How to Manage an Inclusive Team

To get the best out of your team, you need to be as inclusive as possible, and that’s not as simple as just saying, “Every voice matters.” Words must be followed by actions.

During the latest New Supervisors in Government Community of Practice session, “How to Manage an Inclusive Team,” we spoke with Priscilla Stallings, Chief Inclusion Officer, State of Minnesota, who shared insight and advice on creating a team where everyone feels valued and respected.

Here are a few top takeaways from that discussion:

• To have an inclusive team, you must create psychological safety. Stallings said that a work culture with psychological safety means that your employees can share their ideas and raise concerns without fear of being punished or humiliated. She added that in an environment with psychological safety, you’re more likely to see a willingness to innovate and get people’s best ideas, versus an environment without it, which leads to disengaged workers, low retention, and high turnover.
• If you want to encourage diversity of thought, you need to lead by example. Stallings emphasized that leaders can’t put an expectation on their team that they are not willing to do themselves. She acknowledged that it can be hard to be a bold and courageous leader when your environment could be considered toxic, but you must still take a stand and lean into celebrating different thoughts and ideas.
• To encourage more collaboration, you need to invest in shared decision-making. To ensure your team keeps engaging in open communication, employees need to know what’s happening, so they’re not siloed and remain invested in your mission. Additionally, Stallings said that offering teambuilding activities creates a space to get to know your team and begins to build the trust needed for psychological safety.

Want to learn more about creating an inclusive team? Watch on-demand to learn more core tenets for creating a healthy environment for innovation and growth.

Also, don’t forget to join us for the next New Supervisors in Government Community of Practice session on March 25 at 4 p.m. ET, “How to Keep Your Team Engaged.”