Inclusion on Purpose: An Intersectional Approach to Creating a Culture of Belonging at Work

by Ruchika Tulshyan Malhotra

How organizations can foster diversity, equity, and inclusion: taking action to address and prevent workplace bias while centering women of color.

Few would disagree that inclusion is both the right thing to do and good for business. Then why are we so terrible at it? If we believe in the morality and the profitability of including people of diverse and underestimated backgrounds in the workplace, why don't we do it? Because, explains Ruchika Tulshyan in this eye-opening book, we don't realize that inclusion takes awareness, intention, and regular practice. Inclusion doesn't just happen; we have to work at it. Tulshyan presents inclusion best practices, showing how leaders and organizations can meaningfully promote inclusion and diversity.

Tulshyan centers the workplace experience of women of color, who are subject to both gender and racial bias. It is at the intersection of gender and race, she shows, that we discover the kind of inclusion policies that benefit all. Tulshyan debunks the idea of the "level playing field" and explains how leaders and organizations can use their privilege for good by identifying and exposing bias, knowing that they typically have less to lose in speaking up than a woman of color does. She explains why "leaning in" doesn't work--and dismantling structural bias does; warns against hiring for "culture fit," arguing for "culture add" instead; and emphasizes the importance of psychological safety in the workplace--you need to know that your organization has your back. With this important book, Tulshyan shows us how we can make progress toward inclusion and diversity--and we must start now.

Genres: Nonfiction, Leadership, Business, Social Justice, Self Help, Feminism, Audiobook

9 pages, Audiobook

Published September 13, 2022

About the author

Ruchika T. Malhotra is the author of the upcoming, Uncompete: Rejecting Competition To Unlock Success.
(November 4, 2025, Viking Books.)

Ruchika is also the founder of Candour, an inclusion strategy practice. A former international business journalist, her writing has recently appeared in publications including The New York Times and Harvard Business Review.

She is a keynote speaker on leadership, workplace culture and the Uncompete™ framework.

Her last book, Inclusion on Purpose, was The MIT Press' top selling book of 2022 and called "transformative" by Dr. Brené Brown.

Reviews

[Makalah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm writing this review in August 2021. The book launches in February 2022. 6 months before it's even available to read, someone rated the book 1 star.

I've not read the book either, but I think this premature 1 star review shows exactly why this book about becoming more inclusive is necessary. People of color have an uphill battle, even launching a book. So 5 stars for necessity of this book. Will update my review after I've purchased and read it.

[Shagufta · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book. It is rare to have a book “about equity” that feels like it sees and is speaking to women of colour, but in this book, I felt seen. It talks to women of colour, while recognising that women of colour are not the same. We all have work to do to become more equitable practitioners.

On the individual level, among many other take-aways, this book explains why “fixing your imposter syndrome” is not an individual problem, it requires examination of systems that have produced such anxiety. The book also discusses why “underestimated” is a better framing than “underrepresented”, and explores how having an inclusion mindset requires the same skills as developing a growth mindset. On the organizational front, it discusses how to have inclusive hiring practices, how to deliver feedback, and why disaggregated data is important among other topics.

More than other “equity books” I’ve read, this one gave specific examples that really spoke to conversations I’ve had, but I haven’t seen in other reads. For example, Tulshyan gave examples of the impact on inclusion when workplace events are centered around alcohol, and how that impacts both employees who don’t drink or who are trying to refrain from drinking. She gave examples of what Islamophobia can look like in the workplace, and the high emotional and physical cost women of colour experience when they do not feel a sense of inclusion or belonging at work.

The book isn’t perfect, but overall, it is an excellent read that combines stories, research and insight into a very readable text. In particular, I recommend this book if you are in a leadership role and want to learn how to create more inclusion and belonging in your sphere of influence.

Part One of the book is focused on individual behaviours to drive inclusion and purpose, and includes behaviors such as recognising and seeing past privilege, cultivating an inclusion mindset, developing empathy, and elevating women of colour into “glamour work” opportunities through sponsorship and rotating office housework tasks.

The second part of the book is focused on organizational behaviours to drive inclusion and purpose. The final section addresses the future of inclusion by looking at questions of technology.

You can find more of my takeaways here: https://shagufta.substack.com/p/inclu...

[My Tam · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent book for practitioners of DEI, anyone in a hiring or recruiting cycle, or thinking of how to systemically shift their work culture to be more inclusive. Filled with frameworks and tips, this is a handy reference that I’ll return to many times over and will be sharing with clients across multiple industries. Highly recommend it!

