Why Solving for the Most Vulnerable Is the Key

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This piece is part of an ongoing series responding to the wave of DEI rollbacks and resistance. Each article offers thoughtful strategies to help you lead in ways that increase diversity and retention—without harm. Pre-order The Equity Edge now and receive The Equity Edge Instructor Guide FREE—a limited-time offer designed to help you bring these practices into your workplace with care, courage, and clarity.

We talked about how focusing on barriers rather than identity alone makes equity work more effective and less about optics. 

Now, let’s take that logic a step further.

If we remove barriers for the most vulnerable, we create equity—and a better workplace—for everyone.

This is known as the curb-cut effect—the idea that when we design for those who need it most, everyone benefits.

The Curb-Cut Effect: When Fixing One Barrier Helps Everyone

Ever noticed those small dips in sidewalks at crosswalks? They were originally designed for people using wheelchairs, but they ended up helping a lot more than that—parents with strollers, travelers with luggage, workers moving carts.

That’s the curb-cut effect in action: when we design for those who face the greatest obstacles, we make life better for everyone.

And workplaces work the same way. When we fix the biggest barriers in hiring, leadership, and retention, we don’t just help one group—we create stronger, more inclusive workplaces that work for all.

How Prioritizing the Most Vulnerable Creates Equity for All

It’s astonishing but true: Focusing on who faces the greatest barriers, to some, sounds “discriminatory.” But it is not. It simply means solving problems at the root so that workplaces become more fair, effective, and sustainable.

Here are some examples: 

1. Expand Sponsorship, Not Just Mentorship

Many companies talk about mentorship, but what historically underrepresented employees need is sponsorship—leaders who don’t just give advice but actually advocate for their advancement.

A Gallup study shows that only 23% of employees have sponsors at work. Professionals with sponsors are 48% more likely to strongly agree that their workplace gives them equal advancement opportunities. However, Black professionals, first-generation professionals, career changers, and anyone without elite networks struggle to get senior sponsors. Achieving equity here means fixing this sponsorship barrier. When workplaces remove this sponsorship gap, leadership pipelines become stronger and more merit-based. And when hiring focuses on skills rather than networks, qualified candidates from all backgrounds have a fair shot. This is how we “Make Our Workplace Great,” in true sense.

2. Make Workplace Flexibility the Norm

Remote work and flexible schedules were originally designed as accommodations for people with disabilities. But they quickly became game-changers for working parents, caregivers, and employees managing mental health.

A Gallup study found that employees working fully remotely (37%) and in hybrid setups (36%) show noticeably higher engagement compared to those working entirely on-site (30%). Companies that normalize flexibility accommodate employees with specific needs and increase retention, improve productivity, and make work-life balance achievable for everyone. Even as hybrid and remote work policies face scrutiny from the federal government, research shows that flexible work models drive higher engagement and job satisfaction. Organizations that resist this shift are sure to lose top talent to companies that recognize the evolving needs of today’s workforce.

3. Standardize Promotion Criteria

For too long, getting promoted has felt like cracking a secret code. The steps aren’t always clear, and too often, promotions go to people who know the right people instead of those who actually deserve them.

A Harvard Business Review study found that women and professionals from underrepresented backgrounds get less useful feedback than their white male colleagues. That makes it harder to know what’s working and what’s not and, most importantly, how to move up.

When companies lay out clear, straightforward promotion criteria, everything changes. People stop guessing what it takes to get ahead. Office politics and favoritism lose their grip. The best talent—the people who truly earn it—step into leadership. That’s better for everyone. And that is one of the ways we achieve equity in a true sense.

Why This Is Not Rolling Over—It’s Dismantling Smarter

You might be wondering if the DEI industry is just shifting gears to fit the 2025 landscape, making things more “neutral” to keep the peace. But let’s be clear—nothing has changed. This isn’t about softening DEI to make everyone feel good or sidestepping the real issues. It’s even more so about fixing the barriers and doubling down focus on what holds people back.

Some folks will always resist change, especially when it means giving up unearned advantages. And that’s fine. We’re not here to convince everyone. But most people? They get it. They understand that when workplaces work for more people, businesses work better.

And history backs it up. The biggest workplace shifts—from civil rights to gender equity to disability inclusion—didn’t happen because people felt comfortable. They happened because barriers were removed, making workplaces fairer, smarter, and stronger.

1. The Civil Rights Movement didn’t just push for more Black people in leadership. It dismantled the laws that blocked Black Americans from voting, home ownership, and wealth-building. The Fair Housing Act of 1968 made housing discrimination illegal, opening financial opportunities for generations. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 forced companies and public institutions to break down racial barriers in hiring and promotions, making workplace discrimination a legal risk.
2. The Women’s Rights Movement didn’t stop at fighting for gender balance in the workplace. It forced policy changes that made workplaces more equitable. The Equal Pay Act of 1963 made it illegal to pay women less than men for the same work, and Title IX broke down educational barriers that kept women out of leadership pipelines in business, medicine, and law. Unfortunately, “sex” has replaced the broad and accurate term “gender” in this title, pursuant to Trump’s Executive Order 14168.
3. The LGBTQ+ rights movement didn’t just demand visibility. It fought and won major policy shifts that removed barriers to full participation in society. The repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” allowed LGBTQ+ Americans to serve openly in the military. The Bostock v. Clayton County Supreme Court ruling (2020) confirmed that workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity is illegal under federal law.

Every big moment in history wasn’t about handing out opportunities. It was about removing the roadblocks that kept people from having a fair shot.

That’s what real equity does. It clears the path so talent can rise on its own. When that happens, everyone wins. This isn’t about “softening” DEI work to make people comfortable. This is about ensuring that real barriers—the ones that sustain inequity—are dismantled for good.

Equity is about barrier removal.

When we solve for the most vulnerable, we create workplaces that are stronger, fairer, and better for everyone.

This is exactly what The Equity Edge explores: how removing systemic barriers—rather than just increasing representation—is the real key to creating lasting, meaningful change.

Now, let’s talk: Where have you seen the curb-cut effect in your workplace? Drop your thoughts in the comments.