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Abstract

Problem

Organizations have struggled to incorporate inclusive, diverse, and equitable cultures. As a result, employes leave organizations and take important knowledge with them. Alternatively, employe motivation is reduced when they feel they do not belong to the organization. A need to better understand how to create diverse, equitable, inclusive, and belonging (DEIB) cultures exists.

Solution

Leaders who recognize the signs of a failed or weak culture strive to embed ideas of inclusivity so that employes feel they belong, want to stay and produce for the organization. Successful DEIB leaders create cultures where staff report feelings of belongingness through understanding, learning, and trust initiatives.

Stakeholders

The intended audience for this article is leaders and managers of small organizations. Human resource policymakers and strategic business model innovators should specifically review this article's findings.

Keywords

belongingness diversity equity inclusion stakeholders organizations leaders DEIB

In 2024, Terry described the belongingness landscape through a poignantly heart-rending discussion of the Luke Combs cover of Tracy Chapman's Fast Cars, and her “surprise duet with Combs at the 2024 Grammy's” (Terry, 2024, p. 752). Terry's backdrop set the stage for a scholarly editorial and interview with Dr. Pauline Dow, about how belongingness has, should, or could become a core value of organizations. A dearth of belongingness leads to low “self-esteem, performance, behavior, and perception of others” (p. 754). Terry pulled no punches in the callout that while diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) movements have become politically polarizing and extraordinarily complicated, the use of the term belongingness in its place was a test that may solve the “search for language that builds trust and narrows divides” (p. 753). The 2024 decision by the Society of Human Resource Managers to remove equity from DEI (Callaham, 2024) and the decision by the Trump-led administration to remove DEI from all aspects of the federal government raise the importance of this research study and the resulting discussions of belongingness significantly. Whether DEI becomes DI, DEIB, DEB, or simply B matters less than how employes feel about going to work each day.

This qualitative exploratory inquiry study analyzed interview data from 10 executive-level DEI experts who have intentionally built the core value of belongingness into their small to medium-sized organizations. The study provides recommendations for how other organizational leaders might embark on a similar process to create more appropriate, supportive, motivating, and productive workplaces. This paper is organized by explaining the background of the study, providing the research questions (RQs) and literature review, justifying the methodology and design, and discussing the analysis, results and findings, and recommendations for additional research. The article ends with ideas for belongingness activities that might begin an organization's approach to shift its culture to prioritize making all workers feel they belong.

Background of the Study

In any organization, employes with low job engagement or motivation levels, lack of morale, or plans to quit, disrupt business by negatively impacting productivity (Rosales et al., 2023). Inequities regarding race, gender, religion, national origin, and other unprotected human differences affect the selection of project teams, determine promotions, impact resource distribution and training opportunities, and reflect on the level of employer support of DEIB (Saucedo, 2022). A problematic dynamic exists when employes perceive that inequities are normal and thus feel they do not belong. Belongingness elevates the concepts of opportunity and rewards by recognizing employe perceptions about where they fit into the organization matter to its value proposition. Implementing a business model innovation project to add belongingness to the mission or vision statements can contribute to an organization's growth (Córcoles-Muñoz et al., 2020). Fostering a culture of belonging increases knowledge transfer, creating a competitive advantage. However, the process is difficult, especially in modern flexwork, hybrid, remote, and post-pandemic workplaces.

Purpose of the Study and RQs

The study's purpose was to explore strategies that small business leaders use to change operations in ways to:
enable a belongingness culture,

integrate belongingness into strategic plans, and

create long-term conceptual goals that include belonging.

Many leaders need to be made aware of the concepts within the DEI space in how to implement a climate of strategies that, in a logistic path, create a culture of belongingness. Exploring gaps in long-term conceptual goals and their culminating from strategies and outcomes in respective organizations is how DEI leaders will witness the true concepts of belongingness in their organizational culture. DEI leaders’ perceptions about how the concepts of belongingness change how they operate are the problems essential to conflict and understanding within the operational environment. This research explored how leaders in the DEI space use such strategies to integrate the mission, vision, and value propositions (strategic plan) into the concepts of belongingness in the organization, along with the roles and responsibilities of the strategic efforts (Rosales et al., 2023; Stewart, 2020).

The research questions were centered on gaining small organizational insight through the business process methods the DEIB leaders used to implement a belongingness culture. Due to length restrictions, Four of the five RQs from the study are cohesively depicted, as such:
RQ1: What strategies do leaders of DEI use to incorporate the concepts of belongingness into their organizational culture?

RQ2: Where does the belongingness change initiatives conflict within the operations?

RQ3: What strategies do leaders of DEI use to integrate the mission, vision, and value propositions (strategic plan) into the concepts of belongingness in the organization?

RQ4: What are the roles and responsibilities of the concepts to integrating belongingness in the DEI organization.

Literature Review

An extensive literature review explored the history of DEI initiatives, the importance of using project assessment within the business model change, and a review of employe impacts when DEIB projects are undertaken. Further, a conceptual framework combining the self-determination theory and Porter's five forces was created and the literature analyzed to help guide the study's interview guide and final analysis. This framework acknowledged that a paradigm shift within a business model needs to consider the employes’ and leaders’ perspectives.

History of DEI Initiatives

DEI began as an offshoot of affirmative action laws from the Civil Rights Act of 1964. In the 1980s, managed diversity became a discussion point for human relations managers where race, gender, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, age quotas, and counts became part of a normal business process (Stephens, 2022). Khan and Jabeen (2019) explained how other historically disenfranchised groups became part of the discussion, such as workers with disabilities, family statuses, pregnancy, lactation, and many other unprotected subgroups. Reverse discrimination became a force to overcome for many DEI-focused organizations, requiring significant resource distribution, training, and organizational policy revisions (Saucedo, 2022). Belongingness as part of the DEI process has roots in social psychology (Allen et al., 2022). While research into how person-organizational fit leads to belonging, it is elusive and underdeveloped (Adejumo, 2021).

