The Power of Inclusion

There is an enormous amount of wasted potential within organizations today because most do not adequately tap in to the wealth of human capital available to them. Most organizations believe that they are meritocracies, but that is a myth that masks the real situation of unequal opportunity that exists in most firms. Exclusionary tendencies are built into leadership, management, and human resources practices that perpetuate unequal opportunity. Most companies sort and select, hiring others most like themselves, and focus training and development on those who are identified as high potential. This book makes a business case for a new inclusive model of human resource development, driven by the demands of increasingly diverse workplaces and continuing expansion of the global economy. It demonstrates that people who succeed often acquire their talent because of the development attention they have received, and it shows how to create a culture of inclusion and development to unlock employee potential and productivity. The authors approach developing talent in all employees and aligning human resource systems and senior leadership commitment with that goal is a response to a business challenge facing corporate North America today. The patterns of exclusion and preference that limit human potential are universal; this book offers management insights for any corporate audience serious about maximizing productivity in the competitive global economy.

There is an enormous amount of wasted potential withinorganizations today because most do not adequately tap in to thewealth of human capital available to them. Most organizationsbelieve that they are meritocracies, but that is a myth that masksthe real situation of unequal opportunity that exists in mostfirms. Exclusionary tendencies are built into leadershipmanagement, and human resources practices that perpetuate unequalopportunity. Most companies "sort and select," hiringothers most like themselves, and focus training and development onthose who are identified as high potential.This book makes a business case for a new inclusive model ofhuman resource development, driven by the demands of increasinglydiverse workplaces and continuing expansion of the global economy.It demonstrates that people who succeed often acquire their talentbecause of the development attention they have received, andit shows how to create a culture of inclusion and development tounlock employee potential and productivity.The authors ' approach -- developing talent inall employees and aligning human resource systems and seniorleadership commitment with that goal -- is a response to abusiness challenge facing corporate North America today. Thepatterns of exclusion and preference that limit human potential areuniversal; this book offers management insights for any corporateaudience serious about maximizing productivity in the competitiveglobal economy.

Foreword by James M. Kilts.Acknowledgments.Introduction: The Business Imperative.Chapter One. Two Models of Development.Chapter Two. Overcoming Barriers to Development: EliminatingNegative Treatment and Encouraging Quality Treatment.Chapter Three: Managing Inclusion: Positioning All Employees forSuccess.Chapter Four. Strategic Leadership: The Sine Qua Non ofchange.Chapter Five. Aligning Human Resources with a Culture ofDevelopment.Chapter Six. Jump-Starting Inclusion: Establishing theInfrastructure.Chapter Seven. Inclusion in the Global Economy.Chapter Eight. Measuring Progress and Demonstrating Results.Afterword. Unleashing the Potential of Your Workforce.Index.