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Global Inclusion, Diversity, Belonging, Equity, and Access - GIDBEA..The Architecture of A New Different.
Authors: Lisa Coleman

Number of views: 71
The article asserts the need for organizations to adopt intentional and transformative
Global Inclusion, Diversity, Belonging, Equity, and Access (GIDBEA) practices, to ensure
their future readiness. The research developed reaffirms the benefits of GIDBEA
strategies in identifying gap areas and navigating crises, by providing insights on how to
successfully embed a ‘new different’ GIDBEA strategy into organizational frameworks.
By drawing trends across the 2020-2021 COVID-19 pandemic and other previous
health and economic crises, it is indicated what is described as the “normality of
disruption” and the need to move away from the idea of a ‘new normal’ to a new
different. The new different acknowledges that the ‘normal’ or the status quo was often
challenging for many. The impact and importance of the disruptions that individuals,
communities, nations, etc., all have and will face together, is also recognized. The new
different emphasizes organizational transformation through co-creation, sustainability,
adaptivity, resilience, and design thinking. By implementing a design thinking model,
GIDBEA proactively engages mistakes while promoting innovation through dissent
and disruption. As a result, disruptions are not considered episodic crises but as
recurring, expected, and presenting opportunities. Furthermore, it is argued that
GIDBEA expertise is essential for remaining agile, innovative, and providing strategic
organizational architecture to prepare and innovate for these disruptions. However,
it is necessary to consider that GIDBEA practice can be limited due to the failure of
organizations and leaders to frame it as an asset and develop strategic plans to leverage
it in the same way they do other critical functional business units. Therefore, unless
prioritized and conducted intentionally, GIDBEA work will not achieve its promised
bonuses and transformative potential.
The article offers readers insights and tools to assess existing GIDBEA within their
organization. Using metaphors of “construction” and “architecture,” it illustrates how
reimaging organizational architectures and constructing initiatives focused on GIDBEA
are fundamental to resiliency, organizational sustainability, and the ability to thrive
through shifting landscapes.