Importance of the DEIB Project Assessment

Addressing the capabilities of DEIB projects for organizations requires assessing the integrative details in the change management plan and its business case (Corrado et al., 2022). The information for the change project plan requires historical evidence and the organization's cultural environment status. As with any business model innovation, an open-minded review of the company's mission, vision, and values must occur, prioritizing stakeholders’ involvement (Brown et al., 2023; Corrado et al., 2022). Brown et al. (2023) outlined five steps to achieve DEI initiatives: aspire, assess, architect, act, and advance. Connection to leadership compensation is critical for successfully implementing belongingness or DEI into a business model (Burnett & Aguinis, 2024).

Employe Impacts from DEIB Initiatives

DEIB research has trended toward sustainable strategies, competitive advantage, corporate citizenship, and servant leadership efforts (Khan & Jabeen, 2019; Shah et al., 2021). Considerable research focuses on project and strategic management concerning innovative work leadership through job crafting and autonomy within individual and workgroup leadership and work task management, respectively (Canlas & Williams, 2022; Guo et al., 2023; Saether, 2019). Through individual innovation and work leadership, building self-determination and enabling feelings of belongingness and motivation in DEIB initiatives expedites project team growth.

Organizational Impacts from DEIB Initiatives

Change is necessary in the global business environment to maintain competitiveness (Lwin & Nandar, 2019). An organization must realize the need for an internal DEIB structure and impact. Influences can escalate negatively through the breadth and depth of the high-speed information world, and thus, a DEIB program must be planned with good leadership communication aligned with an organization's mission (El-Amin & Johnson, 2022). Stephens (2022) recommended using focus groups to find potential areas of concern so that leaders could better address the necessary items to allow employes to feel they belong. Thus, adding belongingness to existing DEI initiatives allows for a custom look to empowering employes and adding to the value proposition. Plamondon et al. (2023) recommended leader-to-employe interactions to create buy-in for the culture shift project.

Conceptual Framework

The conceptual framework that guided this study is shown in Figure 1 and includes the DEIB concepts as seen to integrate through organizational, stakeholder, employe, and individual lenses, as Corrado et al. (2022) and Kennedy and Jain-Link (2021) recommended.

Figure 1.
DEIB Conceptual Framework.

Chao et al. (2022) described the creation of a mentor/mentee program to achieve DEIB culture shifting successes and described recognizing that discussions related to DEIB concepts and initiatives require bravery on the parts of all parties. They used an acronym called “ADDRESSING” that helps to outline some of the basic identities that should be part of the initial discussion regarding DEIB, and particularly the belonging aspect. Those identities include age, disability (developmental), disability (physical), religion, ethnicity, socioeconomic, sexual orientation, indigenous heritage, national origin, and gender. They encouraged the use of the term “addressing” as way to signal to stakeholders that DEIB-styled discussions were beginning or underway.

Methodology and Design

The study used qualitative methodology and exploratory inquiry design to explore how expert-level small business DEIB leaders intentionally shifted their organizations’ cultures from DEI- to DEIB-focused. The exploratory inquiry design uses participant interview data and thematic analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2022) to create useful, pragmatic findings that other organizational leaders can emulate. The exploratory research approach was chosen due to the sensitivity and uniqueness of belongingness experiences, where belonging is better explored through informative qualitative inquiry frameworks (Becqué et al., 2021). Strategic value propositions could be better understood alongside the aspects of organizational psychology for enabling a belongingness culture. Therefore, an exploratory inquiry design with interviews provides strength ideal for studying problems in social sciences (Dunwoodie et al., 2022).

The aim was to align credibility in the set protocol of the study to other known similarities that reviewers of the information can relate to as individuals. Credibility and trustworthiness are attained in the audit trail of journaling and throughout the research process, including research notes and the reflexivity of research decisions and assumptions (Cope, 2014). To align DEIB creditable data, the aim was to provide evidence of operationalized concepts and rigorously present the procedures, principles, use, and difficulties in the research (Arias-Valencia, 2022).

Participant Selection

A purposive, social-media, snowball sampling method was used to recruit participants (N = 10; Table 1). Participants were required to be 18 years old, with at least 3 years of experience in successfully implementing DEIB initiatives in at least one organization while holding a DEI-leader role. The participants consisted of a full range of business leaders who use strategies, observations, and experiences with stakeholders belonging to the DEI organization.

Table 1.
Participant Demographics and Interview Information.

P# Gender Occupation Role Date Length Experience

P1 F Law DEIB Leader 1/29/24 40.38 Entire DEIB

P2 F Nonprofits DEIB Leader 1/31/24 52.28 Belonging initiatives

P3 M Schools DEIB Leader 2/3/24 53.41 Entire DEIB

P4 F Finance DEI Director 2/5/24 43.30 Entire DEIB

P5 M Nonprofits DEIB Leader 2/6/24 46.10 Entire DEIB

P6 M Nonprofit DEIB Director 2/7/24 33.2 Entire DEIB

P7 M Schools DEIB Leader 2/10/24 40.05 Entire DEIB

P8 F Program Manager DEIB Consultant 2/5/24 1.01.28 Belonging initiatives

P9 TM Sales DEIB Director 2/14/24 59.50 Entire DEIB

P10 M Technology DEIB Leader 2/19/24 35.54 Belonging initiatives

Note. M = Male; F = Female, TM = Trans male; DEIB = diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging.

Data Collection and Analysis

Data was collected using an expert-reviewed and field-tested interview protocol (Appendix A). The University of the Cumberlands IRB on November 28, 2023, approval number: #1123-75948 Institutional Review Board (IRB) approved the protocol and recruitment process and oversaw the ethical aspects of the study. After receiving informed consent agreements, individual interviews were held in January and February of 2024, using Zoom. After speaking with 10 experts, we determined we had reached data saturation using Braun and Clarke's (2022) definition of “information power” (p. 28). Braun and Clarke's (2022) reflexive 6-step thematic analysis process guided data analysis. Throughout data collection and analysis, bracketing to avoid bias was accomplished through researcher meetings and journaling.

Discussions and Findings

The initial codes, categories, themes, and alignment to RQs are provided in Tables 2 and 3. A discussion provides the evidence from the data and applied toward the RQs and to previous literature on belongingness.
RQ1: What strategies do leaders of DEI use to incorporate the concepts of belongingness into their organizational culture? Participants recommended providing a space for spearheading a cause, empowering and inspiring goals and committed objectives, looking for commonalities across identities, and aligning the work. They committed to providing opportunities for autonomous work teams and offered training regardless of employe status. Participant leaders revealed that they directly mentored marginalized stakeholders to provide security and safety, and coached others who exhibited negative cultural behaviors. Their strategies of setting goals and making commitments aligned with Corrado et al.'s (2022) findings, supporting leaders in their learning, internal processing, and resulting actions around facilitating real and sustainable change.

