Workforce diversity is essential, but what does real inclusion look like?

The case for diversity and inclusion in the workplace is growing stronger and stronger. For many companies, devoting efforts and resources toward better mirroring the society that we all inhabit makes total sense, including from a financial perspective. But, all too often, businesses misconstrue the real meaning of these two, extremely hot, buzzwords.

Let's be real: advancing diversity and the deeply nuanced issue of inclusion at work is a much more complex process than merely improving numbers. And if we truly want a melting pot of people to coalesce and flourish, it's going to take more than a written company policy.  

To gain real-world insight into what companies' D&I intentions should look like, we turned to eight successful Canadian women whose careers span fields including science, medicine, finance and activism.

Last year, the Women's Executive Network recognized each trailblazer as one of Canada's most powerful women, giving them a Top 100 award. And they aren't just changing power structures and redefining the "chief seat" in Canadian business due to their gender. Their identities are also tied in with race and ability — other crucial layers that also make up a woman and make experiences among people completely different.

Read on for their thoughts on what "diversity" and "inclusion" really mean.

Emily Mills, founder of How She Hustles

"One of my mentors constantly references diversity and inclusion in this way: diversity is being invited to the party; inclusion is being invited to dance. So it's one thing to have diversity in the workplace [and be like], 'Oh look, there's a rainbow of people.' It's another thing to say, 'Okay, how are you actively participating in this space?' … Diversity is a fact, inclusion is a choice.

I think the other piece inclusion is very much about making sure that everyone feels like they belong [and] making sure that everyone is able to bring their best — whatever that looks like. It's not just about being included [at] someone else's table ... because sometimes that sounds like you're being invited into someone else's space. Really making it inclusive [means] it's everybody's space…. Everybody has a stake and everybody has a way of playing a role that makes them feel valuable."

Zahra Ebrahim, executive advisor at Doblin

"When I think of inclusion, I think of a strong sense of belonging somewhere. I think of feeling a sense that when I speak, people want to listen … [that] there's willingness to explore it.

I'm kind of over the conversation of 'count the number of people of colour and women at the table,' and then just continue with business as usual. To me, that's offensive because I've been the person at that table and it sets it back…. So many women and people find themselves part of these conversations or [as] symbolic gestures at these tables. Sometimes you show up and you're really excited and then you realize it's just business as usual. The norm is not shaking or breaking. It's the same.

Even within my own community [or with] anyone new, you just want them to have a sense of belonging [and] you layer on different cultural dynamics ... different norms, class. When you strip away all the assumptions we make about people, that's really hard work, and I think it's work worth doing. I just think we need to stop labelling in [a] simplistic way."

Darlene Dasent, vice-president and chief financial officer at The University Health Network

"What I find to be most essential [in the world of business] is to have diversity of perspective and diversity of thought. And, of course, your perspectives and your thoughts are often shaped by the life that you've lived before, which in turn is shaped by your gender, race — it's shaped by a variety of things…. When you have different perspectives around the table, I feel strongly that you come up with a more wholesome and better decision."

Claudette McGowan, chief information officer at the Bank of Montreal, founder of Black Arts & Innovation Expo

"Diversity and inclusion are about difference; everybody brings their unique self to whatever they're doing. The respecting and valuing of that difference is very important. Inclusion is more about a feeling — I think about inclusion and belonging. You can have a corporate mandate that says 'We're all for diversity,' but how does that actually manifest? When you look at things like pay equity, are you seeing that?

Having certain [diverse] people on a corporate flyer or some type of annual report, but not seeing them at every level is very critical to me. Diversity that works tells me that people are treated equally, paid equally and also that you've got everybody having a voice and a seat at the table."

Dr. Marcia Anderson, MD, executive director of Indigenous Academic Affairs at the University of Manitoba's Ongomiizwin Indigenous Institute of Health and Healing

"I actually never use [the terms 'diversity' and 'inclusion,'] because I think people use them very uncritically in ways that invite people to the table — but on the terms of the status quo. And the reason why people like me, as a visibly Indigenous woman, don't get to the table in the status quo is because this country was founded on white supremacy and patriarchy.

I think most institutions, when they approach diversity and inclusion, do it in ways where they don't challenge the inequitable distribution of power, of money and of resources that keep racialized people, that keep Indigenous people, [and] that keep people who experience multiple forms of oppression like racism or homophobia or gender[-based discrimination] … out. So we always end up being the exception within the rule, as opposed to changing the rule.

I prefer to talk about the balance of power and the structures of disadvantage and the structures of inequality so that if we're going to aim for meaningful change, we're going to do it in ways that are lasting, that are rights-based, that fundamentally challenge structures and that outlast people's or institutions' periods of benevolent intentions."

Dr. Nirvani Umadat, dental surgeon, founder of Dr. Nirvani Radha Umadat Dental Corporation

"We all [show up] with our own set of experiences, our own set of values and our own set of beliefs, [but] often, when you get to a workplace, those things are directed [at you], and you're driven toward a track of thinking.

And I think, as much as you want everyone on your [company] team to be on board with your vision and your mission, diversity is allowing everyone … that you include in your team to express those things [experiences, values and beliefs] about themselves. When you do that, then you drive inclusion."  

Maayan Ziv, founder and CEO of AccessNow, activist, photographer and entrepreneur living with muscular dystrophy

"When I heard the news about receiving this award, I was thinking about when I was a young girl ... looking around at TV shows and movies and influential business people ... those figures who people look to for inspiration for role models. And I didn't really see anyone who looked like me.

When I think about diversity, it's every single different perspective, it's all of the different people who come from different backgrounds …  and inclusion is about recognizing the strength in each of those perspectives … and being devoted enough to actually making sure every person is not just [present] but supported and valued — and given equitable opportunity to actually reach their full potential.

I've been hypervisible my whole life. I've always been, for the majority of my experiences, the only person who looks like me in any conversation or in any room … [If you look at the statistics], there are one in seven Canadians who experience a disability … so I've always seen my visibility or my representation as a statement not just of 'Here I am,' but also advocacy. [That] I exist in this industry, or I have something to say.

And I'm not just doing it for me. I'm trying to carve out a space for others to do the same — to act as a role model that I didn't get to see as a kid."

Maili Wong, author, Canadian investment advisor and first vice president and portfolio manager at CIBC Wood Gundy

"To me, diversity and inclusion are really mindsets … mindsets [that are] open to different perspectives. My personal belief is that … diversity of thought is really valuable, and diversity of thought actually leads to a more constant state of evolution, so we all collectively benefit by embracing different perspectives…. I think it also comes from letting go of pre-conditioned biases [and] first being aware of what the biases are."

These interviews have been edited and condensed.

Natasha Bruno is a Toronto-based writer with an obsession for beauty, health & wellness, women's issues, and curly hair. Follow her journey on Instagram @natashajbruno.