How to Navigate Tensions, Paradoxes, and Core Dilemmas of Inclusive Leadership, with Dr. Bernardo Ferdman

What makes diversity and inclusion—seemingly so simple—also so complicated and difficult to achieve? Truly bringing inclusion to life can sometimes feel quite challenging, especially when there seem to be forces pulling in many directions, and various inherent dilemmas involved in working with and across differences. In this episode, we will explore how to bring inclusion to life and how to understand and manage some of the paradoxes and tensions of inclusion. 

WHAT YOU WILL LEARN:

Leading in a diverse organization can often feel very challenging, especially given some of the pulls and pushes these days related to DEI. What is involved in inclusive leadership geared toward helping oneself and others work well with our many differences and toward gaining the benefits of diversity? In this episode, we will discuss how to bring inclusion to life -- the essence of inclusive leadership, what makes it challenging, and how to manage the inevitable tensions involved in working with and across differences. Bringing inclusion to life involves being authentic and helping others do so, fostering more experiences of inclusion for more people, and behaving and leading inclusively. But inclusion is also difficult. We will discuss and unpack core dilemmas that are part and parcel of inclusion, including the tensions between fostering self-expression and requiring mutual adaption, between being flexible and open about boundaries and norms and keeping them stable and well-defined, and between increasing comfort and safety and leaving our comfort zones and taking more risks. Join us to learn more about the everyday work of inclusive leadership.

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ABOUT OUR GUEST:

Dr. Bernardo Ferdman is an internationally recognized expert and thought leader on inclusion, diversity, and inclusive leadership, with over 39 years of experience in the U.S. and around the world as an organization and leadership development consultant and executive coach. He is passionate about creating a more inclusive world where more people can be fully themselves and accomplish goals effectively, productively, and authentically, and he works with leaders and employees to develop and implement effective ways of using everyone’s talents and contributions and to build inclusive behavior and multicultural competencies. Bernardo is principal of Ferdman Consulting, which specializes in supporting leaders and organizations in bringing inclusion to life in leadership practices and in organizational cultures and systems, and he is Distinguished Professor Emeritus at the California School of Professional Psychology, where he taught for almost 25 years. Bernardo has written extensively on inclusion and inclusive leadership; his most recent book is Inclusive Leadership: Transforming Diverse Lives, Workplaces, and Societies. He received his Ph.D. in Psychology from Yale University in 1987. He is a

fellow of various professional organizations and was the recipient of the Society of Consulting Psychology’s 2019 Award for Excellence in Diversity and Inclusion Consulting.

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LINKS MENTIONED IN EPISODE:

Guest LinkedIn Profile: https://linkedin.com/in/ferdman ; https://www.linkedin.com/company/ferdmanconsulting

Guest Website: https://ferdmanconsulting.com (firm); https://inclusiveleader.com (book)

Our website: www.gotowerscope.com

https://linkedin.com/in/ferdman; https://www.linkedin.com/company/ferdmanconsulting; https://x.com/bferdman; https://www.instagram.com/bferdman; https://ferd