Table 2.
Subcodes, Codes, and Categories.

Subcodes Codes Categories

Equity
Inequality
Social Justice
Innovation
Strategic Planning
Continuous Improvement
Organizational Change
Employe Engagements
Work-Life Balance
Trust
Learning
Understanding
Success
Uncertainty
Adaptability
Challenges
Perseverance
Goal Setting
Motivation
Membership
Community
Community Engagement
Self-Awareness
Personal Growth
Professional Development
Change
Training
Development Diversity and Inclusion
Continuous Improvement
Organizational Development
Multifaceted
Values
Professional Development
Community Support
Self-Improvement
Progress Filling gaps in organizational fairness
Success of the underprivileged
Knocking down barriers
Work-infused belongingness culture
Accountability to organizational goals
Human capital investment
Equity-driven work council
Leadership is resisting
Empowered and inspired
For the people
Team trustworthiness
Stakeholder belonging environment
Meeting folks where they are
Engagement and retention
Aligning the work
Feeling as part of the organization
Belongingness support to others
Cultural leadership efforts
Spearheading a cause
Goals and committed objectives
Commonalities across identities
Readiness for change
Employe resource and affinity groups
Inclusive leadership behaviors

Table 3.
Alignment of RQs to Categories.

RQs Categories

RQ1: What strategies do leaders of DEI use to incorporate the concepts of belongingness into their organizational culture?RQ2: Where does the belongingness change initiatives conflict within the operations?RQ3: What strategies do leaders of DEI use to integrate the mission, vision, and value propositions (strategic plan) intothe concepts of belongingness in the organization?RQ4: What are the roles and responsibilities of the concepts to integrating belongingness in the DEI organization? Spearheading a causeEmpowered and inspiredGoals and committed objectivesCommonalities across identitiesAligning the workLeadership is resistingReadiness for changeSuccess of the underprivilegedKnocking down barriersEngagement and retentionTeam trustworthinessEquity-driven work councilHuman capital investmentMeeting folks where they areEmploye resource and affinity groupsInclusive leadership behaviorsWork-infused belongingness cultureAccountability to organizational goals

The research also aligned competitive strategies to Bruijl (2018) who influenced Porter's five forces (FFs) as innovative to the changing business environment. Figure 2 highlights the relevance of the FFs framework to success from understanding, learning, and trust found in the study with participants. The framework implies how DEIB leaders strategically incorporate accessible concepts of belongingness into their organizational culture. As competitive edge increases so should the outcomes of the organizational goals.

Figure 2.
Alignment of Porter's Five Forces to Study’s Sub-Codes.

Theme 1: Accessible Organizational Learning Can Enable a Sense of Belongingness

Participants acknowledged the significant effort required to establish a strong support system for belongingness through organizational and organic learning, creating a sense of team spirit. Learning about belongingness can improve organizational culture. P8 reported:
The work that we are doing in education is in pursuit of creating more equitable educational systems. So, a lot of some of the work was, how can we really be sure that the work we are doing is creating equitable learning environments.

Purwanto et al. (2023) found that transformational leaders create learning and organizational structure to increase innovative capacity. Our study's findings corroborated the importance of the leaders’ roles in aligning the goals of the culture change to the organization's mission, and the experiences, representations, and meanings of belonging. P4 conveyed their training needs, and “initiatives were developed by the senior executives, many times by the employes themselves, where one of the initiatives included showcasing our employes.” This statement aligned with Bezrukova et al. (2012), who examined training circumstances, finding that diversity training that was integrated training were more positively regarded than unconnected training.

Theme 2: Mentoring Increases Organizational Belongingness

Categories of spearheading a cause, empowering and inspiring goals and committed objectives, commonalities across identities, and aligning satisfying work provide practical opportunities for mentoring and learning strategies that leverage stakeholder belongingness to the organization. P10 demonstrated showcasing stakeholder belongingness efforts in the corporate learning environment:
So, if you think of traditionally corporate America, if you think of culture as following American cultures, right? The show Office. It is pretty much a benchmark for most corporate setups, right? And you can sort of notice that even though the names, verbs, or nouns that you use today are slightly different today from what they are. The core fundamentally is the same. You have an intern who comes into a corporate team; he learns from people around himself, right? Now, if there is a lack of belonging or if there is this diversity issue at that point, they are not going to get the same amount of learning.

The participants demonstrated a penchant for mentoring others in the organization. By acknowledging marginalized employes, the leaders created “regard for the underdog” among their employes and work partners. Bannò and Nicolardi (2020) indicated that an elevated awareness of gender differences, particularly women's participation in decision-making roles and methods, increased business performance and cultural comfort. Chao et al. (2022) addressed mentorship's importance in creating a diverse organizational culture, supporting the findings of this study.

Effective DEIB efforts leverage various strategies to enhance organizational belongingness through mentoring and learning guidance. The DEIB leaders used the value of showcasing efforts to change the organization to enable mentoring that increases organizational belongingness. P4 stated:
A lot of times, it is brainstorming between and within individuals to say how we best showcase our employes and how we elevate some of the work that they are doing. And through this comes a special event where we get to engage with one another, get to know one another, and really help one another.

RQ 2: Where do the belongingness change initiatives conflict within the operations?

Previous literature identified how change management between initiatives and operations can affect stakeholder management (Larson & Gray, 2021; Roeder, 2011). The impacts of technology, politics, and globalization shift the dynamics of work-life efficiencies and belonging initiatives. Developing humility with others, creative managers, and employes can cultivate positive work-life attitudes that lead to better behavior and shared community. Researchers have found that project managers who side with technical operations and limit their awareness of using soft skills constantly struggle to obtain stakeholder support (Roeder, 2011; K. Stewart & Preiksaitis, 2023). P10 reported conflict where leaders may want to support a sense of belonging for stakeholders, but somewhat immeasurable against business goals.
It is not at the level where you can measure that kind of quantification, I think. But in the strategic space, you can always say that if you are bringing more people to privilege, then it is going to have a positive economic impact on your bottom line, right? So, I think it is not a very direct correlation, but there is always a direct impact, and it is a global impact.

