Hi , On-Balance Issue 177: Designed to Drift?

Hello there and welcome back to On Balance, my fortnightly round-up of news, views and research around the issue of diversity, equity and inclusion. This issue is guest-authored by Michelle Weston, CRO and Executive Coach at the Executive Coaching Consultancy.

Designed to Drift?

What’s the real cost of overlooking talent? According to a new study from McKinsey, the answer is measurable and significant. The firm estimates that removing the employment barriers faced by a third of Europeans due to their socio-economic background might increase Europe’s GDP by 9%.

The precise figure can be debated, but the broader point is harder to dismiss: inclusion drives performance, productivity and growth. And yet in the current business climate, it almost feels radical to suggest that specific groups might need targeted support to thrive.

McKinsey is one of a handful of firms backing this view with action. It is developing new assessment tools, providing mentorship, and building internal communities for people who, in the past, may never have made it through the door.

Behind every case for inclusion lies a more personal story. I know this not because I read it in a report, but because I lived it.

In 30 years in financial services, class and background shaped almost every stage of my career. I didn’t go to the right school, didn’t speak with the right accent, and didn’t know how to hold a conversation at the client dinner where everyone else seemed fluent in skiing, sailing and gap years.

I worked hard and delivered results. But I also learned what to leave out - my background, my sexuality, even my dyslexia - in order to fit in. Covering one part of yourself tends to mean covering all of it. The cost of that isn’t just personal, it’s organisational.

There are plenty of people like me in big institutions, but we’re rarely visible. We adapt to what’s around us and we try not to stand out. In the process, we learn to keep our stories to ourselves. That silence can be heavy. So can the sense of not being fully seen.

This is where inclusion matters. Not just in opening doors, but in shaping cultures where people can walk through them and still feel like they belong. Where support is not just about access, but about progression and potential.

Separate data from Progress Together and KPMG underlines this point. Both studies find that professionals from lower socio-economic backgrounds are promoted more slowly than their peers. KPMG suggests that it takes on average 19% longer to progress from lower to higher levels of an organisation; Progress Together suggest a time lag of 6 months. The difference isn’t talent or performance. It is being invisible in the system which governs progress.

That is why the way we design our systems matters. And when those systems are left to drift, the outcomes are painfully predictable.

We know what works—structured access to opportunity. Clear development pathways. Deliberate sponsorship. These are not theoretical fixes. They’re practical interventions that too often sit at the margins, vulnerable to shifting priorities and short-term thinking.

Importantly, this isn’t about lowering the bar. It’s about removing the filters that stop people from ever getting near it.

We talk a lot about potential in business. But when someone from a non-typical background succeeds, the narrative often stops at: "Haven’t they done well?" A better question might be: "How much further could they go if the system had recognised them sooner?" Or: "What might be possible if we built organisations designed not just for survival, but for flourishing?"

If we want different outcomes, we need different designs. Because systems don’t drift to inclusion, they drift to familiarity.

Familiarity isn't where the future is found. It's where potential quietly gets left behind. We know the better questions to ask. Our challenge? To act on them.