“Diversity and inclusion are very good for business,” said Stephanie Oueda on the blog of the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB).
Oueda is Head of Gender and Diversity at BID Invest, based in Washington DC. On the occasion of World Day for Cultural Diversity, Dialogue, and Development, she mentioned some of the benefits of diversity and inclusion in business.
“Gender diversity in executive teams has a strong correlation with profitability and value creation,” writo Oueda, referring to the Mckinsey 2018 report. “Companies that have executive teams with greater ethnic diversity, not only concerning absolute representation but also with a variety or combination of ethnicities, are 33% more likely to outperform their peers in terms of profitability.”
Oueda clarified that “by diversity, we mean to all the unique characteristics that make us who we are: personality, lifestyle, work experience, ethnicity, age, culture, disability, gender, sexual orientation.” In turn, “inclusion means respect. Respect, value, and consider the different perspectives, styles, and needs of people. “
D&I are strategic assets
Among the benefits of diversity, Oueda points out:
- Involve employees better
- Understand and serve customers
- Strengthen the employer’s brand
- Generate creative ideas
The contributions offered by diversity has not been sufficient to establish changes in companies. For example, the Global Trends Report 2018: Women’s Empowerment Principles highlights the gender gap that “few companies are setting goals and developing the portfolio of women for management positions. Also, less than half of the companies had a policy that addressed equal pay, and while there are advances in paid vacation programs, there is still room for improvement. “
Stephanie Oueda highlighted the efforts of technology and communication companies on the advances or challenges that exist to promote diversity, as Google, Twitter, Hubspot, or BuzzFeed have done. “Each year, these companies publish public updates on Diversity and inclusion (D&I), highlighting the advances and setbacks.”
Having a diverse and inclusive workforce and workplace are strategic business assets.
Stephanie Oueda