Diversity is a catalyst for innovation

June
21, 2021

4 min read

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

For many, June is LGBTQIA + pride month. For our brand, yes it is a month in which we celebrate diversity and inclusion, but in reality for us it is much more than a single month’s celebration. We believe that bringing together different people in the professional field builds a culture of acceptance that materializes in better results, both individually and at the corporate level. For us, fostering diversity and inclusion is not only a human act but it is where our creative processes are born, simply because when different ways of thinking come together, with different cultural backgrounds, with different experiences and experiences, new crosses happen and emerge the best ideas.

A McKinsey study confirms that companies with diversity and inclusion cultures and policies are 35% more profitable than those without. And that those that include women in their management teams are 25% more profitable. However, many of the Fortune 500 companies still have predominantly white male and male directories. Mastercard’s PRIDE Work Resource Group was created to create a more equitable work environment within the company, promoting a culture of diversity and inclusion, as well as concrete actions that the company has implemented as a range of truly competitive equitable benefits. We are committed to making sense of the terms “Diversity and Inclusion”, through concrete actions that ensure above all a work space and collaboration based on respect and safety for all of us who are part of this family; because we believe that they are two powerful differentials, not only at the productive level but mainly at the human level.

^{Companies that have cultures and policies of diversity and inclusion have a 35% higher profitability than those that do not / Image: Depositphotos.com}

Diversity is made by hand

There are many companies that believe that a diverse team is the spontaneous gathering of people of different gender and ethnic groups. At Mastercard we go a little further, we think that the concept of diversity has to evolve in order to include within it everything that is not obvious at first glance to people. Because having diverse minds is not enough to empower productivity. It is critical to create an open, diverse and multiple work environment, not only in payroll but also in details, those details that make each employee feel valuable and equally responsible for the results.

The PRIDE working group intervenes through initiatives that ensure combating inequality at all levels of the company, promoting equity at all organizational levels and implementing relevant solutions for the LGBTQIA + community , such as the True Name Card , a card designed so that trans and non-binary people can put the name with which they identify themselves on their cards, in addition to supporting the organization by promoting equitable benefits for all employees.

COVID-19 laid bare how relevant people are to make the world work and work well for everyone. This new post-pandemic humanism implies equal opportunities, but also fair working conditions for all. For us, taking an interest in the well-being of our employees also means offering continuous training for their professional development, job reintegration programs for those who had to take leave for various reasons and encouraging meetings of groups with common interests, but also open meetings aimed at improving the company’s inclusion policy.

At Mastercard, inclusion and diversity are not an illusion. It is about promoting the encounter and cultivating a work culture where there is a safe space for everyone. We believe this is accomplished by putting the magnifying glass on the humanity of our employees. Because recognizing individual differences fosters creativity as a whole, and leads to better results.