How to Become More Inclusive at Work: Stop Talking About It and Actually Do Something

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Three weeks ago, I sat in another corporate diversity seminar where executives patted themselves on the back for having a "multicultural potluck lunch." Meanwhile, their Indigenous apprentice was still getting called by the wrong name after six months. That's when I realised most Australian workplaces are doing inclusion theatre, not actual inclusion.

After seventeen years consulting in workplaces from mining sites in Western Australia to finance towers in Sydney, I've seen enough tokenistic nonsense to fill Uluru. Here's what actually works when you want to become more inclusive at work—and why most companies are getting it spectacularly wrong.

The Problem With Most Inclusion Training

Let me be blunt: most workplace inclusion programs are designed by people who've never experienced exclusion. They're sanitised, committee-approved wastes of time that make everyone feel good while changing absolutely nothing.

I remember facilitating a session for a Perth construction company where the site manager proudly announced their "zero tolerance policy" for discrimination. Thirty minutes later, he referred to the female engineer as "the girl from head office." The cognitive dissonance was staggering.

Real inclusion isn't about policies plastered on lunch room walls. It's about fundamentally changing how people interact, communicate, and make decisions. It's messy, uncomfortable, and requires actual effort.

Start With Your Own Blind Spots

Here's something that'll make you squirm: you're probably part of the problem. I certainly was.

For years, I prided myself on being "colour-blind" in my training sessions. Treated everyone exactly the same, I did. Turns out, that's like saying you don't see someone's wheelchair—it ignores their actual experience and needs.

The breakthrough came during a session in Adelaide when a participant with hearing difficulties asked me to slow down. I'd been racing through content, assuming everyone could keep up. That moment taught me that effective communication training isn't just about speaking clearly—it's about adapting to your audience.

Most of us have unconscious biases. The trick isn't pretending they don't exist; it's acknowledging them and actively working against them. I now start every workplace session by admitting my own limitations and asking participants to call me out if I miss something.

The Three Pillars of Workplace Inclusion

After working with hundreds of teams, I've identified three non-negotiable elements that separate genuinely inclusive workplaces from the pretenders:

1. Psychological Safety (The Foundation)

People need to feel safe being themselves. Not some sanitised, corporate version of themselves—their actual selves.

This means creating an environment where someone can mention their same-sex partner without anxiety, where team members can share cultural perspectives without being labelled as "difficult," and where questioning established processes isn't career suicide.

I worked with a Melbourne accounting firm where the partners thought they were inclusive because they hired diversely. But in team meetings, only the loudest voices were heard. The quiet, considered contributors—often from cultures that value thoughtful reflection over quick responses—were consistently overlooked for promotions.

We implemented structured speaking rotations and written input opportunities. Suddenly, brilliant ideas emerged from people who'd been invisible for years. Revenue increased 23% that quarter. Coincidence? I think not.

2. Intentional Representation

Diversity happens when you count heads. Inclusion happens when those heads have a genuine voice in decisions.

Too many organisations stop at hiring quotas. They tick the diversity box but keep the same old power structures intact. It's like inviting someone to dinner then not letting them choose what to eat.

Real representation means having diverse voices in leadership, on project teams, and in decision-making processes. It means actively seeking different perspectives, not just tolerating them when they occasionally surface.

3. Cultural Competence

This is where most Australian workplaces fall flat. We're brilliant at surface-level multiculturalism—we'll celebrate Diwali with samosas and Chinese New Year with red decorations—but we're hopeless at understanding how different cultural backgrounds affect work styles, communication preferences, and decision-making approaches.

I've seen Anglo managers interpret directness as aggression and relationship-building as time-wasting. I've watched them penalise team members for communication styles that differ from the dominant corporate culture.

The solution isn't sensitivity training videos (though they're better than nothing). It's genuine curiosity about how different backgrounds shape professional approaches and actively leveraging those differences as strengths.

Practical Steps That Actually Work

Enough theory. Here's what you can implement Monday morning:

Change Your Meeting Structure Stop letting the loudest person dominate every discussion. Use round-robin formats, anonymous idea submission, and varied communication methods. Some brilliant minds need processing time.

