Companies face a huge perception gap on inclusiveness: Report
The report by Accenture states that about 88 percent of women and 77 percent of men in India increasingly care about workplace culture and believe it is critical to help them thrive in the workplace.
Even as organisations believe in the importance of inclusiveness at the workplace for the success of their business, a study has found a perception gap, with nearly all leaders in India believing that their people feel included compared to only 36 percent of employees.
Today's workforce cares increasingly about workplace culture and believes it is critical to helping them thrive in the workplace — reported by 88 percent of women and 77 percent of men in India — and the majority of leaders (91 percent in India) believe an inclusive workplace culture is vital to the success of their business, the report by Accenture stated.
The report 'Getting to Equal 2020: The Hidden Value of Culture Makers' revealed that there is also a perception gap, with nearly all leaders in India (94 percent) believing that their people feel included, yet just around one-third (36 percent) of employees agree to that.
Two out of three leaders (66 percent) feel they create empowering environments where people have a sense of belonging, however, less than half (48 percent) of employees agree, it added.
The report is based on a global survey of more than 30,000 professionals in 28 countries, including over 1,000 professionals from India, across industries.
It revealed that most leaders also ranked diversity and workplace culture low on their list of top organisational priorities.
A majority of leaders in India ranked brand recognition and quality (84 percent) and financial performance (78 percent) at the top of their list of priorities, while only 37 percent ranked diversity on top.
Also, only 37 percent ranked culture at the top, it added.
"For every organisation today, building a culture of equality needs as much focus as any other business goal. In an era where innovation drives growth, people are the most valuable source of competitive advantage and equality and empowerment are key to unleashing their potential," Accenture India Chairman and Senior Managing Director Rekha M Menon said.
Further the report reveals that aligning leaders' perceptions with those of their employees would yield significant upsides. In that case, the report mentions that both women and men would advance faster, and global profits would increase by $3.7 trillion, including $1.35 trillion in the Asia-Pacific region.
(Edited by Kanishk Singh)
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