[Bianca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Predictably this book made me angry because I see so much of what we *could* be doing at my workplace for inclusivity, but I always feel like the troublemaking “woke” angry feminist for bringing it up. I recommend this book for everyone, especially allies who want to take action but aren’t sure where to begin.

[Salomé Drapeau · Rating 5 out of 5]

Très très pertinent!
Ce que j'ai particulièrement apprécié, ce sont les suggestions de réflexion proposées à la fin de chaque chapitre, je me suis beaucoup interrogé sur la culture que je veux créer dans ma propre entreprise.

[Daniela Velez · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Women of color already have the grit, ambition, leadership, and coalition-building capabilities that are easily celebrated in their white counterparts. What they need is to have that power and ambition recognized, fueled, and rewarded." - Ruchika Tulshyan

Such a phenomenal read. I don't think there's anyone who wouldn't benefit from reading this book!

[Donna Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

While recognizing the importance of promoting inclusion and diversity in the workplace, this book gives ideas on how we can all help with a global movement to advance gender equality at work and gives actions steps to take. Everyone needs to feel validated at work and Ruchika Tulshyan is an inspiring author who shares her stories and how we can create opportunities for women of color to lead.

[Maddie Blyer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book calls for reflection and introspection while offering practical ways of reducing the negative impacts of bias in the workplace. A clear look at why we all benefit when we center the voices of marginalized communities, specifically women of color.

[Erin Bowles · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a must-read for anyone who wants to create a more inclusive workplace for women of color (and frankly, everyone should want to do this). The stories the author tells are real examples of the intersectionality between racism and gender bias in the workplace and really help drive points home. The ideas the author provides to create a more inclusive workplace are so feasible that part of me was trying to figure out why every business doesn’t just do these as a standard practice (but, duh, white male superiority stands in the way.) As a manager and leader in my work, I took away a lot of great information from this book that I plan to implement.

[Pirmin · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5

[Potassium · Rating 5 out of 5]

Started out a little slow but then got better from there. So full of great ideas and advice. I took many notes and I can’t wait to put some of these techniques into practice.

[Becky Weaver Carlson · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 1/2. It's an important topic and overall well written. I just struggle with non-fiction as a whole.

[Daniel Gonzales · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a great book that provided strategic actions to build a more inclusive culture in the workplace. The author was realistic in that developing an inclusive environment takes everyone and is not done within a specific amount of time. The author also provided outside resources for the reader to inquire about, which I may for my organization.

I am sharing this with my team members to develop a strategy we can deploy within our organization to make it better for everyone.

[Andrea · Rating 5 out of 5]

This should be required reading in every workplace and especially for managerial leadership. Tulshyan inspires action in the reader. Each chapter contains simple yet effective tools, building upon each other so that the reader feels equipped to start implementing inclusion on purpose at their place of work. She utilizes testimonials throughout the book that offer perspective to the problems she discusses, and I honestly found myself gasping at how much racism and misogyny are still steeped in American culture and thus our workplaces. I know I shouldn't be surprised given the upheaval of the past couple years, but seeing the inequity and outright injustice happening is still heartbreaking.

As an aspiring leader in higher education, I'm glad I read this book so I can be inclusive on purpose and make a difference to students of color.

[Nathan Brant · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. The author built this book with a structure that introduces complex concepts, intentionally builds upon each new concept, and reinforces the learnings with "key reflections" at the end of each chapter. Written in 3 parts, concepts like "how to see past privilege" and "how effective feedback drives inclusion" are accompanied by workplace stories that range from unintentionally oblivious to intentionally malicious, shocking, and inexcusable. I am grateful to have read it - and will continue to do better.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was pretty good. I think there are actionable tasks one can do to be inclusive and create belonging at work. There are a couple of frameworks that help with building a growth mindset around inclusion as well as creating psychologically safe workspaces for women of color. Expresses the recognition for intersecting identities. I appreciated the concept of cultivating cultural humility over cultural competency.

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Inclusion on Purpose is a good addition to the diversity, equity, and inclusion literature out there, if you're looking for something specific to the corporate world. This book adds to the discourse by being intentional about centering the experiences of women of color, and as a response to the "lean in" attitude that has been proposed as a tool for acquiring leadership/management positions. The beginning had be invested from the get-go, with a forward by Ijeoma Oluo (who has written a lot of antiracist nonfiction that I have selected for my work book club including So You Want to Talk about Race and Mediocre). It also goes hard into the problems posed by HR teams, which exist for the purpose of protection the company, not the workers (hey, that's what unions are for!).