Audit Your Language Remove gendered assumptions from job descriptions and everyday conversations. "Guys" isn't gender-neutral, regardless of what your dad told you. Neither is assuming the nurse is female or the engineer is male.

Create Multiple Pathways for Advancement Not everyone climbs the corporate ladder the same way. Some excel through technical expertise, others through relationship-building, others through innovative thinking. Your promotion criteria should reflect this reality.

Actually Listen to Feedback When someone from an underrepresented group raises concerns, don't immediately get defensive. Managing difficult conversations training teaches us that the first instinct should be curiosity, not justification.

I learned this the hard way during a session with a Darwin government department. A Torres Strait Islander employee mentioned feeling excluded from informal networking. Instead of exploring this, the manager launched into a defensive speech about equal opportunities. The conversation died, and so did any chance of real progress.

The Business Case (Because Someone Always Asks)

Look, inclusion is morally right, but if you need financial justification, here it is: diverse teams consistently outperform homogeneous ones. They're more innovative, make better decisions, and understand broader market segments.

Companies with diverse leadership teams are 33% more likely to see better-than-average profits. Mixed-gender teams make better investment decisions 60% of the time compared to 58% for male-only teams and 54% for female-only teams.

But here's the kicker: these benefits only materialise in truly inclusive environments. Diversity without inclusion is just expensive tokenism.

Common Pitfalls to Avoid

The Diversity Hire Label Stop introducing new team members by highlighting their demographic characteristics. "This is Sarah, our new female engineer" immediately others Sarah and undermines her qualifications. Just introduce Sarah as the brilliant engineer she is.

Treating People as Representatives Don't expect your one Indigenous employee to speak for all Indigenous Australians or your international colleague to explain their entire culture. They're individuals, not ambassadors.

The Inclusion Committee Trap Committees are where good intentions go to die. By all means, have an inclusion strategy group, but don't let it become a substitute for everyday inclusive behaviour from leadership.

Making It Stick

Real change requires consistent, deliberate action. Not grand gestures or annual training sessions—daily micro-choices that signal inclusion matters.

Start small. Change one meeting format. Question one assumption. Listen to one perspective you'd normally dismiss. Build from there.

The best inclusive workplace I've consulted with was a Brisbane manufacturing plant where the floor supervisor, a bloke named Dave, made it his mission to learn something personal about every worker. Not invasive stuff—just enough to see them as whole people. When Ahmed mentioned Ramadan, Dave researched it and adjusted shift schedules accordingly. When Jenny's daughter had autism appointments, he built flexibility into the roster.

Dave didn't attend a single diversity seminar. He just gave a damn about his people.

The Uncomfortable Truth

Here's what nobody wants to admit: becoming more inclusive at work will temporarily make some people uncomfortable. Particularly those who've benefited from the current system.

That's not a bug; it's a feature. Comfort is the enemy of growth.

Some team members will resist. They'll complain about "political correctness" or claim they're "walking on eggshells." Hold firm. The discomfort of change is temporary; the benefits of inclusion are permanent.

Where to Start Tomorrow

Pick one area and commit to improving it this month:

• Review your recruitment practices with fresh eyes
• Examine who speaks most in your meetings and why
• Ask team members what barriers they face (then actually address them)
• Challenge yourself to seek perspectives you don't usually hear

Professional development training often focuses on individual skills, but inclusion is a collective responsibility. It requires everyone to stretch beyond their comfort zones.

Final Thoughts

Inclusion isn't about being perfect. It's about being better than yesterday and committed to improving tomorrow. It's about recognising that our differences aren't obstacles to overcome—they're assets to leverage.

The Australian workplace is changing whether we like it or not. We can either lead that change or be dragged along behind it. I know which I'd prefer.

Stop talking about inclusion and start practising it. Your team, your customers, and your bottom line will thank you for it.

And if you're one of those people thinking "this political correctness has gone too far"—congratulations, you've just identified yourself as part of the problem. Time to do better.