Hiring to 'tick a box' never lasts. Here's what to do instead.

Tokensim vs. True Inclusion — How to Support Your Team

“We need a Black/Asian/Queer person in our team” — and other stories. Tokenism is the practice of making a symbolic gesture that seems to support a marginalised group, without any real impact.

In the workplace this may manifest as hiring, promoting or showcasing someone simply because they are from an underrepresented group, without taking care to acknowledge their skills and expertise.

When leaders only focus on maintaining a company’s reputation or image, without cultivating a genuinely inclusive workplace, they run the risk of creating friction and high turnover within their teams.

Colleagues on the receiving end of tokenism are more likely to feel isolated, experience ‘higher levels of depression and stress’, and eventually, depart from the team they were hired into.

It also shows in the stats. 52% of Black Women will opt to leave an uncomfortable workplace, compared to 34% of white colleagues, and 46% of Black colleagues of all genders.

This becomes a vicious cycle. Cultural misunderstanding leads to higher turnover, which impacts team productivity and may build resentment among other team members. In turn, all of these have an adverse effect on the company’s overall reputation and employer brand.

So what's the solution?

A truly diverse team requires becoming aware of and accepting our own biases, as well as actively working to genuinely include those from underrepresented groups in day-to-day working life.

At Hustle Crew, we’ve created workshops like Understanding Bias and Fostering Inclusion to help make our workplaces truly inclusive, and sustainable for people from all walks of life. We’ve enjoyed working with multiple companies including Stella McCartney, Resident Advisor and the Global Web Index.

To learn how we can support you ⬇️

Future-proof your workforce with Hustle Crew

Would you like to improve your diversity and training programmes within your company?

Do you want to raise cultural awareness and understanding across all communities in your company?

Would you like to retain your top underrepresented talent by supporting them with the best resources?

Welcome to Hustle Crew.

Since 2016, we’ve been providing. Since 2016, we’ve been helping companies like Sky, Stella McCartney and more to become more diverse, through our Recommended Programme — which includes ‘Fostering Inclusion’ and ‘Understanding Bias’ workshops. Navigating conversations about diversity can be challenging, but driving long-lasting change in your company is possible.