How to Unlock Potential: The Key to Thriving Business Success

Issue 2837 — February 3, 2025

You are incredibly, beautifully diverse.

Think about it. A friend once observed to me that we are all made up of many tribes, each of which brings a piece of our identity to life.

How many tribes do you belong to? What characteristics of yourself do you identify with?

I didn’t always appreciate the richness of this concept, but over time, I’ve come to love and embrace the reality of the multifaceted elements that form the whole of who I am.

We define our tribes, and our diverse tribes define us. For me, my tribes form a vibrant tapestry: I am a woman, an American-Texan-Arizonan-New Yorker, Jewish, granddaughter of immigrants, feminist, mother, grandmother, widow, leader, Pilates fan, and so much more. I treasure each of these characteristics because every one of them contributes to a unique dimension of my identity, enriching my ability to live and work successfully across cultures in our increasingly diverse world.

Diversity is an asset, equity is a right, and inclusion is something we all need and deserve.

We must overcome these attempts to taint something so vital to our collective progress. DEI is in fact the opposite of racism. It makes the workplace fairer for everyone and more profitable to boot. It is the intentional creation of systems and relationships that address and mitigate the harmful effects of racism, sexism, implicit bias, and other forms of discrimination — not just in workplaces but in every sphere of life.

Yet DEI has been reduced to a political epithet by its critics. We’ve seen backlash against DEI initiatives recently, and frankly, the speed and intensity have been shocking. Even more shocking has been the rapidity with which even powerful heads of major companies such as Meta, Walmart, and Target have bent their knees at the mere anticipation of anti-DEI moves regardless of whether they have legal teeth or if they’re keeping with the company’s mission and policies that promise fairness and equity to employees.

Why the backlash? Fear. Fear of losing privilege, fear of sharing power, and fear of disrupting the status quo of white male hegemony in most fields. Fear metastasizes into anger and that toxic combination is a poor foundation for building any healthy entity.

But as I always say, #CarpeTheChaos. At my organization, Take The Lead, the principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion by any name are core to our mission. So we look for the opportunity in the current disruption. Smart companies know that their future success lies in retaining and enhancing their DEI commitments, not retreating from them. Diversity isn’t a temporary initiative — it’s the backbone of innovation, resilience, and sustainable growth. Diverse teams are smarter, according to multiple studies cited in the Harvard Business Review. This pays off because the market is diverse and the marketplace for talent is diverse.

Perhaps it would be useful to redefine the acronym to make it more accurate to what it is trying to accomplish. Two versions that I’ve seen suggested are:

— DEI: Definitely Earned It

— DEI: Democratically Elected Individual

There are also the expansions of the term that include words like accessibility, justice, and belonging.

Investor and former principal owner of the Dallas Mavericks Mark Cuban has spoken up forcefully about the business case for DEI. In a tweet, Cuban shared:

Let me help you out and give you my thoughts on DEI…

Good businesses look where others don’t, to find the employees that will put your business in the best possible position to succeed. You may not agree, but I take it as a given that there are people of various races, ethnicities, orientation, etc. that are regularly excluded from hiring consideration. By extending our hiring search to include them, we can find people that are more qualified. The loss of DEI-Phobic companies is my gain.

We live in a country with very diverse demographics. In this era where trust of businesses can be hard to come by, people tend to connect more easily to people who are like them. Having a workforce that is diverse and representative of your stakeholders is good for business.

As Mellody Hobson, president and CEO of Ariel Investments and former chair of Starbucks and DreamWorks Animation so brilliantly put it on CNBC, “Talent and genius do not discriminate.”

The companies that understand this truth are doubling down on their commitments to DEI, even in the face of opposition. They know that fostering diverse teams isn’t just morally right — it’s a competitive advantage.

Want to support the principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion by whatever name? Start by supporting companies that are maintaining their DEI commitments, such as Costco, Apple, Delta Airlines, and JPMorgan Chase Bank. Buy from them. Promote them. Work for them.

L-R Christian Romero, Deanna Murphy, Maggie Sanchez, Gloria Feldt, Ashley Kelly, Jose Yanez kicking off the Small Business Growth Masterclass series — a partnership of JP Morgan Chase and Take The Lead.

Take The Lead is here to help your company implement an effective culture of inclusion. Contact or support us here.

And if you’re a DEI professional, this is the time to apply your smartest strategy. Show, with data and impact, the undeniable value of equity, inclusion, and belonging to attracting, hiring, and retaining the best and brightest employees. Ultimately, money speaks loudest. Keep data so you can confirm profitability with more women and diversity of all kinds in leadership. Demonstrate with the math the importance of being attractive to consumers who are inherently diverse and notice whether they are represented in company leadership in particular, and in all employees who are customer facing.

Because the truth is that we are all diverse. That is an asset that deserves to be celebrated, not politicized or diminished.

The bottom line is that DEI is a net positive — not a threat. It is the key to unlocking innovation, strengthening organizational resilience, and creating opportunities for everyone to succeed. The companies and individuals who see DEI in their path forward are the ones that will thrive over the long haul.

GLORIA FELDT is the Cofounder and President of Take The Lead, a motivational speaker, a global expert in women’s leadership development and DEI for individuals and companies that want to build gender balance. She is a bestselling author of five books, most recently Intentioning: Sex, Power, Pandemics, and How Women Will Take The Lead for (Everyone’s) Good. Honored as Forbes 50 Over 50, and Former President of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, she is a frequent media commentator. Learn more at www.gloriafeldt.com and www.taketheleadwomen.com. Find her @GloriaFeldt on all social media.