Key Takeaways: Embedding Systemic Inclusion with Tata Consultancy Services

There is no diversity without inclusion. 

Inclusion is now an integral part of any organisation's diversity offerings. Leading organisations, like certified Top Employer Tata Consultancy Services, are integrating it into their overall business strategy. Creating an inclusive workplace culture differs from simply creating a diverse company culture. An inclusive work culture allows employees to feel included irrespective of who they are or how they identify themselves. 

In this webinar, Preeti D'Mello, Global Head of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion & LeaD Academy at TCS, and Adrian Seligman, Executive Board Member at Top Employers Institute, spoke about how to adopt a holistic and systematic view of diversity, inclusion, equity and belonging to create, nurture and sustain an inclusive culture. 

Throughout the session, they touched on how organisations, and their HR leaders, can build their capacity for emotional intelligence, embodied self-awareness, compassion and sensitivity. While also touching on how individuals can demonstrate personal impact and accountability through good actions for themselves and others. 

Read ahead to get a snapshot of some of the session's highlights; fill in the form to get the recording of the webinar to watch whenever you have a moment. 

TCS is a large multinational organisation with around 600 000 employees; Adrian and Preeti began their conversation about inclusion by exploring how TCS sees its employees as individuals. Following that, Preeti expanded on the question by sharing some best practices from TCS:

• While the company is large, TCS manage to keep their everyday operating teams small. It allows them to operate similarly to a country with states, counties and townships. In simpler terms, they manage to organise their large employee numbers into smaller groups to keep it manageable. It also allows each group to interact within and outside of their group. 
• At TCS, they also maintain a company culture of open communication where feedback is not only encouraged but also helps to facilitate collaboration. They provide space for teams to voice their opinions openly without fear. While this is difficult, they ensure their company structure supports this culture. 
• They also know that they must keep evolving to maintain their inclusive culture. 

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How TCS's DE&I strategy fits into their talent attraction strategy.

• When hiring and advertising open positions, they ensure clear messaging around the diverse identity groups they have in their organisations. TCS also partner with organisations that promote certain identity groups to ensure that they get the best candidates and a diverse range of candidates. 
• They use word of mouth to help find new employees as they value the opinions of their current employees and want to find new employees who will be a neat cultural fit in the organisation. They also look at the internal dynamics of their current employees to help inform recent hiring decisions.
• At TCS, they make sure that their DE&I strategy is communicated internally and externally so that you are aware of the organisation's strategic objectives, whether you are new or old to the company. 

How TCS help, their leaders succeed in creating a culture of belonging across the organisation. 

• There is a mandate for inclusion and belonging that is now a mandate for business results. They did this when they understood that there was a clear relationship between doing the right thing and improved business results. It first began to gain momentum in the United States and then became a worldwide phenomenon. 
• They ensure that their organisation has a precise value alignment with those who work in and outside the company. It is a part of their big message that while business is about products and solutions, it is also about the quality of people a business works with. 
• To engage with their leaders, TCS started by showing them some of the positives of working within an inclusive organisation. 
• They encourage open and honest conversations with their leaders and employees to share the positives of working in a diverse and inclusive environment. 
• They foster learning about conscious and unconscious bias throughout the organisation.

The fundamental shift in their culture has come from the organisation realising that they will need to step outside of themselves and critically look at what they are doing and how they can improve that. It's about making small steps every day to improve their culture. 

Learn more about how TCS makes their DE&I strategy work by watching the full Virtual Fireside Chat now. Fill in the form now and get your link to the session.