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The Economic Importance of Inclusion

CATALYST SPECIAL REPORT


 

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By Alex Johnston, Executive Director, Catalyst Canada 

 

When it comes to Canada’s competitiveness on the global stage, we needn’t look much further than hockey. Hockey talent abounds across this country, in small towns, big cities, girls’ and boys’ leagues, and on women’s and men’s national teams. We source it out, we develop it, and we put it to work. It’s a point of national pride and a shining example of our ability to be excellent.

But while Canada’s success on the ice should certainly be celebrated, it also raises an important question. How is it that we manage to invest so well in our hockey talent, yet we don’t apply the same rigour to areas that are much more important to the strength and future of this country—such as innovation and productivity? Canada consistently underperforms globally in these areas, and our economic future depends on our ability to significantly step up our efforts. We need all of our talented men—and women—fully contributing for this to happen.

Yet our workforce numbers show us that we’re doing a better job developing our hockey talent than our economic talent. Women are vastly underrepresented in roles above middle management in companies and their progress through the ranks has been stalled for twenty years . And, while there is a robust conversation focused on women’s behaviour and choices—with advice on how to increase our confidence and claim our workplace space—Catalyst research shows that it isn’t our choices but rather access to opportunities that is limiting our career advancement. Differences in opportunities given to men and women emerge right out of school and grow with time, with men benefiting more from senior-level sponsors, informal networks, and the critical work experiences that lead to advancement.

These opportunity barriers are real. But the great news for Canadian companies is that they can be removed if we cultivate inclusive leaders and inclusive workplaces.

So, what does an inclusive leader look like? Catalyst conducted global research to better define this kind of leader and understand what makes them so good at developing their people. We identified four core characteristics that held true, for the most part, across age, gender, and cultural lines:

 

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Empowerment: the ability to empower their employees to do their jobs well;

Accountability: hold their employees accountable for things they can control;

Courage: taking positions that aren’t necessarily in their own interest but often in the best interest of others; and

Humility: openness to stumble, learn and grow.

 

 

These leaders weren’t born that way; they grew to become inclusive leaders.

Our companies are operating in a very different construct today than they were ten, let alone fifty years ago when women’s workforce participation started to grow. Our economy is at a significant crossroads. Growth in emerging markets is fast outpacing our own. Our population is aging, the fertility rate has fallen, and our future workforce will be smaller. Without a boost in innovation and productivity, this will surely lead to constrained economic growth going forward.

We can approach these challenges from a position of strength. Canada has among the most highly skilled, educated and diverse workforce in the world. But we need twenty-first century leaders to leverage all of the competitive bench strength of a twenty-first century workforce. To build teams that innovate, create, and bring diverse experiences and perspectives in to their workplace. Teams that position their companies well for the challenges and opportunities ahead of us—not just behind us.

If hockey has taught us anything, it’s that we can be great when we want to be and developing all of our talent is what drives excellence. So it’s time to borrow a page from the hockey playbook and focus on developing—and leveraging—the talents of our women and men fully, so we bring everything we’ve got to the table and help our country excel on a world stage. Our economic future depends on it.

 

 

A version of this appears in print in our Fall 2015 Women of Influence Magazine, Page 47.