Today’s labor market is in a state of flux—but that’s nothing new. The world around us is constantly shifting, impacting lives both in and out of the proverbial office. As a result, work experiences are becoming more fluid and individualized. If leaders want to create an environment where people can thrive, they need to start by helping people feel like they belong. See, for example, our own study that looks at how Accenture people faired during the pandemic, while working almost 100% remotely.

No two experiences are the same. Leaders must consider what matters most to their people to help them thrive and advance in an equitable workplace. By prioritizing psychological safety, leaders can enable a more inclusive environment where everyone feels valued, seen and heard. What leaders need more than ever today is an insatiable curiosity and concern about their people.

It’s becoming harder to separate the outside world from what’s happening within an organization as the line between life and work continues to blur. Lived experiences not only drive how work Is viewed, but also what people need to thrive. Therefore, leaders must truly care about diversity, inclusion and belonging if they want to start creating a psychologically safe environment.

But what does it mean to belong? Our research shows that belonging manifests across four categories: having influence over decisions, being respected by your peers and managers, feeling comfortable speaking up and receiving sponsorship from a senior leader who can help you advance and grow.

In the context of our study, diversity as lever is about holding leaders accountable. Diversity as part of the framework is about representation. When you have both, the journey to systemic equality can begin. To truly foster a sense of belonging, the wider societal context of the world—from corporate responses to anti-racism movements to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic—must always be considered. Internal environments must then adapt to the unique challenges and experiences people face.

When environments are psychologically safe, people are more likely to be honest and forthcoming about their concerns. Some might even be willing to share their ideas on how the organization can make employees feel NBO.

And yet, there is no one-size-fits-all approach to creating this sense of belonging. It’s personal—based on an individual’s own lived experiences—which makes it hard for CEOs to scale within their organizations. The consequence is that over a third of employees don’t feel like they belong.

Fortunately, leaders can leave their people NBO by getting the key moments in their careers, from onboarding to leaving, right. When they do, leaders can expect to see NBO scores surge 3.2x. Even better: When leaders get the day-to-day experiences right, they can increase NBO by up to 5x.

Another reason why leaders should care? Because their customers do. Over half (54%) of Promoters (compared to just 23% of Detractors) feel that companies are responsible for leaving them NBO.¹ And given that Promoters are most likely to recommend a company’s products or services, creating positive experiences across each dimension of NBO is good for business.

Furthermore, leaving people NBO fosters loyalty. Fifty-seven percent (57%) of US consumers say they spend more on brands they are loyal to.² For leaders, the remit is clear: There is a positive correlation between belonging and the bottom line. But what steps can leaders take?

Belonging isn’t just a box that can be checked off. It takes an earnest and sincere effort, each day. In our research, we identified 10 levers that leaders need to continually apply. These levers span across three key areas: essential people skills, organizational factors such as skilling and individual factors such as self-efficacy.

Leaders can drastically improve the employee experience by focusing on the four essential people skills. These include:

The promise of the future rests on the actions that leaders take today: unconscious bias training must be replaced with conscious people recognition; psychologically safe spaces must be maintained for candid conversations. These are just a few ways to start closing the gap.

We still have a way to go. Our research shows that workers in need of skilling, LGBTQ+, racial and ethnic minorities, and women have the longest runway to an equitable work experience. However, women have the most to gain—unlocking 4.7x their potential—if their everyday experiences are managed better.

Looking ahead, leaders must focus on building out these essential skills, every day. Here are some other concrete steps they can take.

Accenture Research interviewed 33 individuals in May of 2020 and surveyed 6,998 individuals and 3,520 customers between September and November 2020. Data was collected in 14 countries within four regions: North America, EMEA, Asia Pacific and Latin America. The study includes responses from frontline and enablement workers and customers within seven industries which include: banking, insurance, healthcare, government, retail, telecommunications and utilities. Factor analyses were used to determine the experience levers, while linear regression was used to determine their relationship to worker outcomes.

¹ - “Promoters” and “Detractors” based off the Net Promoter System

² - Seeing Beyond the Loyalty Illusion: It's Time You Invest More Wisely