Inclusive leadership through employe participation provides for workplace belonging and meaning making (Gotsis & Grimani, 2017; Katsaros, 2022). The study participants described initiatives promoting a sense of belonging while showing a willingness to invest in monetary and intangible resources. P6 shared, “I think social informal, kind of outside-of-work connections help folks realize that DEI is integrated into everything we do; it overlaps both professionally and personally.” Lee and Yoo (2019) discovered a link between diversifying for competitive advantage through open innovation and capability. Kossek et al. (2022) uncovered that promoting inclusive leadership approaches for greater servant leadership positively influences the self and others.

Participants revealed they were open, accepting, and committed to the conflicts related to stakeholders belonging to their operations. They discussed appropriate actions to balance belonging initiatives within business operations, such as showing courage in hiring and mentoring the right people.

Theme 3: Belongingness Success Emanates on Understanding, Learning, and Trust

Integrating an innovative work environment fosters a deep sense of belonging at a higher level. It allows senior leaders responsible for organizational goals to step back to maintain their emotional intelligence as they grow as leaders. The participants revealed stories of their organizations integrating layers of DEIB within interorganizations and ERGs to allow for greater understanding through organic learning and trust building.

When the commitments were lasting, participants showed that operational balance centered on belongingness creates success through understanding, learning, and trust. P1 was asked about her organizational experiences of successful belonging initiatives in DEI. “Yeah. Again, the development of this is like inclusion. Hearing what people have to say. What are they going through? Understanding.” When asked how belongingness initiatives and operations affected the organizational culture, P2 replied, “Well, I think when employes are not really included in decision-making, to whatever extent they can be, it impacts the culture in a very negative way.” In line with the literature, the participants revealed stories of inclusivity that emanates belongingness success from understanding, learning, and trust. By investing in human capital participants shared stories that emanate growth success through belonging initiatives. P6 shared an experience:
So, we have made an investment, a couple of thousand dollars, to make that happen, but the turnout or the reward we saw from that was a staff that had a stronger sense of understanding for their communities, whether they lived there or not, which was really nice and helpful for the work that we do.

P4 revealed:
The focus is on how we engage our people in feeling like they belong. Feeling like they are part of something included in, because we are looking out after their best effort…the continued development and watching people grow and learning from one another and from our initiatives…the most difficult is how to really bring it all in to help people understand that it is about people, it is about humanity.

These stories reveal how managers and leaders must develop and maintain interpersonal trust with their employes, creating an environment that is comprehensive and inclusive on understanding, learning, and trust.

The study participants fostered democratic talent management where the leaders and organizations valued employes and individuals as inclusive stakeholders. Hogan et al. (2023) found that DEIB leaders’ using organizational strategies are supportive through equity, feedback, communication, and partnering. Shifting stakeholder strategies to integrate belongingness to operations emanates strategic business growth. As a core business value, understanding, learning, and trust concepts enable strategic characteristics for a belonging organization. P4 conveyed belonging experiences as a core value commitment:
So, for the past 20 years, the focus has really been on building inclusivity and belonging through programs and initiatives. Now, that includes working with our employe networks, which we call ERGs, and establishing different opportunities, programs, and initiatives to help people feel like they belong.

P8 revealed the ties and resistances where leaders sometimes did not fully support DEIB initiatives:
People see a need and are trying leadership, or others are resisting. I have certainly been in situations where I feel like this really is important, and I do not want to let it go. And sometimes it is like, oh, but what is the cost to not let it go when people are not open to it or are not for it?

Theme 4: Inequities Stymie Learning and Trust in Decision-Making

Data revealed that when shared learning was inequitable, valuable talent was excluded from decision-making processes, reducing feelings of empowerment and belonging. “I think not only can you focus on the academic outcomes, but there is also the social and emotional learning part that can happen, which I think does not happen if there is no feeling of belonging” (P7). Some participants reported that leaders focus on profit, self, or biased mandates damages the organization's culture. P10 shared that trust within the organization is collaborative when learning and team decision-making are shared:
The trust. They are very operational friendly because the outcome that you are gaining from these initiatives is building a lot of trust in your teams and your culture. And the more trust you have, the more collaboration you can bring. Essentially, this makes it more operationally highly efficient.

Additionally, P4 stated:
When we think about belonging and inclusion, we think about engagement. And that leads to retention; it leads to hiring. So, the focus is on how we best engage our folks and feel like they belong, feeling like they are part of something that they are included in because we are looking out for their best efforts.

Participants reported that their organizations’ ERGs helped stakeholders’ engagement and leaders’ understanding to provide equity and trust in shared learning and decision-making. P10 further elaborated and identified the value of learning and trust for building an organizational culture shift, stating: “That is what I was saying earlier: The trust, the collaboration is critical. And if there are no trust and collaboration, there is no organic learning. So, you cannot build new staff ground zero to your culture.”

These findings aligned with Dang and Chou (2020), who advocated cross-cultural adjustments for shared learning and trust. They also corroborated with Ryan and Deci's (2020) linkage of self-determination through intrinsic rewards, trust in learning, autonomous work, and by the shared learning and change management opportunities in diverse work environments.
RQ 3: What strategies do leaders of DEI use to integrate the mission, vision, and value propositions (strategic plan) into the concepts of belongingness in the organization?

Previous literature showed that aligning organizations’ business models with DEI strategies helps foster a sense of belonging but requires long-term conceptual goal awareness. Roberto (2015) showed that organizations’ unawareness of the strategic plan and conceptual goals implicates them to overlook the competitive advantage; Rothaermel (2021) stated that “a failure to face a competitive challenge is not a strategy” (p. 12). Ignoring mission, vision, or goals, especially when making a culture change, signals that the organization has gone off track.

Participants in the study revealed that sometimes their organizations lack the systems or are not doing enough to integrate belonging initiatives into the strategic plan. P3 shared:
Sometimes, you do not have the resources, something as basic as a translator or material in the language of the people that you are trying to include, or for the people who are trying to implement inclusiveness or belongingness and are not culturally aware of how to do it, or what is needed.

