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Inclusion by design: Building AI systems that work for everyone
Artificial intelligence is rapidly reshaping how organisations operate and how work is carried out, yet not everyone is being written into that future equally. As organisations race to automate, optimise, and augment work through AI technologies, they face a growing risk that systems designed to improve efficiency could unintentionally widen existing inequalities rather than reduce them. The real promise of AI lies not only in technical sophistication, but in whether it genuinely works for the full range of people expected to use it.
Recent research from Credera’s AI Gender Gap report points to a stark reality. Women remain disproportionately represented in administrative support, customer service, and data processing roles where automation exposure can reach up to 80 percent, while at the same time remaining significantly underrepresented in the teams designing AI systems. Women currently make up just 22 percent of AI professionals and only 14 percent of senior technology executives.
This imbalance risks creating a feedback loop of bias, where systems built without diverse perspectives embed historical inequalities into the algorithms shaping future decisions, workforce structures, and access to opportunity.
Why this matters for AI adoption
The systems being created today will influence productivity, access, and trust for years to come. Addressing this challenge requires more than good intentions or high-level commitments, it requires a practical approach that ensures inclusion is built into how AI systems are designed, implemented, and governed from the outset.
At Credera, we describe this as an Inclusion by Design approach built on four essential pillars. First, leadership must actively champion inclusion at the highest level, treating it as a delivery responsibility rather than a communications objective. Second, diverse perspectives must inform both the design process and the data powering AI systems, requiring teams to ask consistently who is represented, who is missing, and whose experience is shaping the solution.
Third, strong governance structures must ensure ethical oversight and accountability remain embedded throughout development and deployment rather than applied only at approval checkpoints. Finally, organisations must invest in building real capability in AI literacy and confidence, particularly among those most exposed to workforce disruption, so that employees feel equipped to work alongside new technologies rather than excluded by them.
Turning intention into delivery
Frameworks alone, however, are not enough. Meaningful progress depends on leadership behaviour and organisational culture. Senior leaders need to engage directly in responsible AI decisions, organisations must treat diversity as a core enabler of effective systems rather than a compliance requirement, and sustained investment in workforce capability must remain a priority if AI adoption is to succeed in practice.
Inclusion therefore represents more than a moral imperative - it is a strategic and operational advantage. Organisations with diverse leadership consistently outperform peers in innovation, risk management, and engagement, and the same principle applies to the design of technology itself.
For the technology community, the opportunity is clear. By embedding inclusion into every stage of AI development and deployment, organisations can build systems that are more trusted, more usable, and ultimately more effective. When AI is designed for everyone, organisations do not just create better technology, they create systems people trust and are willing to use, which is what ultimately determines whether AI delivers its promised value.
Bio:
Andrea Marshall Webb is a Managing Director at Credera leading AI-enabled transformation across government and regulated sectors. She works with major government departments and institutions implementing AI at scale, focusing on workforce adoption, organisational readiness, and responsible deployment. Andrea also holds global disability leadership roles within Omnicom and is a recognised contributor to industry conversations on inclusive AI, digital transformation, and the future workforce.
About the campaign
techUK’s TechTogether campaign continues with a focus on ‘equity by design'. Our insights this week focus on the importance of inclusive design in product development, creating technology that is accessible to people with disabilities, tackling affordability, connectivity, and digital skills gaps through cross-sector partnerships and community-led initiatives, and, ensuring public services are co-designed with disabled, ethnic, and older users.
TechTogether - Week 3
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