This book dives into how we can be intentional about inclusion -- and it specifically calls on people with privilege in the workplace (white men/women) to use that power to fix the systemic and institutional racism that exists in our sphere. This is the first book I've read to tackle many of these issues in the shifting workplace dynamics of COVID-19, which has seen more women leave the workforce than ever before (disproportionally Black women) due to lack of access to childcare and needed flexibility. There are some great resources in here, including the "BRIDGE Framework" which is a good reminder for how to be open and willing to grow from mistakes. There are great questions at the end of the chapters that are good for internal reflection but also for discussion in a group that you work with.

Tulshyan really brings together a lot of topics that are ripe for training and development, from interrupting bias and exclusion when you see it to creating spaces that provide psychological safety for women of color. I know that we need a balance of books that help us contribute to a better working environment where everyone can be successful (outcomes can not be tied to identity), but I was also a little disappointed that this book didn't address the way in which corporate culture is probably not the answer to a more equitable work environment in general. Part of the drive of this book is that when we change who gets to hold and have power, we change those systems, which it's why these practices go beyond individual influence into changing policy and culture as well. COVID-19 has changed the way we think about work and in the midst of an unprecedented labor movement, I would love a companion piece on the power of organizing and sharing power in different ways.

Thanks to NetGalley for an early review copy, all opinions are my own, Definitely pick this one up to grow your understanding of supporting DEI within your workplace and put those skills to practice.

[Dessa Meehan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gomez' story in Chapter 4 was absolutely enraging and, I am not shamed to admit, sent me on a Google crusade trying to figure out which company was established using her stolen ideas. And then I stopped, paused, and realized that is exactly what this book is trying to teach me about my own biases. I get enraged and have righteous indignation when something as huge as someone's (let alone a POC) ideas being stolen by an "investor," but what happens when I witness microaggressions? What happens when I witness a minority being shut down for their ideas but the majority celebrated when they say the same thing? Before this book, I would have said that I stand up for people, that I do my best to be inclusive in my life, that I practice empathy, understanding, and emotional intelligence. After reading this entire book, though, I am ashamed to realize that I am silent a lot more of the time than I thought.

Thankfully, I am in a relatively influential administrative role in my team and I plan on using the lessons and reflections that Tulshyan gives us to reevaluate my own work and behavior as well as work to make my team more inclusive through meetings, team or social events, and hopefully hiring. I firmly believe that every small thing we do can ultimately make the world better. Her book gave many ideas from small, simple changes to larger organizational shifts in order to make our workplace more inclusive.

I greatly appreciate the work, passion, research, and tears that clearly went into the creation of this book. I hope more people read it, recognize their own biases, and then make the changes necessary to be more inclusive themselves and share that knowledge with others.

The only thing I wish had changes is that the term "Women of Color" was added to the title or subtitle of the book. This is the main demographic Tulshyan focuses on for at leas 95% of the book. Even though her techniques and teachings can be applied to almost any minority group, her particular demographic is Women of Color which is not readily apparent from the title.

[Kavitha · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such an amazing read for me! I felt seen in these pages. As a woman of color working in a predominantly male dominated field, I’ve faced several situations at work that are closely related to the examples that Ruchika shared in this book. I was able to connect the dots and see how bias and “underestimation” (not “under representation” as Ruchika says) played a role in those situations and how they still continue to play a role in my work life. Reading this book was a cathartic experience for me in some ways.

The book is more geared towards leaders who want to promote an inclusive culture within their teams and DEI professionals who are involved in promoting an inclusive culture throughout the organization. But, I feel that every working professional would benefit from reading this book. I enjoyed the whole book, but I particularly appreciated the chapters on the different kinds of biases and how they might present themselves at work, what is unbiased feedback and how to give it (the Situation Behavior Impact framework), how intersectionality plays a significant role in stereotyping women of color (example: Asian woman are expected to be docile and submissive) and how saying women suffer from imposter syndrome is dismissive of the underlying reasons that may have lead to the imposter syndrome among women (society, culture, etc).

