4 Indicators of DEI for Building an Inclusive Team
Credit: Elevate Event Staff (Culture Con)
Diversity fuels innovation—is your organization tapping into its full potential? According to industry leaders such as a Chief Diversity Strategist and a founder and CEO, the key indicators and approaches to achieving this lie in understanding various facets of diversity. The insights begin by exploring how diversity enhances efficiency and innovation, concluding with the value of promoting non-traditional paths for fresh perspectives. Stay tuned as we walk through four expert insights that reshape the approach to building inclusive teams.
Diversity Enhances Innovation and Efficiency
Embrace Cognitive Diversity for Innovation
Value Varied Work Experiences
Promote Non-Traditional Paths for Fresh Insights
Diversity Enhances Innovation and Efficiency
Innovation is in all the little things we don't spend a lot of time thinking about. Innovation is in the ideas we wouldn't have thought of on our own. Have you ever been working on a project or brainstorming a solution and gotten stuck? You sit for hours, sometimes days, trying to come up with a solution, and then you run it by somebody else with a different perspective, and they immediately offer a solution that, now that they have said it, seems so obvious.
However, it wasn't obvious because, if it was, you would've come up with it already. That's what diversity does for inclusive teams. It shortens research time, it increases efficiency, and it improves overall effectiveness.
Stacey Gordon, Chief Diversity Strategist, Rework Work
Embrace Cognitive Diversity for Innovation
One of the most effective indicators of diversity that I've seen is embracing cognitive diversity—differences in how people think, approach problems, and innovate. It's often an overlooked aspect when we focus primarily on more visible elements like gender or ethnicity, but it plays a critical role in fostering true inclusion.
For example, in one of my previous projects, we intentionally recruited candidates with varied problem-solving styles, from creative thinkers to more analytical ones. At first, the team struggled with differing perspectives, but over time, those differences led to more innovative solutions. In one instance, a team member with an unconventional background in the arts approached a product-development challenge from a completely new angle, leading to a breakthrough that improved both efficiency and customer experience.
The lesson here is to look beyond the obvious markers of diversity and consider how people's unique ways of thinking can contribute to a richer, more innovative team. My advice: foster an environment where diverse perspectives are not only welcomed but actively encouraged to collaborate and create.
Alysha M. Campbell, Founder and CEO, CultureShift HR
Value Varied Work Experiences
Focusing on different perspectives has been crucial to building an inclusive team. For me, diversity is about thinking differently. I've found that you're more likely to find creative solutions when you have a mix of opinions. One of the biggest indicators of a truly inclusive team is when everyone feels safe sharing their ideas, even outside the box.
Hiring people with varied work experiences worked for us. Some of our best ideas have come from people without a legal-funding background. They brought fresh insights that helped us improve processes. Having different life experiences at the table often made us look at challenges from angles we hadn't considered.
Our team has a mix of younger and older employees. That blend brought energy and new ideas from the younger members, while the experienced ones offered long-term perspectives. This mix of experiences helped us improve customer service and innovation by combining fresh approaches and seasoned judgment.
In the end, diversity in thought and experience has made a difference. You don't need a perfect formula to create an inclusive team. It's about inviting different voices, encouraging open dialogue, and valuing contributions from everyone—whether it's the newest intern or the most senior team member.
Jared Stern, Managing Member, Uplift Legal Funding
Promote Non-Traditional Paths for Fresh Insights
As the co-founder of a call center and workspace-solutions company, I've found that diversity of background and thought are key to innovation. Specifically, recruiting and promoting people from non-traditional paths has brought fresh perspectives that boosted our products and revenue.
For example, one of our top developers came from a coding bootcamp, not a prestigious university. Her experience as a self-taught programmer gave her insight into streamlining our web interface so it's more user-friendly for small businesses. That simple tweak increased signups 200% the next quarter.
Likewise, promoting a top performer from our call center to lead product design exposed us to customer pain points we had missed. Coming from an underrepresented background, he championed adding Spanish-language options and more flexible payment plans. Those features opened new markets and grew profits over 30% in two years.
When you tap into the diversity of human experiences in your company and community, you gain a real competitive advantage. An inclusive culture where all voices shape decisions leads to growth, innovation, and a thriving business.
Jake Smith, Workspace Manager, Evo Technologies