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Inclusion in Business

Inclusion is a word we hear a lot growing up. However, what does it really entail? Well, from my reading of One Without the Other I came to understand it as a concept of equal access and participation (Moore, 2017). This concept in Business (my current program) can be complicated, as it can be an environment of exclusivity especially with social class (which I can say from experience). However, with time and the help of online communication, this industry has progressed in terms of diversity and inclusivity. Nowadays we have access to free business seminars through applications like Zoom, Facebook Live, and YouTube which allows individuals access without the worry of costs, location, qualification, etc. This allows any interested individual access to things, which before these applications, wouldn’t have had access to. This can also break a barrier in terms of language or inability of hearing, as at times, closed captioning is available. We also can see this progress in inclusivity from many other applications such as accessible communication with email and easily made connections through Instagram and LinkedIn. Not only has the business world expanded with Inclusion and Diversity, but it is now a contributing factor in the rating of businesses! As we evolve and begin to become a more accepting and understanding society, businesses as well, have begun to understand this importance.

* How diverse is your existing PLN?

In my PLN I like to think it is diverse however, when really looking at it, those who make up my PLN all fit into a similar category. I’m not saying there isn’t much diversity, I’m just noting that those I interact with and learn from the most, share similarities in terms of social class, location, sexuality. This isn’t regarding my extended PLN as online and in the classroom, I try to connect as much as I can (hard at times when socializing can be tiring haha), but I think this week taking time to really reflect has led me to want to be honest with myself. Without this initial realization, I will never be able to grow my PLN and with time and exploring on and off-campus I will be able to genuinely diversify and expand my PLN.

* In your PLN, are you learning from a variety of voices, or are you the loudest in the room?

I have quite a few voices I learn from especially being on campus and having a business-minded Mother (who is someone who somehow has a bigger personality and voice than me), but I at times can be the person who takes voice. Being that I am this loud and at times overbearing person, when thrown into conversation, when I have a point I can add, I do. This makes for more of a combination of the two in my opinion because I am always open to learning from any person that comes my way, but I just happen to be someone who must also give input when with others.

* Do you participate in a silo of information sharing (similar themes or wide range of interests)?

I think I have a wide range of interests; however, these things do seem to intersect in suspecting but also unsuspecting ways! So, although there is a wide range, they end up connecting and forming this link between ideas. I don’t ever want to hold myself back in terms of learning therefore, I try to expand my knowledge as much as possible and find joy in connecting these different things.

* How can you use a diverse PLN to broaden your views of inclusion?

Inclusion for some is better described as integration as we saw in The Evolution of Inclusion: The past and future of education by Shelley Moore. Therefore, by diversifying our PLN and not just integrating diversity and instead including it through participation and collaboration, you can not only expand your ideas of inclusion but genuinely create a diverse PLN. Think about if you’re PLN was made up of only like-minded individuals who came from the same background /experiences. You would end up gaining perspective from a not really varied group, leading to a basic and almost one-sided thought. However, by including anyone, anywhere, into these thought processes and gaining their perspectives you can begin to build such an expanded idea of inclusion or simply anything!

* In your professional setting of choice, do you think inclusion is actively embraced?

I think nowadays Inclusion is at the forefront of most businesses, I mean inclusivity is a huge part of how customers choose a brand/business. If you hear that a company embraces segregation, more times than not (I hope), you’re most likely not going to give them your business and instead go to their competitors who have a brand you can consciously agree with. Inclusivity and Diversity are now guidelines for businesses, try looking up a business and then putting in [Company name] Inclusivity and Diversity report and see what comes up! You’d be surprised how poor some companies are but also surprised by how well others are doing. I think remembering this is important for me personally because as I begin this journey in this business world, I hope to never lose focus on what really matters. I find myself at times being wrapped up in the importance of “success” or “profiting” however, it’s the way we get there that genuinely matters/counts.

* What is the learning outcome of your PLN and how are you ensuring your exposure to diversity and inclusion?

I guess the learning outcome for my PLN is really to be well-rounded in any aspect possible. I try not to allow anything to ever stop my learning and surround myself with any individual who comes my way which thus doesn’t restrict my PLN (in terms of diversity or Inclusion). However, as said previously, I do have a lack of diversity. This means something in my PLN isn’t working and I’ve come to realize that I need to connect more. I find myself getting sucked into schoolwork that I forget the importance of collaborating and connecting with others. It’s not a purposeful act of not connecting but simply the fact I forgot TO connect. My PLN currently lacks due to my own error in the ways I socialize thus completely stopping my PLNs growth and outcome.  

* How has your thinking about inclusion and PLN evolved after reviewing the videos and readings?

My ideas around Inclusion have definitely expanded through this week’s videos and readings which has greatly evolved my PLN. Inclusion was a fairly broad idea in my mind and not something I sat down to evaluate because for me it was something I already understood, which I now know to be false. Inclusion was this concept I loosely understood and followed however, with this broad sense guiding my PLN how was I ever going to reach inevitable inclusion? I am super glad we expanded on this idea of inclusion as now I can use it as a guiding tool in my networking and focus on surrounding myself with others who also consider the importance of inclusion!

