This November marks five years of Inclusive Kind – five years of partnering with dozens of organizations across Canada and the globe that want to make their workplaces fairer, more inclusive, and more human. In that time, I’ve had the privilege of working with leaders and teams across sectors, each bringing unique starting points, challenges, and ambitions, but all united by a desire to do better. To mark this milestone, I’m sharing five lessons I’ve learned about DEI — insights shaped by real-world experience and continuous learning.
When I started this business, I knew DEI work mattered. What I’ve learned since is just how deeply human, complex, and ever-evolving it really is. Each organization brings its own culture, context, and readiness to change. Every engagement, whether delivering a one-off training session or developing a complex, multi-phase strategy, reminds me that inclusion isn’t something you can “complete.” It’s something you live and practice every day.
Here are five lessons I’ve learned about DEI along the way.
Lesson 1: The leader sets the tone.
If the leader (often the CEO and sometimes the board) isn’t invested, the work will stall. Full stop.
DEI can’t be delegated or outsourced. It starts – and succeeds – at the top. The most inclusive organizations I’ve seen are led by people who believe that fairness, equity, and opportunity are non-negotiable. They don’t just approve DEI initiatives – they embody them.
When leadership is all-in, inclusion becomes part of how decisions are made, how people are treated, and how success is defined. Culture begins at the top, and inclusion either thrives or fades with it, bringing us to the next lesson.
Lesson 2: DEI work is culture work.
Inclusion isn’t a single program or policy. It’s about who your organization is, what it stands for, and how those values show up in the everyday.
Who do you want to be as an organization? Once you’re clear on that, you can start embedding those values into everything: how you hire, how you run meetings, how you design processes, and how you show up for your people and clients.
DEI lives in the details – those small, everyday interactions that shape how people feel – and in the big systems that define opportunity, like policies, benefits, and promotions. When both the micro and macro align with your values, inclusion becomes part of how the organization functions, not just how it communicates.
And it doesn’t stop at your internal culture. This work touches everything, including how you engage with clients, customers, and your broader community. When DEI is integrated into your culture, not treated as an add-on, it becomes self-sustaining. It shapes how you operate, not just what you say.
Lesson 3: This work is hard, especially when business gets tough.
It’s easy to prioritize DEI when budgets are healthy and optimism is high. The real test comes when the environment shifts – when budgets tighten, when change fatigue sets in, or when the business landscape feels uncertain. That’s when DEI can quietly slip to the background. But that’s also when it matters most.
Those challenging moments reveal whether inclusion is truly a core value or just a “nice-to-have.” The organizations that hold steady, that continue to center fairness, communication, and care, come out stronger, with trust that lasts far beyond a quarterly result. In Canada, we’ve seen some organizations maintain their DEI commitments even through shifting social attitudes and economic pressures, and those are the ones that build resilience and loyalty for the long haul.
Lesson 4: We need both data and intuition.
Data is essential. It helps us measure progress, spot patterns, and stay accountable. It gives leaders the insight needed to make informed decisions and to see what’s working (and what’s not). But numbers alone don’t tell the whole story.
The best leaders also trust their intuition – the pulse they feel in conversations, the energy in their teams, and the quiet signals that don’t show up in a survey.
The most effective DEI work balances both logic and empathy, measurement and meaning. Numbers show us what is happening. Intuition helps us understand why.
Lesson 5: There is no finish line; you have to stay in it.
Inclusion isn’t a destination you arrive at. There’s no point where you can say, “okay, we’re done.” It’s a continuous process of learning, unlearning, and adapting, which is exactly what makes it so challenging. Staying in it takes courage and patience.
It means continuing to do the work even when it feels uncomfortable or progress feels slow. But that’s also where transformation takes root – in the persistence, the reflection, and the daily effort to keep aligning what you say with what you do.
There is no finish line in this work. And that’s what makes it so powerful. Because every small action, conversation, policy shift, or moment of reflection moves us closer to workplaces where everyone can thrive.
If you’re on this journey too, whether you’re just starting out or have been at it for years, I hope these five lessons I’ve learned about DEI offer a little clarity, encouragement, or even a nudge to keep going. And, if you’re ready to take your next step, we’re here to help you turn lesson into action.
Here’s to the next five years of learning, listening, and helping organizations become who they truly want to be.
Gabby