I’ve been around for a while and I’ve read many books over the years for my professional advancement, but this is the first book that I’ve read that cuts to the core of workplace bias, particularly against women of color. I love the fact that this book is out there but I also feel that progress has been very slow in this area and I am really really tired 😥

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

An accessible, relatable book, actionable on an individual level, which is great, and totally applicable to all facets of life, not just work but in any organisation we happen to be a part of eg schools, NGOs, how we engage on social media and the list goes on.

The content resonated with me as a leader who is striving for cultural humility (now I have a phrase for it, thank you) and as some who is striving to unpick decades of automatic thinking created by my belonging - but also, not belonging in many small ways - to a dominant group.

I nominated and will recommend this title for our workplace bookclub. Its accessible for those who are at the early stages of their journey, and provides some really actionable frameworks for thinking and tools for self reflection against each chapter.

I have also recommended it to my high school child who asked me for some starter reading on feminism. The intersectionality of so many issues, and their own individual status(es) in the post colonial society they are growing up in (which is not their own) means I think they will get a lot out of the first part of this book, and will be able to apply equally the lessons in the second half to their experience of high school in a country which is mentioned a number of times in this book (and has not as far as I can tell moved the needle very far to date on some of the issues the author has (rightly) named.)

[Jacy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the best DE&I books that I have read so far. I respect Ruchika's acronym approach for addressing a change of midset and inclusion... B.R.I.D.G.E.
B = Be uncomfortable
R = Reflect on what you don't know
I = Invite feedback
D = Defensiveness doesn't help
G = Grow from your mistakes
E = Except that change takes time

Lately I have been trying to steer into the uncomfortable conversations in order to better understand why they are uncomfortable. What is it that makes this subject so touchy?

One thing that keeps coming up in my book club conversations around race or sexuality is someone inevitably says some form of "I don't see color" or "you are just a person to me not your sexuality". I was struggling for a bit to figure out exactly why this phrase was bothering me. But then after reading this book it became more clear. If you only see me as "a person", then you can not see when I am the only woman in the room. If you only see me as a person, then you can not seen when I am the only biracial person in a room, or the only queer person, or the only divergent person etc. But trust me I do notice when I am the only anything.

If you don't see color, then you can't see when someone is missing. You cann't see when someone's not in the room to have their voice heard. Open your eyes and look around. Who is not in your room? Who doesn't have a voice at your table?

[Natalie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book pulls together a lot of work that has already been published by others (like Mindset: The New Psychology of Success), but interprets it through a lens of intersectional inclusion. It is good, but it felt somewhat scattered to me, and I had to work hard to keep reading, so I did skim some it. Tulshyan writes from a very corporate American perspective, although in her later chapters she talks more about taking a local, rather than a global perspective on these issues. This was helpful, since I am based in Australia and work in a far less corporate setting. I particularly appreciated hearing about the concept of "casteism" which is in some ways a more helpful construct than racism, so I will look out for Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents. In a way, this book is a good way for finding other useful books to read.

There is not much from this that I am likely to put into practice in my workplaces, but the thing that I found most enlightening and helpful was to note that my social circle (which is pretty small really) is monocultural. I also became more aware of my own affinity bias - I find it much easier to engage socially, at work and at church, with people who are "like me" in terms of age, gender and ethnicity. As someone who is older, and a leader, in my workplace and church, I need to break out of this habit.

[Faith · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars
This book was very informative for me. I felt a lot of points made in this book were pretty obvious to me (as I am a black woman who has had similar experiences to those described in this book) which is why I didn't give it 5 stars. Despite this, I highly recommend this book to :
1. anyone who isn't a woman of color,
2. anyone who wishes to be a better ally to marginalized groups especially marginalized women
3. anyone who is in a leadership position, or aspires to be a great leader.

Some important quotes I like to remember:
"the success of many brilliant people has less to do with talent or innate brilliance and more to do with a mindset that embraces challenges and thrives in the face of adversity"
"As MLK Jr. said " in the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends."
"Impostor syndrome directs our view toward fixing women at work instead of fixing the places women work."
"Rather than focusing on culture fit organization leaders must concentrate on culture "add" to be inclusive"
"colorism is an enduring vestiage of colonialism and white dominance around the globe"
"cultivate cultural humility and not cultural competence"
"if you are neutral in situations of justice you have chosen the side of the oppressor"

[Lindsey Sullivan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this book for work and enjoyed it! Would have liked to hear a bit more about gender expansive folks.

