Every conversation about the most vital leadership challenges facing our clients today seems to include a discussion of diversity: “How do we get more women, people from different professional experiences, and members of the LGBTQ community into the boardroom and C-suite?” However, the diversity discussion rarely includes leaders with disabilities. If we compare the share of workers by seniority levels – 23.2% of workers with no disability occupy positions of Managers, Directors, VP and CXOs. Whereas this share for workers with disability is 17.9% as per the Disability Status and Work report by LinkedIn.
In 2021, it was estimated that in India over 2.2 percent of the 1.36 billion population endures some form of severe mental or physical disability. To put it into perspective, this amounts to 29.9 Million people, which is greater than the population of entire continent of Australia. Yet people with disabilities largely remain invisible in the workplace in India. In fact, there is a widespread notion among senior executives that there are no people with disabilities in their ranks. Indeed, while Chief Human Resources Officers (CHROs) and Chief Diversity Officers (CDOs) are increasingly likely to be well-versed in the legal, practical, and organizational aspects of disability and inclusion, many of the executives they work with are not. As a result, they may have never taken the time to think about the topic of disability at all, let alone the inclusion of people with disabilities as part of diversity and inclusion policies—and how a disability can be an asset in a skilled leadership as they bring a variety of unique perspectives, skills, and experiences to the table.
Recognising the Spectrum of Disabilities
An important fact we miss out on is that one doesn’t need to be born with a disability necessarily, sometimes people become disabled in the course of life due to unfortunate incidents or biological changes. Abled people believe that this might never impact them but a lot of disabilities are acquired, for instance, due to unfortunate accidents, or diseases such as paralysis etc. So, it’s important for even abled individuals to ensure this inclusive momentum gains strength.
A great example is when Satya Nadella took the helm as Microsoft’s CEO in 2014, he set the company on a path to becoming a leader in inclusive innovation. Driven in part by his personal connection to disability, Nadella made accessibility a core pillar of Microsoft’s mission, fundamental to the tech giant’s purpose and culture. And the result of this commitment is visible at various leadership positions. Vanessa Ho, a very senior author for Microsoft Blog has a non-apparent disability, Angela Mills the vice president of Game Creator platform is visually impaired and Craig Cincotta, the communications head for Microsoft Azure opened up about his mental health illnesses which were not very apparent. He received a great support from the organization when he opened up about his generalized anxiety disorder and he ensures he helps people across the globe who experience similar invisible disabilities.
While some companies have started building inclusion policies that welcome people with disabilities at entry-level positions, the inclusion of people with disabilities in the ranks of senior leaders is still emerging as a priority. To succeed, many leaders with disabilities have had to hide their disability and its extent for as long as possible. If they received support, it was primarily under the radar when an observant and caring leader, boss, or mentor helped them navigate the organization to reach the top ranks.
Not only is it powerful to see disabled leaders, but by including professionals with disabilities in key positions of leadership, an organization demonstrates a commitment to the values of accessibility, inclusion, and belonging. A major reason many companies have been so slow to adopt more inclusive practices is because there haven’t historically been people with disabilities in decision-making positions who could highlight the experiences of living with a disability. In other words, the interests of disabled professionals are easier to ignore when people living with disabilities are not present.
It’s not enough for an organization to pledge a commitment to greater accessibility and inclusion, implement inclusion interview processes – processes – one that is designed to help candidates perform at their best, no matter what their background, demographic, physical capabilities or neurodivergence, adopt accessible digital design, or hire professionals with disabilities. Disability representation in leadership is vital. If your company is authentically dedicated to overcoming the employment gap and improving working conditions for the disability community, then you must create a deep-rooted culture of inclusion starting with hiring and retaining, creating accessibility at every touch point for a professional whether it is related to physical structures, tools and technology. There is need for starting a revolution that aims towards Integrated Disability Inclusion, focusing on Disability sensitization of Leadership and Disability sensitization of Human Resources professionals. This will help develop a deeper, inclusive culture and environment which will trickle from the Top down. Kognitivus cares deeply about disability inclusion, which is why with a group of leaders with similar interest, we have created TEAM BEACON, an organization that can be a trusted partner in any organization’s Integrated Disability Inclusion journey. To know more, read about Team Beacon’s offering.
Integrated Disability Inclusion
by Team Beacon
Your trusted catalyst
Rajul Jain 
Rupa Susarla 
Sonal Verma