Importance of Communicating Inclusively

Priya Bates

Priya Bates and Advita Patel are committed to and excited about the power and benefit of inclusivity and are working on different fronts to help inform, educate, influence and drive meaningful improvement in society.

Bates and Patel are the co-founders and hosts of the A Leader Like Me: Amplifying Diverse Voices podcast, with the purpose to amplifying the voices of guests who are achieving significantly in their careers to inspire others and bring change to biases many people face. The discussions revolve around diversity and inclusion and focus on stories and motivation.

Bates and Patel are now also the authors of Building a Culture of Inclusivity: Effective Internal Communication For Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, published by Kogan Page.

The book’s mission? Consulting organizational leaders on how to help employees feel important, without the common accompaniment of those employees coming away from the interaction also feeling tokenized.

Bates is the president and owner of Inner Strength Communication and Patel is director of CommsRebel and also the co-host of CalmEdgedRebels podcast.

Advita Patel

Inclusive language at work is likely a relatively, abstract and maybe confusing new mindset for many organizational leaders and managers. Most have also not realized the importance of it and why it is valuable.

“The conversation around inclusive language, specifically around gender, has been bubbling away for a few hundred years, but some believe it was a movement started more recently,” say Bates and Patel. “What we need to remember is that words are powerful. They can inspire, motivate and persuade or they can cause harm, annoyance, rage and upset.”

Which is why they say that a smarter, more humane approach is far more effective in communicating.

“Inclusive language can help people belong, connect and feel respected,” Bates and Patel say. “When organizational leaders demonstrate inclusivity through the words they use, it shows that they care about their team which can lead to powerful changes, such as better engagement and performance overall.”

There are changing norms, which means, “It’s not surprising that things we could say years ago in a different time, place or generation have evolved and may not be accurate or appropriate today,” Bates and Patel say.

There are potential costs when there are deficiencies or absences of responsible communication.

“What is lost when we choose to use language that may hurt or harm is the belief that an organization and its colleagues simply do not care,” Bates and Patel say.

They are proponents of authenticity in communications when it comes to attempts at inclusive language.

“The word authentic means genuine. It means that words match actions. It means what you feel and value inside is reflected on the outside and believed by others,” Bates and Patel say. “It means that you really mean what you say. When someone feels forced or simply doesn’t believe that what they say matters or that everyone else is over-reacting and too sensitive, it’s difficult to come off as authentic and believable.”

Perception, conclusions and judgment are natural reactions when there is a disconnect.

“People instinctively know that your words do not match your beliefs,” Bates and Patel say. “That being said, it’s okay to say ‘This is new.’ That you may not understand fully but are learning and trying your best. It’s okay to make mistakes and apologize.”

In short, they summarize, “Authentic does not mean perfect but does mean real.”

Not all organizational leaders are buying in yet from a self-interest perspective there are “wins” that they are not considering when they commit to inclusive communication.

“The words Diversity, Equity and Inclusion are about everyone having a chance for success, thriving and feeling a sense of belonging. When we commit to inclusive communication, we create a respectful and dignified environment where everyone regardless of age, ability, gender, race and sexual orientation can thrive and feel like they belong,” Bates and Patel say.

The improvement is significantly noticeable, they assert.

“We create a culture of hope versus fear,” Bates and Patel say. “Imagine the impact on results if employees believed in the organization and people they worked for and with.”