Moore, S. (2017). One without the other: Stories of unity through diversity and inclusion. ProQuest Ebook Central https://ebookcentral-proquest-com.ezproxy.library.uvic.ca

Moore, Shelley. The Evolution of Inclusion: The Past and Future of Education. 1 Oct. 2018, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PQgXBhPh5Zo.

Personal Learning Networks (PLN), whether we are aware of what they are or not, contribute to our everyday learning and lives. I for one was an individual who was completely unaware of what a PLN was and thus its relevancy in my own life. However, that was quickly changed once I began to explore this week’s readings. I found that a PLN is the place we collect, generate and share information/experiences with groups of connected individuals (Gutierrez, 2016). This links into our other key idea of Digital Identity as our PLNs are developed through the use of our online activities (thus our digital identity), which allow us to view, respond and connect with individuals anytime; anywhere (Gutierrez, 2016).

What does it mean to network using social media?

Networking using social media, to many, is a conscious (and a lot of the time unconscious) everyday practice. Living in 2021, we are so familiar with the use of social media. Our generation lives through these applications whether it’s checking Tiktok, posting on Instagram, communicating through Snapchat, or reading on Reddit. All of these actions are networking using social media even though at times we might not be aware that’s what we’re doing. Think of how many times you have come across a post on Instagram and found out something that relates to your studies and provided you with interesting new information. Have you ever shared those posts to your story or reposted them on your page? did you gain a new follower from this? We’re you able to talk about this post with other like-minded individuals in the comments? Well, that’s networking using social media! The use of these social medias grants us access to communicate with people regardless of timezones, learn new things whether we wanted to see them or not and express our interests to anyone anywhere. In the past, to network we had to go somewhere to meet people or find resources, however now it’s as simple as clicking a button.

How are we motivated to participate in networked publics?

We all experience motivation and drive no matter what it may be towards. It causes us to seek out sources and go to extra lengths. Regarding networked publics, it follows the emerging theme in this blog post, it’s a conscious but also unconscious motivation we have. It is in our nature to seek out those we can relate to and converse with. This can lead us to join Facebook groups of like-minded individuals (I personally am a part of the “Gustavson Commerce Class of 2024” and “Costco Langford Updates”) and forums. This is an act we do throughout our days’ whether it’s to engage in public networks or simply achieve our natural instinct of communication and belonging. A part of the readings this week which I think relates to this question would be as follows:

“Both strong and weak connections contribute to the individual’s learning: strong ties allow for active collaboration on knowledge creation, whereas weak ties are sources for new information, knowledge and ideas (Bell, 2010; Gargiulo and Benassi, 2000; Jones, 2008; Jones, et al., 2008; Ryberg and Larsen, 2008; Wenger, 1998)”

What are the risks & rewards of public communications?

Public communications can lead us to experience and learn things that in everyday life we probably wouldn’t have come across. We don’t have the worry of not being able to communicate due to location and timezones as online we can connect with anyone. We also can express ourselves and our experiences with so many individuals we could have never communicated with without online resources. However, even though we gain all of these amazing new ways of learning and communicating, it still holds many risks. Putting our information online gives up a lot of our privacy that we may not be comfortable providing (Boyd, 2012). When we share things online not only is our system aware of these things but as said before so many people can see it. This can seriously put us in a sticky situation as putting vulnerable information online jeopardizes our security and those around us. Not only do we have to worry about our privacy but the things we post online can have a detrimental effect on our image. When we say/post things online we have to keep in mind that colleagues, future employers, and friends have open access to these posts.

What is a digital identity?

Digital identity essentially is your presence online. Everything you post, interact with, and join is a part of this identity. In short, all aspects of your online actions make up your digital identity. ( be careful what you post, we all can see it, and now it’s a part of your digital identity!! )

How do personal versus professional approaches to digital identity affect social media use?

A personal approach to digital identity leads our social media to look completely different than it would for a professional approach. In personal use, we tend to give a lot more information about our lives while with a professional approach we would keep these more private. Professionally our connections stay very linked but personally, we can expand into such a huge variety of different groups. A personal approach also leads us to post and interact online in a much more vulnerable and open way. Something we would likely refrain from doing from a professional standpoint. Both have such different sides but contribute astronomically to our PLNs (in such interesting different ways, providing us with so much more depth)!

How do digital identities converge in networked publics – what are the impacts and/or benefits?

Our digital identities showcase who we are as individuals and this can allow anyone to get an understanding of who we are as people. This can be super impactful with employers being able to see our strong suits and redeeming qualities however, with them being able to see the positives they also are then able to see the negatives. This means that our digital identities open up an opportunity for our downfalls to be presented to anyone at any time, possibly ruining our potential connections and job opportunities.

References :

Boyd, Danah. (2012). Networked Privacy. Surveillance and Security .

Gutierrez, K. (2016, June 21). What are personal Learning networks? What are Personal Learning Networks? Retrieved from https://www.shiftelearning.com/blog/personal-learning-networks.