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This paper explores the collaborative dynamics and dimensions within a virtual multi-cultural and interdisciplinary workplace. The study focusses on the use of online communication technologies to enhance social inclusion and networking within academia.

This study uses an autoethnographic approach to draw on the personal experiences of a team of four scholars, including three early-career researchers and a senior scholar. Their reflections on their academic positionality and the institutional constraints reveal both the strengths and vulnerabilities of collaborating in a virtual workplace.

The findings offer insights into the complexities of navigating social dynamics, such as delegating responsibilities, organising meetings across various time zones and encouraging continuous collaboration, inclusivity and effective communication during an extensive timeline. As a result, their experiences revealed that a virtual workplace culture with similar and different attributes to a “normal” workplace emerged.

The paper demonstrates how to create an effective and inclusive virtual workplace by exemplifying best practices in academia and providing practical guidance for individuals and institutions based on honest, co-produced autoethnographic reflections of the authors’ lived experiences.

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the incorporation, prioritization and depth of equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) initiatives in tourism industry restart policies of Canadian provinces and territories. This study investigates how the detailing of EDI in policies determine the priority in emancipating tourism workers from the inequities exacerbated during the pandemic. Such investigation enables a better understanding of the complexities, tendencies and rationale of involving EDI in the tourism industry’s recovery.

The research investigated the presence and prioritization of equity, diversity, and inclusion using systematic text analytics of 38 publicly available restart plans and statements from 52 government and non-government agencies. Using web-based software Voyant Tools to assist in text analytics, a hybrid deductive-inductive coding approach was conducted.

Key outcomes from the analysis revealed scarce to no full and dedicated content on EDI as a holistic initiative necessary for tourism industry relaunch. This lack of EDI content was a result of the greater impetus to prioritize economic generation and limited data due to practical and ideological issues. Results also suggested the tokenizing of EDI in some policies.

Difficulties in data used for research include the lack and availability of restart policies specifically for tourism; most policies were generalized and referred to economic recovery as a whole. Studies of tourism-specific EDI issues were also limited.

The research is revelatory for investigating EDI prioritizations in restart policies even among well-developed and worker-diverse tourism industries such as in Canada, where inequities and injustices to women, Black, Indigenous, gender-diverse, and newcomer tourism workers among others have been withstanding.

This paper aims to explore how the scientific literature and company reports have addressed inclusive workplace design and strategies to date.

This paper adopts a scoping review to answer the following question: To what extent is inclusion present in workplace design and related strategies? An analysis of 27 scientific papers and 25 corporate social responsibility reports of the highest-ranked companies in the Great Place to Work global ranking disentangles the main aspects related to workplace design and strategies for promoting inclusion.

This paper opens avenues for four macro-categories of diversity (psycho-physical aspects; cultural aspects; socio-economic conditions; and ability, experience and strengths) to support the development of inclusive workplace design and strategy. Besides, multiple spatial scales emerged as material and immaterial elements of the workplace encountering inclusion and diversity.

Nowadays, the workforce is becoming more diverse. Although diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) has become key to many organizations, it remains unclear how DE&I principles are applied in workspace design and strategies. This scoping review provides a novel perspective on the topic by integrating scientific knowledge and practice-based approaches which still address this matter independently.

Neurodivergent employees have atypical needs that require distinctive leadership approaches. In this study, the specific nature of a relationship between neurodivergent employees and their neurotypical leaders is explored through the lens of the leader–member exchange (LMX) theory.

This two-phased qualitative study builds on 12 semi-structured interviews with neurodivergent employees and an unstructured focus group with 15 individuals with professional and/or personal interest in neurodiversity. The researcher spent almost 13 h listening to the lived experiences of research participants concerning neurodiversity and leadership.

Leaders who exhibit empathy and understanding were noted to provide greater support. The findings also highlight the complexity of neuro-inclusion in the workplace. Specifically, the delicate balance between accommodation and avoiding stigmatization is emphasized, addressing the concerns raised regarding the legal risks associated with neurodivergent inclusion. Additionally, the findings underscore the necessity for leaders to avoid patronizing behaviors while catering to the diverse needs of neurodivergent employees. This underscores the importance of supporting both neurodivergent employees and leaders navigating such challenges.

The findings help establish inclusive and accommodating employee relations practices that conscientiously address the requirements of neurodivergent employees while providing support for those in leadership roles.

This study constitutes a direct answer to recent calls to develop a more nuanced understanding of workplace neurodiversity, with a specific focus on neuro-inclusive leadership. Acknowledging that we still use inappropriate, old tools in new situations that require novel approaches to leadership helps set the agenda for future research in this area.

