You can build an inclusive team

- [Instructor] I have noticed that inclusivity has this mystique when it comes to engineers and managers. They seem to not know where to start, and struggle with it because there are no templates in how to build a truly inclusive team. For example, there are several classes and training materials available when it comes to how to hire smart people, how to learn specific pieces of technology like Scala and Cassandra, building tools to make your team be more productive. So there are resources available for managers that are ready-made and off-the-shelf. However, inclusivity means you have to look at the much bigger picture of how your team functions, how individual members fit in, what makes them different, what traits they have in common with each other, and how do you motivate people so they feel like they belong to this team without losing their sense of individual identity? And that's because the more cohesive your team is, the less time you will have to spend back filling roles. Because attrition, as we all know, is extremely expensive. So inclusivity is important because it helps your team become a better organization and also because it makes you more effective as a manager. What makes it extra challenging is the fact that you are doing this in a very high pressure environment where you're constantly being told to do more with less. Managers' calendars are extremely packed, and I sometimes have working lunches where I started eating my lunch at about 11 a.m. and somehow manage to get it eaten by three o'clock or so. The lesson here is that inclusivity is going to be challenging, and you won't find time to do it in the beginning. But as you get better at building an inclusive team, your team will do the work for you and you will become more effective as a manager. That being said, in the here and now, managers face this interesting challenge where something is extremely important, inclusivity in this case, and at the same time there are very few resources available on how to get it right. Well, you're in the right place. This course is a step in that direction to help you become better as an inclusive leader. The best way to build an inclusive team is to realize that as a manager, you have a critical role to play and the work is shared by the entire team. It's not just for you to do. As a manager, you need to set the tone and empower people to create that culture and your team will then take the culture forward and build a truly inclusive team. So in this course, I've broken out two conceptual parts. The first part of this course will focus on the different dimensions of inclusivity. Often we stick to a few aspects of inclusivity like race, gender, et cetera. The goal here is to help managers understand the big picture and lead their team with more purpose. The second part of this course will help managers build a longterm vision with feedback, mentorship, and a sense of belonging so they can create an inclusive team with more than just the day-to-day operations in mind.