Respect isn’t a strategy, it is the goal. Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts and focus are not the Ends we seek. They are strategies. They are efforts to create and maintain a just and respectful society. The goal of DEI initiatives now under attack is to create a healthy and respectful culture by using practical and actionable common-sense framework— being effective through respectful relationships.
A great deal has been written about organizational culture and diversity. Scholars work to help define the terms and teach the principles and intellectual underpinnings of these concepts. Some resources are included below for those who would like to learn more about the field and some of the key ideas that are guiding the work.
Our country is composed of a variety and broad diversity of people – a nation of indigenous and immigrant residents. We are from different heritages, different faiths, and different life and family experiences. We come from rural, urban, and suburban landscapes. Our birth languages and, therefore, our words, meanings, and sensibilities are not the same. We are from different ethnic and cultural contexts. We also look different – some use wheelchairs and crutches, while others do not. We come in a wide range of skin hues. Eye shapes and hair compositions vary. Even if some share the same skin color or the same birth language, the diversity among us is many. And, of course, gender experiences and social perspectives vary significantly.
We all want to have workplaces and communities that accept us for who we are and respect and offer dignity to us as human beings. Such an environment enables us to do our best work. Leaders, managers, and members of a workplace cannot create and sustain a positive, healthy, and inclusive work culture without practices, policies, and a culture of inclusion that acknowledges and value these human differences. They cannot offer what we all want without understanding and respecting some of those differences. The more we know about our differences – and commonalities – the greater the likelihood that workplaces can respect, include, and support this diversity.
Workplaces are communities. Constructive relationships are the key to working together, being able to focus on common goals, and benefiting from the talent and loyalty of each member. Most of us would not intentionally create disrespect or foster misunderstanding or negative communication in the workplace community. With growth, worker and leadership transitions, and changes in composition of both workers and the communities in which they reside and serve – new people arrive. Greater diversity often makes services and relationships more effective for those we serve both internally and externally.
Workplaces have a culture where both written and unspoken behavior and practice expectations are carried out by those who have been part of the organization for several years. Those people have history in common and often rely on it to understand the meaning behind words and the do’s/don’ts of the dynamic. Workplaces must change or evolve to ensure that new people, new perspectives, or people with different experiences find the same acceptance that their predecessors have created for themselves.
Self-assessment helps us understand the assumptions behind organizational history. Not to judge it, but to assist its leaders in gaining new awareness. It helps us examine how, or if, our practices unintentionally cause harm or misunderstanding. Self-assessment supports us, as leaders, in creating workplaces that everyone desires and that organizations need to be effective. Looking at who we are and where we have come from as a workplace community helps leaders better understand the limitations and opportunities of the past and explore additional ways to foster more understanding and respect. Differences have always existed (gender, age, family composition, values) but often have been made invisible by a dominant and narrow culture. More differences emerge with new employees or changes in population and stakeholders. Reflection is not about scoring or judgement. There is no pass or fail. It just helps leaders identify build on the good of the past by identifying new opportunities to become more inclusive, fairer, respectful, and effective. Reflection with positive change is the real purpose of DEI and is essential in the workplace and in our communities.
Barbara E. Raye, MBA, Doreene N. L. Etongué-Mayer, Ed.D., Tina Sweeten, MNM.
Center for Policy, Planning, and Performance – 2025
Sources
Bradigan, P. S., & Hartel, L. J. (2013). Organizational culture and leadership: exploring perceptions and relationships. In Workplace Culture in Academic Libraries (pp. 7-20). Chandos Publishing.
Dhir, S., Tandon, A., & Dutta, T. (2024). Spotlighting employee-organization relationships: The role of organizational respect and psychological capital in organizational performance through organizational-based self-esteem and perceived organizational membership. Current Psychology, 43(22), 19964-19975.