One mistake business owners and professionals are likely to make is wanting to hire people that are similar to them. There is often an erroneous belief that having the same kind of people around will make for a seamless workplace. While that may or may not be true, if you want to keep up with the fast-paced business environment, you need to consider embracing diversity and inclusion.
If you are a business leader, you probably already understand the importance of keeping up with the times to stand a chance in the ever-changing and competitive business world. Well, one way you can stand with your competitors and get a large cut of the market share is to learn to leverage talents from diverse walks of life.
And that is where JEDI comes in.
JEDI, an acronym for Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion, should be embraced by finance professionals, particularly CFOs, who play a crucial role in shaping an organization's success. As a CFO, you can unlock numerous benefits for your organization by adopting a JEDI mindset.
But in case you are wondering what the fuss is all about, in this blog post, we will show you the importance of the JEDI mindset and why it is essential for success. Additionally, we will provide actionable tips to implement the JEDI mindset within your finance organization.
As we mentioned earlier, a common fallacy in many organizations is the tendency to hire people who think and act like the leaders themselves. Imagine interfacing with an organization where everybody looks the same or has the same personality. Think about how it is not a good look for a client looking from the outside; with so much talk about embracing diversity in the workplace, that might raise a red flag.
Besides that, internally, a homogeneous team may limit creativity and result in suboptimal decision-making. When everybody thinks and acts the same, there is likely room for diverse ideas and thinking outside the box.
But embracing diversity in finance teams allows for a broader range of perspectives and experiences, leading to better decisions.
This is why CFOs need to aim to build teams with complementary core competencies that add value to the organization. This way, they can have more interesting perspectives to enhance their policy or decision-making as opposed to having a narrowed decision-making process.
Innovation is the lifeblood of any successful organization. Organizations can hardly survive in the harsh business world if they are not constantly innovating and they are more likely to innovate when they have a diverse team.
A diverse workforce brings fresh ideas, creativity, and alternative viewpoints to the table, which can spark innovative ideas. This is not to say experience is not valuable because it is. We are simply saying that you should not rely solely on established playbooks as they may hinder the ability to think outside the box.
CFOs should embrace an innovative mindset that welcomes diverse perspectives, allowing for unconventional solutions to complex problems. This will help you create an environment that encourages fresh thinking and sparks innovation across your organization.
Traditionally, productivity was often measured by physical presence and time spent in the office. However, the pandemic has challenged these conventional notions. We saw companies that had to shut down physical operations and still found a way to survive. So, it taught the world that physical presence is not always an important metric for measuring productivity.
Therefore, the post-pandemic world calls for a revaluation of productivity metrics, focusing on output and outcomes rather than physical attendance.
So, financial professionals need to focus on more important metrics for measuring productivity. They need to be ready to embrace a diverse workforce and empower employees to work in ways that suit their individual circumstances.
You need to move from a rigid work environment to prioritizing results and flexibility in order to create a more productive and engaged team.
Make a conscious effort to hire and promote individuals from diverse backgrounds, bringing unique perspectives to your finance team. You cannot passively approach embracing diversity; it is something that you have to consciously and actively include in your hiring process to make happen.
Unconscious biases can influence decision-making processes. And unfortunately, many of us don’t even recognize we have it. This is why we encourage finance professionals to get some training on recognizing unconscious bias; even googling what it means would go a long way. Investing in unconscious bias training is a great way to raise awareness and foster a more inclusive work environment.
Foster a learning culture that encourages collaboration, open communication, and continuous growth. Be an approachable leader who coaches and advocates for your team members. Let them see you as a safety that they can trust to stand up for them at all times.
In today's dynamic business environment, embracing the JEDI mindset is essential for finance professionals, particularly CFOs, to lead their organizations successfully. And hopefully, with this article, finance leaders understand the need to prioritize diversity and inclusion.
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