This session focuses on another revolution in the evolution of Diversity and Inclusion, from being little more than a reporting requirement 20 years ago to becoming a business imperative today. Now D&I is expanding again to envelop and include customers. This workshop is designed to bring you up to date, provoke your thinking and show you what can be done, and is being done today, by large and small, old and new companies to become customer inclusive and customer led.
For many organisations inclusion of customers is new. It’s new because customers have not traditionally been viewed as part of the business model or as part of the organisations ‘team’. In today’s world, such an approach will increasingly miss the mark. Because customers are living in a new paradigm, and they are flocking to businesses who are in the new world with them.
In this workshop we will review some of the key social shifts that are re-shaping the customer and the competitor landscape, our perspectives around markets and competitors need to shift, fast. Today’s business environment is not for the faint-hearted, organisational life-spans are shrinking; competitor diversity is growing; and consumer diversity is evolving rapidly. And every business has lost control of its traditional megaphone. Yet, within this environment both research and experience demonstrate there are massive opportunities for re-invention and growth of those organisations that can shift to an inclusive culture.
Why does an inclusive culture help in this environment? Because customers, technology enabled, are in control, and if you can add value for them by meeting their needs, solving their problems or supporting changes they want to see in the world then they will partner with you.
In this workshop we will show you how the practice of customer inclusion resolves the root causes of disconnect, and strengthen core business. We will also show you how being customer inclusive is very good for engagement, because it supports an internally inclusive culture – you can’t have one without the other.
In summary, the business case for customer inclusion is clear and compelling. Whilst not a silver bullet, it will provide a major strategic and operational advantage. Having a diverse employee base that resonates with your diverse customer base is not enough. Customer inclusion is the critical ingredient. And D&I, HR and OD teams are very well placed to champion customer inclusion as an organisation wide strategy that can unite silo’s and offer enormous performance and engagement opportunities.
