Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

INSEAD examines anti-racism, gender balance and other key topics related to creating fairer, more representative organisations.

As society increasingly demands more inclusive leadership and culture, INSEAD is actively studying and engaging business leaders and practitioners on anti-racism, gender balance and other key topics related to creating fairer, more representative organisations. In this series, INSEAD faculty and their close collaborators with rich experience in practice give their insights and suggestions on how to develop diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in businesses and organisations.

INSEAD examines anti-racism, gender balance and other key topics related to creating fairer, more representative organisations.

Responsibility

Bringing DEI into the Core of Our Institutions

M. Akinola, Z. Kinias, M. Norton, B. Kessler

Implementing DEI concepts effectively in business-school classrooms requires support from both institutions and the wider community.

Responsibility

The Impact of Investor Gender on Female Founders

K. Snellman, I. Solal

Female-led start-ups backed only by female venture capitalists have a harder time raising follow-on capital.

Responsibility

Business Schools Can Help ‘Break the Bias’ for Women

Zoe Kinias

Institutions like INSEAD are uniquely equipped to address systemic biases.

Leadership & Organisations

How Nasdaq’s Board Diversity Rule Creates Potential for Real Change

F. Henderson, Z. Kinias, C. Zeisberger

The new rules requiring qualitative and quantitative disclosure about board diversity will better inform investors and (hopefully) spur further progress.

Responsibility

Why Allyship Is Key to Gender Balance

I. Mihov, Z. Kinias

To achieve equity, both men and women must advocate for it.

Responsibility

Recognising and Confronting Racism in Europe

Felicia A. Henderson

Systemic racism is not only an American problem. The European experience demands a different kind of anti-racist conversation.

Responsibility

Developing Quality Conversations About Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

M. Akinola, E. Kelly, Z. Kinias, M. Norton

Organisations – including business schools – are increasingly focused on expanding their DEI capabilities. Consider these best practices for productive conversations around DEI.

Responsibility

DEI When We Need It the Most

V. D. Rao, C. Trombini, Z. Kinias

Covid-related setbacks require redoubled DEI efforts, but are companies delivering?

Leadership & Organisations

Strategy and Leadership Lessons From the ‘Notorious RBG’

C. Lin, F. A. Henderson, Z. Kinias

As the business world increasingly strives to be a catalyst for social justice and societal progress, Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s work provides many valuable lessons for leaders.

Responsibility

How Disempowerment Drives Demand for Risky Skin-Lightening Products

Zoe Kinias & Jasjit Singh

Empowering darker-skinned women in emerging markets acts as a buffer against a toxic combination of sexism, colourism and economic disadvantage.

Career

How LGBTQ+ Employees Can Embrace Authenticity

Antoine Tirard & Claire Harbour

Four professionals with different sexual orientations and gender identities describe their journeys.

Responsibility

Healing the Social Wounds of Injustice

Michael Jarrett

Sigmund Freud’s concept of the pleasure principle offers clarity on how to repair fragmented societies in the aftermath of destructive populism.

Leadership & Organisations

The Music Industry’s Best-Kept Secret? A Gender Creativity Gap

Female solo artists are more likely to put out more creative songs than their male counterparts. The key question is why. Gender inequality and representation in the industry may hold the answer.

Responsibility

Understanding the Origins of White Denial

Felicia Henderson & Zoe Kinias

Even as the existence of systemic racism becomes increasingly apparent, complacency is returning among white people. But research provides tools for reviving white racial consciousness, by remembering and celebrating common humanity.

Responsibility

Can Zoom Be a Tool for Teaching Anti-Racism?

Z. Kinias, M. Akinola, E. Kelly, M. I. Norton

Leverage today’s technology to help correct systemic problems.

Responsibility

Unearthing the Roots of Systemic Racism

F. Henderson, Z. Kinias

Dislodging deep-seated racism will require a comprehensive long-term strategy on the part of leaders, organisations and business schools.

Responsibility

Making the “New Normal” Better for Women

How individuals and organisations can keep progressing towards gender balance, in our profoundly disrupted world.

Responsibility

Disruption as a Force for Good? Gender Balance and COVID-19

Zoe Kinias & Vinika D. Rao

The pandemic may disproportionately affect women around the world – but it need not imperil the hard-earned progress towards gender balance.

Career

Seven Lessons From Refugees Who Became Entrepreneurs

Claire Harbour & Antoine Tirard

The inspiring stories of four people who relaunched their career from scratch.

Leadership & Organisations

The Powerful Leadership of African Women

Lucy Quist

Six women leading the way and inspiring others to realise their potential.

Leadership & Organisations

Challenging Assumptions About Flexible Work

Zoe Kinias & Felicia A. Henderson

How a CEO built better work-life balance in the gruelling property industry.

Leadership & Organisations

Five Qualities for Leading Business in the 21st Centur)y

Lucy Quist

In an age of uncertainty, people need inspiration.

Career

An Action Plan for Work-Family Balance

Finding the right balance for your personal and professional life requires conscious planning, ample reflection and proper communication.

productive thinking for gender balance.jpg

Leadership & Organisations

Enabling Productive Thinking to Develop Gender Balance

Zoe Kinias

Subtle mental shifts can increase people’s responsiveness to the gender gap, and their commitment to doing something about it.

Responsibility

A New Framework for Corporate Activism

Knowing when – and how – to appropriately speak out on political issues is becoming a core skill for business leaders.

Entrepreneurship

‘Pink Silos’ in Start-up Funding and How to Avoid Them

Isabelle Solal

Female entrepreneurs and female investors risk being boxed in if they seek only each other’s company.

Responsibility

Integrating Diversity Into Business Education

Z. Kinias, M. Akinola, A. Carter, M. Norton, K. Phillips

Conversations around diversity, equity and inclusion can be uncomfortable. But business school classrooms need to embrace them nonetheless.

Economics & Finance

Getting Rid of Gender Bias in Venture Capital

M Varadan, K Hassan, C Zeisberger

The gender gap in VC doesn’t merely reflect society’s sexism. It’s an alarm bell, warning of an industry’s obsolescence.

Leadership & Organisations

Coming Out at Work

Elizabeth Florent Treacy

Practitioner research sheds light on how LGBTQ equality in the workplace benefits everyone, and how best to promote it.

Career

Composing a Life of Complex Change

Linda Brimm

Firms can benefit greatly from helping experienced global professionals transition to headquarters and a geographically settled life.

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