanding and respecting different customs, traditions, and beliefs.

Without such an understanding team cohesion is affected and this ultimately affects achievement of the organization’s goals and objectives

Paul Nyausaru is an OD Practitioner and leadership coach. For all your OD interventions and leadership development training you can get in touch with him on whatsapp/call +263774062756 or Email pnyausaru@gmail.com

Chiedza Kadare is an OD Practitioner. You can get in touch with her on whatsapp/call +263 77 283 0986 or Email chiedza.kadare@gmail.com