This study aims to analyse the relationship between diversity practices and employee engagement in the specific context of a telecommunications company.

Using simple and multiple linear regressions, the authors test the mediating effect of the perception of inclusion and the moderating role of inclusive leadership, as well as whether this style of leadership promotes the perception of inclusion among employees.

The results are based on a sample of 238 responses and show that a positive correlation exists between the perception of diversity practices and engagement which is mediated by the perception of inclusion. However, inclusive leadership fails to moderate this relationship, although it does positively influence employees’ perception of inclusion.

The study emphasises: the importance of employees’ perceptions of diversity and inclusion as a strategic priority of their organisations and the importance of its embeddedness in the organisational culture and daily practices and the role of inclusive leaders in shaping employees’ perceptions, as this leadership may have significant implications for their engagement and performance.

This research offers a better understanding of what contributes to an inclusive workplace and the role of inclusive leaders in building up employees’ perception of inclusion that, thus, enhances their engagement.

Neste estudo analisamos a relação entre práticas de diversidade e engagement dos colaboradores no contexto específico de uma empresa de telecomunicações.

Mediante regressões lineares simples e múltiplas, avaliamos o efeito mediador da perceção de inclusão e o papel moderador da liderança inclusiva, bem como se este estilo de liderança promove a perceção de inclusão dos colaboradores.

Os resultados têm por base uma amostra de 238 respostas e mostram que existe uma correlação positiva entre a perceção das práticas de diversidade e o engagement, mediada pela perceção de inclusão. A liderança inclusiva não modera, porém, aquela relação, embora influencie positivamente a perceção de inclusão dos colaboradores.

Este estudo enfatiza: (a) a importância da perceção de diversidade e inclusão dos colaboradores como prioridade estratégica nas suas organizações e a importância da sua incrustração na cultura organizacional e práticas quotidianas; e (b) o papel dos líderes inclusivos na modelação das perceções dos colaboradores, dado que este estilo de liderança tem implicações significativas ao nível dos seus níveis de engagement e desempenho.

Esta pesquisa oferece uma melhor compreensão sobre o que contribui para um ambiente de trabalho inclusivo e o papel dos líderes inclusivos na construção da percepção de inclusão dos colaboradores, que, por seu turno, melhora o seu engagement.

En este estudio analizamos la relación entre las prácticas de diversidad y el engagement de los trabajadores en el contexto específico de una empresa de telecomunicaciones.

Mediante regresiones lineales simples y múltiples, evaluamos el efecto mediador de la percepción de inclusión y el rol moderador del liderazgo inclusivo, así como si este estilo de liderazgo promueve la percepción de inclusión de los trabajadores.

Los resultados se basan en una muestra de 238 respuestas y muestran que existe una correlación positiva entre la percepción de las prácticas de diversidad y el engagement, mediada por la percepción de inclusión. El liderazgo inclusivo no modera, sin embargo, esa relación, aunque influye positivamente en la percepción de inclusión de los trabajadores.

Este estudio enfatiza: (a) la importancia de la percepción de diversidad e inclusión de los trabajadores como una prioridad estratégica en sus organizaciones y la importancia de su incrustación en la cultura organizacional y las prácticas diarias; y (b) el papel de los líderes inclusivos en la configuración de las percepciones de los trabajadores, ya que este estilo de liderazgo tiene implicaciones significativas para su engagement y desempeño.

Esta investigación ofrece una mejor comprensión de lo que contribuye a un ambiente de trabajo inclusivo y el papel de los líderes inclusivos en la construcción de la percepción de inclusión de los trabajadores, que, a su vez, mejora su engagement.

The purpose of this article is to examine the communicative factors that facilitate or hamper the development of an inclusive work environment with an emphasis on the communication about equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI), while taking diversity characteristics of employees into account.

In total, 84 persons employed in Austria and Germany, who feature various observable and non-observable diversity characteristics, were interviewed following a problem-centered approach.

The results indicate that employees with (observable) diversity characteristics, who tend to feel less included, observe more excluding and marginalizing communication and practices in their organizations. Moreover, formal interpersonal communication appears to be more important to develop a highly inclusive workplace than informal interpersonal communication and other forms of communication about EDI.

The sample was rather imbalanced and comprised only employees in Austria and Germany, which limits the study's explanatory power. However, the findings stress the significance of formal interpersonal communication as the cornerstone of an inclusive workplace, which should be followed up in future research.

In terms of the development of an inclusive work environment the findings suggest that strategic (i.e. formal) organizational communication about EDI issues is key to increase the perception of inclusion.

This paper contributes to the literature by demonstrating the importance of interpersonal communication as a key factor that facilitates, but also hampers an inclusive work environment.