Some passages I highlighted:

“Cognitive empathy demands that we don’t automatically assume that others experience the workplace the same way we do” pg 66

“Rather than focusing on culture fit, organization leaders must concentrate on culture add to be inclusive” pg 101

“Understand what’s keeping qualified women of color from joining your organization and then work on fixing it” pg 115

“Pay women of color equitably but also assess the barriers holding them back from receiving what they deserve…” pg 141

“Many leaders talk about centering people on the margins, what that really means is centering women of color’s opinions” pg 182

“There’s really no such thing as the “voiceless.” There are only the deliberately silenced, or the preferably unheard” pg 221

“Cultivating cultural humility means “approaching this work with the premise that we don’t know everything — so the goal is to invest resources in the experts on the ground who have the lived experience” pg 236

[Monique · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is phenomenal! A very good overview of what has led us tot he work culture we have today (ie cis, straight white men), how to better serve women of color (and thus all folks with marginalized identities), how to prepare for the future. As a manager who identifies as a cis, white queer woman, I found myself taking so many notes and feeling like I can work with my colleagues (both men and women of color) to support them in our current work culture and built out our small organization to be even more inclusive and equitable. The author did an amazing job of outlining the very real problems and struggles that marginalized people face, especially women of color, and the very workable ways that all job environments can better and best support our colleagues. I cannot recommend this book enough!!

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Inclusion on Purpose is one of those books that you will end up carrying around, dog-eared and underlined, from office to office over the years. This book outlines a clear, practical roadmap for tangible ways of improving the workplace for everyone, and in particular women of color. As a white person it could be uncomfortable recognizing myself in some of these stories. But once we know better we must do better, and starting with ourselves and our positionality to best practices in recruiting all the way to how to give meaningful feedback, Inclusion On Purpose is an accessible and necessary sequel to Tulshyan’s The Diversity Advantage. Read it for yourself, and gift it to your colleagues. Immense gratitude to Ruchika Tulshyan and all the people who took the time and emotional labor to share their experiences with her to help chart the course for a better world.

[Summer · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was definitely a good book... my somewhat low rating is only because I read books like this with some frequency and Tulshyan's didn't really add anything new for ME personally... but it's still a good book and I would recommend people in general read it. But if you read this sort of thing often and you're wondering if you should make time to squeeze this one in, it's probably ok to skip it. She's a perfectly serviceable writer and this is a perfectly fine book but it's only on par with everything else out there, it's not some kind of grand slam of amazing.

If you don't read books like this often, it is a perfectly good place to start. If the last time you read a book like this was 5 years ago, it's a good one to pick up.

There's really nothing wrong this book, it is perfectly good, it just didn't PARTICULARLY stand out but overall it was good.

[James Pike · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall, I think this book is worth reading. I ultimately think this is an important book in the discussion on diversity. The practical suggestions are great, especially the ideas behind sponsorship, interview practices, and feedback. I have some questions about the conclusions. the author posits regarding the outcomes of a world in which women of color have high-level positions in things like big tech and in business across the board. I imagine that were I to read the print book instead of listening to the audiobook I would be able to find some of the data to back up conclusions. I’m not saying that her conclusions are wrong necessarily I would just like to see the data that supports what she comes to. As I said at the beginning, this book is a worthy read, and I would recommend it to somebody looking to meditate on diversity in the workplace, especially regarding women of color.

[Antoinette Van Beck · Rating 5 out of 5]

so much good info in this about equitable practices in work spaces when it comes to racial and gender inequities that are still so prevalent worldwide, even in 2024. this definitely lends itself toward a corporate work environment and making changes there, but i can still think of ways this could apply to the ways i lead my classroom and encourage students to use their voices to grow in confidence. as it says throughout the book though, much of the onus for creating a work environment that truly values each worker the same will require an upheaval of many standard (biased) practices that could be unnerving to those who have had the privilege of power for so long (primarily white men, but also white women). helpful acronyms and practices explained and shown in each of the chapters.

[A Clay · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wouldn’t say it was mind blowing/brand new information. (There were some fantastic takeaways, but I think I was on board with the message before even reading it, which made some of it skim-able for me.) That said, this book 100% changed my life and the priorities I have for myself, for my career, and for the underestimated women I have the privilege of working with and for. I made some major life changes over the course of reading this book. I can’t necessarily credit the book for finally reaching those decisions, but I can credit it for shining a light on some inconvenient truths I could no longer ignore. For that, I am forever grateful and recommend this book so highly!