Celebrating a Culture of Belonging: The Journey to Inclusive Leadership

Reflecting on my career journey and life experiences, I recognize how they’ve shaped my perspective on inclusivity in the workplace. The importance of an inclusive environment at work has always been a no brainer to me and something I’ve valued, but it wasn’t until I stepped into more leadership roles that I began to understand how much intentional effort it takes to make this a reality. It’s something I work at every day because I believe we can always learn more about supporting our colleagues and ultimately provide a space where everyone can be their best selves.

Although I now work in the CDM Smith Australia office in Perth, I grew up on a sheep and cattle farm in northern New South Wales, Australia. I didn’t realize it at the time, but spending my childhood working on my family farm in a rural town allowed me to gain unique life experiences that certainly differ to my current lifestyle in Perth and working in an office environment. Knowing what I bring from my own background, I understand that each one of my colleagues has their own story to tell and we all see the world differently.

As a Regional Team Leader, I feel it’s my responsibility to provide a workplace where each of our team members can be their unique selves, with their own worldviews and lived experiences, and we can come together to succeed and thrive. Whether people want to be celebrated, accommodated or simply heard, I will always do whatever I can to make sure they feel accepted and valued. I’ve attended inclusive leadership trainings on topics like mental health and neurodivergence and I’ve learned from all kinds of resources that our fantastic Human Resources team provides, but I have also found so much value in sitting down with my colleagues and having open conversations about what they need in order to do their best work, and more importantly, be happy, comfortable and fulfilled. Of course, it’s imperative that this be done in a safe space and people may not be willing to share, but taking that next step to apply what you’re learning from informational resources can and does make a difference in understanding where a person is coming from and what they might be challenged with.

Being a mother to two young children, I’m personally empowered by the inclusive and flexible culture at CDM Smith. Since joining the firm more than three years ago, I have always felt supported and respected as a working parent. I absolutely love my job, but family comes first, and I have never had to compromise on that. I know many of my colleagues feel the same and there’s a level of trust that allows me to show up as both the parent and employee I want to be. The freedom I have to express my identity in this way has instilled in me a sense of empathy for others and whether its family dynamics, race, age, gender identity, sexual orientation, or anything at all, I want everyone to feel empowered to express themselves however they wish to.

In Perth, our efforts to promote inclusivity are ongoing. We’ve had and continue to have open discussions about employee needs, we participate in an anonymous pulse survey and in 2022 we launched our Social Committee which is dedicated to organizing employee events and activities including this month’s Pride festivities. I believe fostering an inclusive workplace will always be a journey rather than something to complete and achieve. Things have certainly changed throughout my own career thus far and while I recognize the progress that’s been made in society, I hope to continue learning every day and doing what I can to be a part of the change I still wish to see.

Julia Curran is an environmental scientist and Regional Team Leader in our Perth, Australia office.