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Introduction
Despite advances in diversity that have occurred in the past, women continue to be excluded from top leadership positions in the corporate environment. Today’s diverse and constantly changing environment requires more than masculinity as the norm and a command and control leadership approach. It needs a leadership style that will advocate for the inclusivity of traditionally excluded voices in leadership. It needs a leadership style to enhance the four critical processes that leadership mobilizes (setting a mission, actualizing goals, sustaining commitment, and responding to change) (Raelin, 2003).
In this paper, I will explore the tenets of the inclusive leadership style and its distinct characteristics and demonstrate its ability to have “all voices on deck” in top leadership. I will also explore potential barriers to effectively applying inclusive leadership.
As a millennial woman of color from the African New American community in the United States, inclusivity in leadership is deeply personal. It is an issue that I constantly struggle with, and in helping others not feel like it’s a “solo struggle.” The reality is that African refugee woman in America is a rare commodity in higher management, given that women, in general, are already underrepresented.
Additionally, the representation of leaders is inherently gendered in the current leadership landscape. Leaders are judged based on stereotypes and expectations grounded in “masculinist perspectives about leadership” (Shea & Renn, 2017, p. 84). This reality shapes my leadership opportunities and how I would choose to participate. I hope the inclusive leadership style will expand the discussion beyond just the gendered idea of inclusion to include other minorities, particularly the newest member of the U.S. society, refugee/immigrant leaders.
What is Inclusive Leadership?
Inclusive leadership is about including everyone. This leadership style focuses on “having the courage to take conscious steps to break down barriers for people at risk of being excluded from society ” (Bortini, Paci, Rise & Rojnik, 2016, p. 19). African refugee/immigrant women are among the groups at risk of exclusion in top leadership, representing different backgrounds, experiences, and abilities. The inclusive leadership approach appreciates diversity and the contributions of everyone. Furthermore, this leadership approach encourages full engagement in all aspects of organizational functioning. The objective, the authors added, is “to create, change and innovate while balancing everybody’s needs” (p. 9). Essentially, inclusive leadership is centered around relationships and valuing differences.
Feelings of exclusion are common in my leadership journey and for many other women, people of color, immigrants, and refugees. I struggle to fit in and, when unsuccessful, feel cut off from full involvement. According to Bortini et al., “one of the primary needs of individuals at risk of exclusion is to be accepted as