September 07, 2021

169: From Inclusion to Belonging with Josh Saterman

32 minutes

Organizations are increasingly investing in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion programs. As managers, we can take it a step further to truly create a sense of belonging. In short: Diversity is who is on the team. Equity is a sense of fairness for how the team functions. Inclusion is whether everyone is invited to engage. But Belonging is the eng game - it’s the experience our team members feel when DEI is working.

Today’s guest is Josh Saterman. Josh is the CEO and co-founder of Saterman Connect. Saterman Connect supports organizations facing culture evolution by empowering leaders to unlock the power of their people to unleash their full business potential. Saterman Connect specializes in leadership development, professional coaching, communication strategies and always has a lens that's focused on diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. Josh was a senior executive in the world of retail holding several different leadership positions before launching Saterman Connect in 2019.

We talk about moving beyond diversity, equity and inclusion to belonging - why we need to add this additional concept and how managers can truly cultivate belonging in their teams.

Josh has offered to hold a special 1:1 Get Connected Experience for members of the Modern manager. This is an exclusive event where you will join other members, and myself, for a facilitated session that offers the opportunity to network, interact, and explore your dimensions of diversity, all in a fun and engaging 60-min program. This will happen on September 23rd, 2021 at 5pm Eastern. To attend the event, become a member of the Modern Manager community.

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Read the related blog article: Why DEI Is Now DEIB (And What Managers Need To Do About It)

KEEP UP WITH JOSH

Website: www.SatermanConnect.com

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/joshsaterman/

Instagram: @satermaconnect

Key Takeaways:

DEI practices should always lead to a sense of belonging (DEIB).

Belonging is feeling like you can show up as your full self and share your unique voice. It is built by an environment of trust and listening.

Employees who feel belonging feel like they are co-creators of the workplace experience rather than just passengers along for the ride. The organization or culture feels like it represents them.

To empower your team to speak up, create diversity councils or forums to regularly discuss how to create a more inclusive workplace (policies, procedures, norms, etc).

Talk about issues of diversity, equity and inclusion by sharing stories rather than ideologies. This allows people from opposing viewpoints to hear each other’s perspectives and develop empathy.

Don’t take feedback personally or employees won’t want to speak up. Thank them for the input and reflect on what you can learn from it.

Cultivating a growth mindset environment will encourage everyone (including managers) to share, listen, learn, and change.

Do your own research about your employee’s cultural background on Google without asking them to educate you.

Understand that each employee relates to their culture as an individual. When they ask for time off for a cultural reason, have a conversation to learn more about why that day is significant to them.

Everyone has a story to share. Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging is an issue that affects us all and includes all of us feeling like we truly belong.

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