Inclusion at Work

In private, many leaders share the same underlying concerns: Is DEI at odds with merit? Are we lowering our standards to hit a quota? How do we handle the "woke" labels and internal pushback?

In this episode of the Inclusion at Work Podcast, we sit down with Lily Zheng, strategist and author of Fixing Fairness. We move past the buzzwords to answer the tough, "spicy" questions that conventional DEI training often misses.

What we discuss in this episode:

1. Winning Over the Sceptics: How to show detractors that inclusion can solve their problems too.
2. Universal Benefits: How fixing a problem for one specific group, like sending meeting agendas in advance for accessibility, actually improves the experience for every employee.
3. The Cost of Silence: Why the common practice of avoiding difficult topics creates a backlog of unresolved issues that eventually hurt the business.

Moving Past "Identity Politics": How to stop debating which group to prioritise and start solving the most broken parts of your business processes.

Links:

1. Lily Zheng
2. Fixing Fairness: 4 Tenets to Transform Diversity Backlash into Progress for All

How do you feel about DEI going into 2026?

This year, we are challenging the "doom-and-gloom" narrative by reminding ourselves and others that inclusion is something to be positive and excited about, as well as a proven driver of performance.

In our latest episode, we break down four actionable ‘big ideas’ you can use to kick start your 2026:

1. Communications-First Strategy: Pivoting from compliance-heavy jargon to positive, values-driven messaging that activates the "ambivalent middle."
2. ERGs as High-Performance Teams: Shifting ERGs from informal social groups to structured, accountable units aligned with business goals.
3. Meetings as Culture Drivers: Transforming daily "micro-moments" to improve inclusion while slashing low-value meeting time by up to 32%.
4. AI as a Strategic Partner: Using AI as a "devil’s advocate" to challenge bias and stress-test People & Culture strategies.

Listen now for ideas on how to elevate your 2026 strategy.

Is your organisation considering generational inclusion?

When most of us think about diversity and inclusion, we go to commonly discussed dimensions such as gender, race, sexual orientation, and disability.

But there’s another dimension—one that is often not considered yet is relevant to every person: generation.

The more work we do in this area, the more we realise the huge and unique benefits of  focussing on generational inclusion. 

In this podcast we explore why generational inclusion is so powerful—and so often overlooked. Plus, 3 key questions to reflect on for your whether you should be considering generational inclusion in your workplace.

How can we most effectively kick start DEI culture change in organisations?

In this episode of the Inclusion at Work podcast we explore how we can use meetings as a way to drive broader culture change.

Phil and Kerry explore this question, diving into:

• Why meetings can be a catalyst for culture change
• The importance of psychological safety in meetings
• The myths of inclusive meetings
• What we mean by an inclusive meeting
• How to make meetings more inclusive and effective

Links

• Download: Inclusive and High Performing Teams Model
• Video: Pursuing Cognitive Diversity with Matthew Syed
• Book: The 4 Stages of Psychological Safety by Timothy Clark

Why is it hard to get some leaders onboard with Inclusive Leadership? 

Inclusive Leadership is often misunderstood, resulting in many leaders ignoring or dismissing this powerful driver of high performance. 

During this episode, Kerry Boy and Phil Cross unpack the biggest myths of inclusive leadership including why inclusive leadership ISN’T about the following:

• Being an expert on diversity, equity and inclusion
• Creating harmony amongst your team
• Making slow decisions by committee
• Not having any bias

How do you feel about networking? Have you considered it as not only a driver of personal growth, but also organisational growth?

In this episode we speak to Peggy Renders, Chief Customer Officer at Telstra and discuss the importance of connection in the workplace. She shares insights from Telstra's recent research, Return on Connection, emphasising the impact of strong networks on organisational performance and individual growth.

Show Notes

• Peggy Renders
• Return on Connection
• Quantium Telstra

Does the current conversation around DEI feel confusing, frustrating or overwhelming?

In this episode of the podcast we are joined by Customer Experience lead and DEI chair Sommer Green. Together we explore the current landscape of organisational DEI, unpacking the challenges we are seeing and sharing actionable ways forward.

At their best employee resource groups (ERGs) provide a space for connection, mutual support and career development for their members. They benefit the organisation by driving strategic priorities and help the communities they advocate for by addressing inequity and creating positive change. 

But at their worst, ERGs can become demotivated and negative. They can generate additional and non impactful work for themselves and others, and also create risks through organisational misalignment and agitation for change that might not actually be possible or desirable. 

In this episode Kerry Boys and Phil Cross deep dive into what an effective ERG looks like and how we can ensure they impact our organisations and our teams positively.

Given the talent shortage, how do we get our hiring processes working in the best possible way?

How do we make sure that our hiring processes are inclusive?

How do we ensure that we are giving people a fair and equitable go-to people as part of that process?

In this episode we answer some key questions that we are regularly asked by clients, providing you with learnings that will help you make real change in your organisation.

LINKS:

Find out more about how we can help your organisation with Inclusive Hiring, contact us at [email protected].

PODCAST LINKS:

Website

iTunes

Spotify

Are your learning and development (L&D) efforts having the impact you’d like?

In this episode of the Inclusion At Work podcast we are lucky to be joined by Tom Bailey, Head of Capability at Blackmores Group.

Together we explore the question, "How do we maximise the effectiveness of our L&D?".

During our chat we dive deep into:

• The challenge from the perspective of L&D professionals
• The question of value and motivation for participants
• Principles for effective L&D
• Some real world examples from Tom’s experience putting this into practice
• The link between L&D and DEI