Webinar: Fostering Inclusive Companies - How We All Can Make a Difference!

One of the main take-aways of this webinar: Inclusion in companies can be designed not just as a good intention, but as an effective, measurable and collaborative process. The focus of our discussion lied on the following questions:

• How can inclusion have a lasting effect and enable genuine participation?
• How can individual commitment be combined with clear roles, structures and shared responsibility?

As an opening question, we asked our webinar participants about their involvement in the inclusion work of their companies. While some were at the very beginning of their inclusion journeys and made a first step by attending our webinar, many attendees are already heavily involved in the area of inclusion. At 58%, the majority saw themselves as active drivers of inclusion for people with disabilities in their organisation.

The following slide shows the opening question that asks the participants what they think: 

How well do you personally feel involved in your organization's inclusion work or empowered to make a difference?

• Not at all - Inclusion is not (yet) part of my tasks or I don't know how I can get involved.
• Hardly - I am aware of the topic, but I lack the opportunities or my commitment has had little effect so far.
• Partially - I get involved, but it is unclear whether this is seen or changes anything.
• Actively involved - I am actively involved and help drive the inclusion forward.

During the webinar, our experts demonstrated how companies can effectively organize their efforts for more inclusion–strategically, structurally and holistically. Both the big picture and the role of individual actors were highlighted: Whether as a manager, confidant, accessibility officer, HR manager or inclusion officer–each and everyone can make a targeted contribution to ensuring that inclusion in the company is more than just a good intention.

Zoe Seitz (DisAbility Management Consultant & Inclusive Business Development, myAbility), an expert from myAbility, provided an overview of the principles of inclusive organizational development. She identified and explained three important factors for successfully anchoring inclusion in the company which you can see on the slide below:

Successfully planting the seeds inclusion in a company takes place on three levels

Concrete Action: 
Implementing inclusion in day-to-day work, i.e. the way inclusion is lived during daily business

Structures: 
Conditions for fostering values of inclusion and taking concrete measures

Company Culture: 
Reflects the values and stance of a company and its team(s)

Success in this regard means to consider all three levels. Based on this, the three levels can also serve as a litmus test for inclusive corporate structures.

Apart from our myAbility colleague, we were happy to welcome four external experts who provided us with overarching perspectives and practical insights into best practices in their respective companies across German-speaking Europe (the D-A-CH region):

• Margit Vunder: Culture, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, EY Switzerland
• Sarah Kurmann: Diversity Management, ING Deutschland (Germany)
• Angela Hammer: Senior Specialist Diversity Management, ÖBB (Austrian Federal Railways)
• David Gansrigler-Bloemeke: Senior Specialist Diversity Management, ÖBB (Austrian Federal Railways)

Inclusion in the business world is far more than just a social responsibility. It is a strategic success factor. Through defining goals, inclusive language, the creation of responsibilities and patience in the process, an inclusive corporate culture can be created that benefits both employees, the company and our society in general.

For questions or feedback, please contact us at

forum@myAbility.org.