By Aislin Johnston
Chesamel has achieved something extraordinary; something many organisations aim for but few achieve.
In an industry rife with symbolic gestures and short attention spans, we have successfully built a workplace where inclusion is a lived-and-breathed experience. How do we know? We asked our workforce to appraise our efforts honestly, and the data speaks volumes. But we are not here to congratulate ourselves – we are just getting started.
Why? Because inclusion doesn’t have an endpoint. Quite the contrary, it’s a muscle, it’s a discipline, and it’s a responsibility that we uphold no matter what time of the year it is. Creating inclusive environments means making choices every day to create spaces where people feel safe, respected, and empowered to grow.
Building a culture of inclusion is vital because many of us, regardless of background, have felt the sting of exclusion, but for some, it still happens far too often. The upside to this is, by taking responsibility, we can work together to make exclusion a thing of the past. That starts with mutual accountability, ongoing sensitivity, and a commitment to action over optics.
Chesamel wants to be an example of best practice, not just for our industry, but for the future of work. And that begins with small, meaningful acts that build into something greater.
The Power of Micro-Experiences: Why Every Moment Matters
According to O.C. Tanner, workplace inclusion isn’t created through fragile internal policies and elaborate external communications alone. It is built through thousands of small moments – recognitions, conversations and decisions – that, built up, lead to their workforce feeling either included, united, cohesive and whole or fragmented, fractional and “other”. A “them vs us” mentality is the antithesis of innovation and growth and has no place in any workplace, anywhere.
While organisations that want to succeed do need to look at the big picture, their primary focus needs to be on these incremental building blocks. That means focusing on the micro-experiences, and asking the real questions – how do we run meetings? How do we give feedback? Then, digging deeper, do our reporting structures support active listening? Do they encourage openness, ongoing dialogue and real vulnerability? Are we the kind of workplace that acknowledges each person’s lived experience? Every interaction matters, and it’s in the behind-the-scenes moments that trust is built or destroyed.
Chesamel’s belief is simple: the true measure of success is in the standard of work you produce and how you treat people while they work. Inclusion is about removing barriers, not reducing standards. It means your ideas matter more than your beliefs, background or experiences, and your growth should be shaped by your work ethic and ambition – nothing else.
Inclusion by the Numbers
These beliefs, centred around our philosophy of inclusion, are reflected in our data.
In our most recent internal surveys:
- 94% of our people said they are treated fairly regardless of race
- 92% said the same about sexual orientation
- 88% reported fair treatment regardless of gender
- 82% said age does not affect how they are treated at work
These results didn’t happen by chance. They reflect a culture where fairness is embedded not just in official policies, but in everyday behaviours, leadership, and trust – and this is possible for your organisation too.
What Inclusion Really Looks Like
At Chesamel, we don’t pass the buck on to HR, save it for an annual workshop or stuff it on to the tail-end of a KPI tick-list. We treat inclusion as an organisation-wide shared commitment and responsibility.
Drawing on guidance from the Centre for Creative Leadership and other leading organisations, we take a holistic, top-down approach, centred around:
- Leadership responsibility: Our leadership teams and managers are expected to model inclusive behaviour. They are accountable for creating psychologically safe environments and challenging bias wherever it appears.
- Culture-first design: From recruitment to project delivery, we prioritise values like empathy, collaboration, and curiosity. We celebrate diverse thinking and learn from it daily.
- Active measurement: We don’t assume we’re getting it right – we make sure we are. This looks like checking in with our workforce to learn how they’re feeling, what their pain points are, and what they’d like to do differently. Most importantly, we listen to the answers, and we adapt based on the data.
The last point may be the most important to consider, because inclusion is not static. As Sandeep Bains contests, creating inclusive workplaces requires intention, trust, and continuous recalibration. What worked yesterday will likely work today, but may not be enough tomorrow, and businesses need to stay aware of this.
Who We Are, Together
We are proud of what our working culture and teams represent:
- 64% of our workforce identifies as women
- Our workforce transcends demographics, specialisations and time zones: 22 countries and counting
- Chesamel is a recognised and certified Great Place to Work
Our people are not just data points. They are readers, dancers, dreamers. They are cooks, parents, neurodivergent thinkers, and multilingual collaborators. Real inclusion makes space for the workforce as a whole, their personal and professional identity, their quirks, their challenges and their strengths.
As HireBee notes, when organisations create inclusive conditions for neurodiverse individuals, they often unlock greater clarity, creativity, and innovation across the board. The same holds for gender and cultural diversity – inclusion benefits everyone.
We Are Not Done Yet
Chesamel is more than a consultancy; we’re a transformation partner, and we’re not planning to rest on our laurels.
Our commitment to inclusion is reflected not only in our internal culture, but in the work we do every day with our clients. Through our Workforce Transformation Team, we help organisations reimagine how people work, lead, and thrive. Whether that means designing inclusive onboarding experiences, embedding equity into leadership pipelines, or building cultures that retain and empower diverse talent, we bring insight and action into every partnership.
If you’re ready to create an inclusive workplace built for growth, belonging and bold thinking, we’re ready to help.