Many participants recalled witnessing failed belonging initiatives in organizations that lacked leadership support or botched planning. P8 shared one crucial experience:
It was still kind of caught in a cycle of, I do not know, some power dynamics and politics in that sort of second round of new hires; a number of those people ended up leaving. I ended up leaving because it was like, oh, we are repeating some patterns here, or is it inclusive?

P6 showed strategic direction by integrating project management tools into the long-term objectives for the belongingness organizational culture change:
We are starting to see that without a structure for leadership outside of the traditional CEO, director, or manager levels, and understanding that there might be a model to be set in place, whether it be MOCHA [manager, owner, consultant, helper, and approver] or something that is called a RACI, where folks are kind of responsible, accountable, collaborative, and working in interdisciplinary ways, to achieve those strategies. So, using those models helps us keep the work moving forward.

The participants in the study revealed the integration of propositions that incorporate belongingness within organizational strategies. They indicated networking and showcasing talent or diversifying knowledge to create and enhance stakeholder experiences of belongingness into the strategic plan. The findings aligned with previous research by Ekpe et al.'s (2015) work regarding mission statement effectiveness and Madu's (2013) on firm vision.

Theme 5: Adaptability is an Exploratory and Strategic Guide

The participants revealed that individuals marginalized in their organizations due to nationality, gender, race, or ethnic background often display inclusive work behavior, giving them an advantage in adaptive leadership and innovating belongingness into the DEI strategic plan. P5 was a part of mentorship growth for an exceptional worker previously marginalized in an organization. “Because she had been given a poor review in her prior position because she would speak up, again, she had great ideas, but her approach offended some people.” She was eventually promoted to the CEO Assistant position.

Zhu et al. (2023) examined the influences of extrinsic and intrinsic motivation on service performance. They found that job activities inherently have a self-efficacy recovery value that mediates the performance relationship between inclusive leadership and job autonomy. The circumstances suggest that adaptability to personal growth is exploratory and strategic, leading to desired results.

The participants emphasized integrating stakeholder-centric belongingness into talent management within their organizations. They frequently sought input from team members about their well-being and reported the use of open leadership to support their members within the organization. P9 shared insight about his organization's talent management guidance: “We need to adapt to someone who is coming in because maybe they have not disclosed with us something about their situation, and we try to give as many avenues to communicate.”

Theme 6: Belongingness Empowers and Inspires Success

Participants in the study highlighted their organization's importance in supporting internal stakeholders by showcasing and mentoring their culture and talent to provide greater opportunities. By doing so, these leaders empower, inspire, and foster stronger business acumen for disadvantaged people, enabling greater growth and benefits. P3 discussed that sometimes leaders of diversity are hired on mandates or through the dynamics of ethnic demographic changes. Belongingness, empowerment, and inspired success have a continuum requirement, requiring a good eye for their needs assessments when empowering individuals to achieve success within the organization. Wang and Morav (2021) focused on the extrinsic and intrinsic work values of ethnic minorities, considering factors such as demographic background, job characteristics, and immigrant generation.

Participants reported on supportive managers and leaders empowering and inspiring employe belongingness success. What they provide reinforces success from understanding, learning, and trust, while integrating decentralized efforts to empower and inspire employe belongingness. P4 discussed her organization's efforts in truly aiming to empower and inspire internal stakeholder belonging success:
There are five ways that you can, in our business, participate and be part of our DEI accountability, and that is when you think about development, retention, recruiting, and supply diversity. When you think of those four things, depending on what your business line is, how can you best support our initiatives? And you make that decision. But the accountability must be there in the end to say, you know, did you hit these goals? And what did you hit based on what you can accomplish? I think that is the most strategic value proposition that we have had thus far.

By adopting the diversified DEIB group approach, participants reported strategic concepts to empower and inspire success for individuals in their organizations. For example, P7 shared an experience with affinity groups:
There have been more concrete and direct feedback loops by people who are often excluded. So, there have been, as I spoke about, affinity groups. There is a new space to bring up issues that might not have been clear before. And so, there is a feedback loop from these affinity groups, back to the whole group, back to the school leaders that were not here before. The way I see it more obviously is that there are more pathways, and there are questions and surveys that are geared toward them. Do you feel like you are part of this group? Does the administration serve the opinions of people of minority groups?

P4 also shared the value of empowering stakeholders through ERGs:
So, we have been focused on our employe networks, kind of at the center of that belonging because they are the ones engaging other employes to attend events and to attend development opportunities and for them to provide informal leadership opportunities with these ERGs, to share some of what they have learned, what they are doing with senior executives who are interested in continuing this culture of belonging.

Handayani et al. (2018) linked stakeholder belonging experiences to self-efficacy, transformational leadership, OCB (organizational citizenship behavior; when employes volunteer to do more than required at work), and psychological empowerment. Mentoring initiatives and resource groups are necessary for organizations. They must be accessible to enable greater belongingness to empower and inspire success. The propositions lead to an effective commitment to business value through empowering and inspiring stakeholder engagement experiences.
RQ 4: What are the roles and responsibilities of the concepts to integrating belongingness in the DEI organization?

The previous literature showed compelling evidence that a belongingness framework for DEI should be required (Miranda & Prejean, 2023). All participants reported that framing the organizations to DEI should be the intent and required and that good leaders are essential to their DEI teams.

Theme 7: Belongingness Inspires Diversified and Innovative Work

The participants were committed to leadership ethics and business acumen in enabling DEIB care for internal stakeholders’ experiences within their organizations. They fostered and inspired diversified, innovative work for others and guided OCB to cultivate a sense of belonging within their organizations. Malapit et al. (2019) found the importance of empowering women of various ethnic groups for project management work; Rosales et al. (2023) provided a framework for diversity hiring during strategic recruitment and retention; D. Stewart (2020) provided insight into a financial initiative aimed at empowering Black and Brown business owners, led by a regional institution to enhance diversity and community belonging.

