Are organizations that go through these motions but fall short of impactful follow-through demonstrating laziness or a lack of integrity? Of course not! The sources of resistance to DEI initiatives are real, complicated, and nuanced aspects of workplace culture that can seem very difficult to grapple with. Yet, they tend to reflect normal, adaptive, unconscious mechanisms in humans that make us all averse to change to some extent. Fear of the unknown, uncertainty, concerns about instability, and perceptions of injustice drive our skeptical attitudes and anxious reactions to new policies or practices in the workplace as well as in other settings. Acknowledging and embracing those common but sometimes counterproductive reactions can make employees more comfortable, foster dialogue, and repair miscommunications and misperceptions that otherwise may prevent DEI initiatives from coming to fruition.

Thankfully, a myriad of productive strategies become available to organizations once the decision is made to embrace and roll with resistance to DEI initiatives. Approaches that can minimize resistance and maximize the many positive impacts that diversity and inclusion efforts
afford to organizations include:

1) Determining the underlying types of resistance at play in an organizational dynamic and identifying the sources of fear-based behaviors that drive reactions to DEIs;
2) Inviting dialogue conducive to expressing concerns openly;
3) Meeting resistance with empathy, facilitated reflection, and education;
4) Making sure that all employees feel included while establishing voluntary engagement in the process.

A key insight from my research, a point that may seem counterintuitive or paradoxical but actually underscores the transformational power of DEI initiatives, is that change is impossible without resistance. Resistance is therefore not to be ignored, punished, or seen as an intractable obstacle. Rather, it should be embraced as a catalyst and primer for change. Transformational leadership experts such as myself can assist your organization in making the most of the incredible opportunities that can manifest as both active and passive resistance. By recognizing the possibilities that resistance creates, rather than viewing resistance as an insurmountable hurdle, you and your colleagues can avoid those dreaded, preventable negative experiences around diversity while also maximizing inclusivity, profits, innovation, and employee satisfaction.

This blog post summarizes some of the findings in the following article:
Velasco, M. &  Sansone, C. (2019). Resistance to diversity and inclusion change initiatives: Strategies for
transformational leaders. Organization Development Journal, Fall 2019, 9-20.

Maria Velasco is a strategic organizational development and leadership consultant for organizations seeking transformational change in the area of diversity and inclusion. She has over 15 years experience developing and implementing sustainable diversity and inclusion initiatives to help strengthen and leverage diversity for organizations from a variety of sectors with the goal of reducing bias, increasing cultural competence, promoting inclusion and institutional change.

For a copy of the article summarized in the blog post contact Maria. For more information on how to keep cultivating cultural competence in your organization, please check out our webpage: https://interculturaltraining.springinstitute.org/training/