The participants’ work activities and cases were essential for establishing greater strategic DEI planning in creating stakeholder sense of belonging. P6 shared insight into an organization and its diversified, innovative community work efforts for creating a sense of belonging: “Really breaking down some of our limited mindset around community resources and working with the community. Or, breaking from the traditional sense of community and realizing that community has a lot of strengths and resources that they can offer.” Khan and Jabeen (2019) examined how motivation and reward can mediate innovative work satisfaction while creating CSR and OCB principles.

The study participants focused on job-crafting opportunities for their internal stakeholders and community, promoting collaboration, and building a diverse pool of career-committed employes, all centered on fostering a sense of belonging and promoting innovative work. P10 stated: “If you have anybody on your team or organization that is not feeling they belong, you are basically wasting the effort for that person.” P3 shared leadership challenges in convincing leaders to provide leaner belongingness work-inspired resources. Guo et al. (2023) also emphasized inclusive leadership's impact on innovative work behavior using job crafting.

P2 shared insight into belongingness aspects that inspire diversified innovation work:
So, I find that super interesting. It is not hard work. It is very high burnout, and yet they love the work and the team, and love working with each other. And I know it is because there is this sense of belonging and that they can keep growing as a person like they are just not done yet.

Van den Broeck et al. (2021) found that inspired work belongingness is driven by well-internalized extrinsic motivation; Canlas and Williams (2022) examined inclusive leadership ties to belonging needs; and Shah et al. (2021) revealed the interrelationship between inclusive leadership and employe creativity. The participants emphasized the challenging need for continued support in DEIB efforts, particularly through work inclusivity and the transformative leadership of diverse staff pools. P4 shared diversified workplace balance goals for implementing innovative talent initiatives:
So, when the goals are aligned with the financials, I would give an example: if we wanted to go and train everyone on a specific thing, we might not be able to train everyone financially or have the time that year. Still, because we always felt the DEI was a competitive advantage, we have been able to make it work. So, I would say that the industry competition, I do not think that it, has gotten in the way because we have always seen it as a competitive advantage to diversity and to continue with our DEI initiatives.

The study revealed that belongingness-inspired diversified work enables innovative and competitive workforce talent flow. This finding was supported by previous literature and research (El-Amin, 2022; Enwereuzor, 2021; Sudibjo & Prameswari, 2021).

Theme 8: Change Leads to Human Capital, Vision, and Balance

Change management in shaping organizational culture to foster a sense of belonging in the small organization is expected to result in human capital, vision, and balance. Participants called for higher leadership to foster work-infused belonging and cultural support through human stakeholder capital and work-life balance. P9 offered support for stakeholder belonging and work-life balance ready for change:
The quality-of-life elements for the employes as stakeholders are substantial. I have seen colleagues of mine take a lower-paying job. That was at a workplace that had a better culture because it just was not worth it. So, I think I take it for granted, but the costs to an organization of employe turnover are substantial, and if you see an employe turnover in two years or less, you have wasted a lot of resources in identifying and rehiring another employe. So, I think it is efficient to have a team that feels that they belong and stay. And it is good for the team, too. I do not think there is really anyone who loses in that paradigm.

Saucedo (2022) researched aspects of creating equitable organizational cultures in connection to leadership development for managers; Kyei-Poku (2019) demonstrated how organizational change influenced the fair supervision of employes, leading to reduced emotional exhaustion and turnover intentions. These factors show that change readiness positively and negatively affect the organization's human capital, vision, and balance. Proper alignment of business propositions can facilitate a small shift in organizational culture, resulting in enhanced human capital, vision, and balance. The participants indicated that strategic talent planning and balance are essential at both the business case and the project level. P6 reported on the human capital and balanced work structure in organizational life:
Yeah, so we do have a dedicated division, which is an administrative division that does some of these policies, practices, and work. Within that division, there is an office of the President, which is where I sit. And we do a lot of alignment work. So, really thinking about if we really want to do this idea, does it align with our organizational goals? And if so, how does it? And what are we trying to collect, as far as data for this project, this activity, this event, or whatever it is we are doing is effective?

Larson and Gray (2021) discussed the value of initiating projects that consider respect to the business case as essential to strategic project management approaches; Luu et al. (2023) demonstrated how organizational culture is linked to competition in businesses and institutions, as well as the products and services they serve. Our study's findings supported these previous studies. When the organizational structure is mutually respected, change leads to human capital, vision, and balance that supports DEIB efforts. Human capital, vision, and balance connect organizations to the stakeholder belongingness experiences.

Trustworthiness of Findings

Trustworthiness in the research was ideal, and the aim was not to pass judgment on moral activity as much as the study aimed to model a DEIB approach for small organizations to adapt and follow (Grant & Lincoln, 2021). The data gathering while listening well to participants was aimed at the highest possible credible, dependable, transferable, and confirmable research quality. The study was calibrated through the revelations of the research positionality to conduct cooperative interactions with the interviewee (Lavee & Itzchakov, 2023). The responsible task of asking interview questions was to be direct yet open to situational leadership where the interviewees garnered unique belongingness responses. Quiet leadership of listening and care was used to obtain raw data quality that was allowed to be openly elaborative in the interview and later coded and qualified as suitable data for the research and reported findings.

The trustworthiness of the study is qualified in that the study explored various belonging experiences in small organizations. The study was targeted to provide highly relevant adequate evidence from various human resource leaders, CEOs, and other executives who are past or presently involved in the DEIB space. The validity and reliability of the data were directly integral to the exploratory methodological concept as it was the choice of the study. The level of intensity depended on four trustworthy factors leading to credibility, dependability, transferability, and confirmability, which are discussed and cited for the rigor and quality of the conceptual, qualitative study (Lincoln & Guba, 1985).

Credibility

The credibility of the research approach was built within the researcher's experience, and the research information was set in line with the trustworthiness of the research mentors’ knowledge and feedback. The interview protocol was created and expert-tested, consisting of the same interview questions asked of all research participants to align credibility in the set protocol of the study to other known similarities that reviewers of the information can relate to on individuals who share these human experiences, and credibility and trustworthiness is attained in the audit trail of journaling and throughout the research process, including research notes and the reflexivity of research decisions and assumptions (Cope, 2014). To align DEIB creditable data, the aim was to provide evidence of operationalized concepts and rigorously present the procedures, principles, use, and difficulties in the research (Arias-Valencia, 2022).

Dependability

Diversifying the research within the participant pool and obtaining data collection saturation through follow-up and probing questions help exhibit the dependability of the data over similar conditions (Cope, 2014). The exploratory qualitative research approach in the DEIB study revealed itself to dependable data on common DEIB business goals constructed by research-based, strategic, practical, and ethical solutions to organizational culture and performance. The approach of taking combinations of two or more research strategies in the research from person-participant triangulation and organization classifications builds dependability in the data pool to develop mythological triangulation and multiple triangulations for a comprehensive and satisfactory sense of the phenomenon (Arias-Valencia, 2022).

Transferability

Organizations and researchers exercising a DEI study on belongingness culture will find a likeness in organizational settings and groups (Cope, 2014). DEIB-led research can provide transferable results for small organizations to display a culture shift and provide individuals with the desire and feeling of belonging in organizational cultures to be motivated, competent, moral judgment, and competitive. In its transferable competitive edge, the organization can illuminate productive and strategic decision-making processes, contribute to professional standards, and seek goals for its stakeholders and shareholders through a communicative belongingness culture. Organizational staff belonging is transferable as it radiates emotions, innovation, and leadership in projects and the competitive business landscape while embracing economic sustainability and change processes at a higher level.

Confirmability

The data collection aligned with the rich source of participants’ DEI experiences in the interview structure. The data collection strategies linked the semi-structured interviewing pool to sampling procedures for data source collection through dynamic and robust sampling procedures, confirming accurate participants’ responses that eliminate the bias and views of the researcher (Cope, 2014). The interviews were approached in that each one revealed robust data and research principles (Fusch & Ness, 2015). The interviews were conducted in one-on-one locations to cast out outside influence, the personal safeguarding of the information, and participants’ comfort, where they may be most compelled to initiate valid and reliable confirmable data.

The data involved in the triangulation analysis was deeply assessed in the process management of the fieldwork techniques to gain truthful interview data results. The data complied conducting slow, compelling interviews to aid participants who might have found the belongingness interviews challenging to explain (Jentoft & Olsen, 2019). An organization is a fluid operation, and a qualitative exploratory qualitative inquiry allowed for an in-depth approach to the broad scale of information.

Stakeholder extrinsic value processes were explored and formed through the interviews and the organizational dynamics essential in understanding belongingness perceptions and organizational cultural awareness that helped establish the qualitative research quality. Thematic analysis of the data into triangulation is crucial in verifying truthful, sensitive data, guided with the help of using social psychology as an interviewing technique for situational leadership articulated objectively through information gathering in strategic and helpful timing (Yin, 2013). Figure 3 maps the research design method and perspective on discrediting the interview data collected through data triangulation, which is useful in the exploratory belongingness study.

Figure 3.
Note. Framing Attributes in Research Design and Triangulation = Data Collection, Thematic Data Analysis, and Further Triangulation of the Exploratory Study Data Being Straightforward and Valuable to Trustworthy Phenomena.

Limitations of the Study

This study was built upon the assumption that success in culture change requires understanding, learning, and trust initiatives, and by providing operational resources and opportunities an organization can competitively compete through empowered and inspired stakeholder inclusivity. The study's limitations and reaffirmation included:
The study did not explore how leadership types may guide the success of DEIB.

The study did not address operational needs that are specific or disruptive to strategic planning.

The study did not estimate the financial costs of implementing the DEIB change initiatives, which will vary in each program and organization.

The study could not consider global organizational factors that could provide greater insight into learning, cultural resources, and other DEIB efforts.

The study could not consider in depth the sensitive nature of microaggression.

The limitations of this exploratory DEIB study were unique, and the approach was to intuitively convey the workplace, DEIB space, and field of execution. The boundary limitations followed the theories of the exploratory qualitative inquiry design and methodology, which could have influenced biased interpretations of the findings. However, the study data justified that it was in line with rich and in-depth data analysis, correlating to previous literature. Transferability of the study findings may be limited to small businesses with leaders dedicated to understanding and willing to create inclusive cultures. The limitations of a study often define it as strongly as the study's findings within the study.

The study's ability to address the research questions was limited by constraints related to the study design. However, the approach closely aligned with expectations for social science research, particularly in the context of small business organizations that adhere to common project and talent management principles. These principles reflect a focus on internal stakeholders as key contributors to competitive strategy and organizational behavioral values in the realm of organizational psychology. The recruitment and inclusion criteria supported and aligned with the research objectives.

Implications for Future Study

Future studies could include belongingness in a targeted culture change project using a grounded theory design. A grounded study inside an organization could help leaders gain a source of the strengths and weaknesses in their value propositions for belonging initiatives. A potential RQ could be: What are facets DEI leaders use to enhance success with the sense of belonging in their organizations? The sub RQ could be: What are the disparities DEI leaders face to enable success with the sense of belonging in their organizations? The grounded study researcher being selected by an organization over time could wander around allowed divisions and groups treading lightly to witness the sources enabling or affecting organizational belonging to be achieved. Building on the growing body of knowledge research for belonging the researcher dually provides leaders within the organization practical implications for applicable action.

By focusing on belongingness (B) within DEIB initiatives and personal life, leaders can better understand organizational belonging to empower and inspire greater interrelationships. Research on the competitive advantages of belonging initiatives could examine the costs validity and decisions associated with where CEOs and DEIB leaders may come to terms. A RQ might be: “How do CEOs, human resource directors, and DEIB leaders come together in filling the power of opportunity for belonginess in their organizations?” The research settings are adaptive to various organizations, communities, social gatherings, churches, and strategic and production management, as leaders work together on competitiveness to belonging initiatives.

Deeper studies could consider global factors of belonging in areas such as cultural traditions, cultural intelligence, or business etiquette. The belongingness and respect of the disabled in the DEIB environment have research implication. Quantitative studies using instruments measuring belongingness are also needed to implicate the relationships between employes’ levels of belonging, intentions to quit, or other relevant motivational variables. Studies on how belonging and automation may interact are also significant to the research body of knowledge and to leadership growth.

Conclusion

This qualitative study explored strategies employed by DEIB leaders in small organizations to foster a sense of belonging among employes. The findings contribute to the growing knowledge of effective DEIB practices by identifying 10 key themes illuminating systematic approaches to cultivating belongingness in the workplace. In an era where the future of DEI initiatives is increasingly scrutinized, shifting the narrative toward fostering belongingness offers a practical and impactful pathway for organizations seeking to enhance employe experiences and outcomes.

The study's themes—accessible organizational learning, mentoring, understanding, equity, adaptability, and trust—underscore the importance of intentional and equitable practices in creating an inclusive environment. However, participants highlighted that belongingness remains a complex and nuanced construct, often impeded by organizational inequities and systemic barriers. Addressing these challenges requires deliberate cultural shifts to ensure that employes not only feel included but genuinely experience belonging within their workplace.

Ultimately, this study demonstrated that fostering a culture of belonging can yield tangible benefits, including increased employe engagement, productivity, and innovation. These findings offer actionable insights for small business leaders striving to cultivate environments where employes thrive. By critically examining organizational practices and addressing barriers to inclusivity, leaders can create workplaces where belonging is a value and a shared reality. Hopefully, this study can serve as a resource for advancing effective DEIB strategies and shaping more inclusive organizational cultures.

P#	Gender	Occupation	Role	Date	Length	Experience
P1	F	Law	DEIB Leader	1/29/24	40.38	Entire DEIB
P2	F	Nonprofits	DEIB Leader	1/31/24	52.28	Belonging initiatives
P3	M	Schools	DEIB Leader	2/3/24	53.41	Entire DEIB
P4	F	Finance	DEI Director	2/5/24	43.30	Entire DEIB
P5	M	Nonprofits	DEIB Leader	2/6/24	46.10	Entire DEIB
P6	M	Nonprofit	DEIB Director	2/7/24	33.2	Entire DEIB
P7	M	Schools	DEIB Leader	2/10/24	40.05	Entire DEIB
P8	F	Program Manager	DEIB Consultant	2/5/24	1.01.28	Belonging initiatives
P9	TM	Sales	DEIB Director	2/14/24	59.50	Entire DEIB
P10	M	Technology	DEIB Leader	2/19/24	35.54	Belonging initiatives

Subcodes	Codes	Categories
Equity Inequality Social Justice Innovation Strategic Planning Continuous Improvement Organizational Change Employe Engagements Work-Life Balance Trust Learning Understanding Success Uncertainty Adaptability Challenges Perseverance Goal Setting Motivation Membership Community Community Engagement Self-Awareness Personal Growth Professional Development Change Training Development	Diversity and Inclusion Continuous Improvement Organizational Development Multifaceted Values Professional Development Community Support Self-Improvement Progress	Filling gaps in organizational fairness Success of the underprivileged Knocking down barriers Work-infused belongingness culture Accountability to organizational goals Human capital investment Equity-driven work council Leadership is resisting Empowered and inspired For the people Team trustworthiness Stakeholder belonging environment Meeting folks where they are Engagement and retention Aligning the work Feeling as part of the organization Belongingness support to others Cultural leadership efforts Spearheading a cause Goals and committed objectives Commonalities across identities Readiness for change Employe resource and affinity groups Inclusive leadership behaviors

RQs	Categories
RQ1: What strategies do leaders of DEI use to incorporate the concepts of belongingness into their organizational culture?RQ2: Where does the belongingness change initiatives conflict within the operations?RQ3: What strategies do leaders of DEI use to integrate the mission, vision, and value propositions (strategic plan) intothe concepts of belongingness in the organization?RQ4: What are the roles and responsibilities of the concepts to integrating belongingness in the DEI organization?	Spearheading a causeEmpowered and inspiredGoals and committed objectivesCommonalities across identitiesAligning the workLeadership is resistingReadiness for changeSuccess of the underprivilegedKnocking down barriersEngagement and retentionTeam trustworthinessEquity-driven work councilHuman capital investmentMeeting folks where they areEmploye resource and affinity groupsInclusive leadership behaviorsWork-infused belongingness cultureAccountability to organizational goals

Footnotes

ORCID iDs

Michael H. Charette

Michelle K. Preiksaitis

Ethical Considerations

This study received Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval from the University of the Cumberlands IRB on November 28, 2023, approval number: #1123-75948, with two amendments approved on December 11, 2023, and February 1, 2024. IRB official close-out was granted on August 12, 2024.

Consent to Participate

Written informed consent, as required and approved by the University of the Cumberlands IRB, was signed by and received from each participant prior to scheduling an interview.

Consent for Publications

The above-mentioned written (and signed) informed consent included consent and acknowledgment that publication would be part of the final process after the study was concluded.

Author Contribution(s)

Michael H. Charette: Writing – original draft.

Michelle K. Preiksaitis: Writing – review & editing.

Funding

The authors received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Data Availability Statement

Data (anonymized transcripts) can be made available if needed, although certain passages (discussion of examples, demographic information, scenarios, etc.) may need to be redacted to ensure participant confidentiality.

Appendix A

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Including Belongingness as a Small Business Model Innovation

Abstract

Problem

Solution

Stakeholders

Keywords

Background of the Study

Purpose of the Study and RQs

Literature Review

History of DEI Initiatives

Importance of the DEIB Project Assessment

Employe Impacts from DEIB Initiatives

Organizational Impacts from DEIB Initiatives

Conceptual Framework

Methodology and Design

Participant Selection

Data Collection and Analysis

Discussions and Findings

Theme 1: Accessible Organizational Learning Can Enable a Sense of Belongingness

Theme 2: Mentoring Increases Organizational Belongingness

Theme 3: Belongingness Success Emanates on Understanding, Learning, and Trust

Theme 4: Inequities Stymie Learning and Trust in Decision-Making

Theme 5: Adaptability is an Exploratory and Strategic Guide

Theme 6: Belongingness Empowers and Inspires Success

Theme 7: Belongingness Inspires Diversified and Innovative Work

Theme 8: Change Leads to Human Capital, Vision, and Balance

Trustworthiness of Findings

Credibility

Dependability

Transferability

Confirmability

Limitations of the Study

Implications for Future Study

Conclusion

Footnotes

ORCID iDs

Ethical Considerations

Consent to Participate

Consent for Publications

Author Contribution(s)

Funding

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

Data Availability Statement

Appendix A

References