Differences in job function, work experience, seniority, department, or management level are referred to as organizational diversity. Often, entire departments or levels of a company can be homogeneous — that is, everyone looks the same, comes from the same background, or has the same experience. Finally, worldview diversity encompasses a broad range of beliefs, political affiliation, culture, and travel experience. Our worldview, or our perspectives, contributes to an innovative, inclusive work environment that is forward-focused.
Anything that influences the way we interpret and view the world is part of world view diversity. Diversity benefits organizations at all levels. Even beyond the moral imperative or a sense of fairness, the business case for investing in diversity is clear.
Studies have shown that groups that are diverse in gender, race, and age perform better , make better decisions, and earn more revenue. According to a study by Josh Bersin and Deloitte , inclusive companies are almost twice as likely to be considered innovation leaders in their market.
Similarly, a large study of European firms found that those with a larger share of women in senior positions have significantly higher financial performance , especially in high-tech and other sectors where critical thinking, creativity, and knowledge work matter. The data show that diversity is good for business.
The truth is a little more complicated. Diversity is good for business when the organization knows how to truly embrace, value, and make use of the diversity in its leadership and workforce. Because when managers and leaders know how to draw out diverse perspectives, build on them, and be inclusive of all the perspectives available on their teams, they get better ideas, question assumptions, identify blindspots, develop new approaches, and create better solutions.
As a result, they see massive team innovation, performance, and growth. Inclusive organizations produce better leaders, as well. A diverse team is the best kind of challenge for a new manager, who will naturally have to learn a wide range of communication and motivation styles to be successful in their role. While it is crucial for any organization to develop a team that represents people of all ethnic backgrounds, focusing on just one characteristic can quickly begin to seem inauthentic.
In fact, it may further isolate members of that community, especially when that diversity is thought of only as a visible or superficial identifier. There are many examples of diversity and lack of in the workplace. Homogeneity can be in the eye of the beholder. People often fall into an unconscious habit of thinking of diversity in only one or two dimensions. But depending on the situation, you can almost always find a way to increase the level of diversity on a team, on a decision, in planning, or in a conversation.
Diversity on a product development team. The more organizations are trying to serve and create value for a diverse set of customers and customer needs, the more they need multidimensional diversity in their teams.
First documented in , groupthink is a phenomenon that occurs when individuals avoid disagreeing with a group or expressing doubt. The larger and more similar the group, the less likely individuals are to dissent. On one hand, individuals may feel such a strong group identification that it feels uncomfortable or threatening to disrupt the group consensus. Group norms and behaviors form and solidify quickly because they seem to share so much in common.
On the other hand, all of the individuals in the group might share such a similar set of experiences that they share the same blindspots and the same lack of awareness of their blindspots. Even groups with the best intentions can fall prey to groupthink. Irving Janis, the psychologist who first researched group decision-making, found that behavior such as bullying, rationalizing, and lapses in moral judgment were more likely under these circumstances.
Having a diverse team provides access to a wider range of skill sets and experiences and different ways of thinking, behaving and communicating. This facilitates the growth of new ideas and reduces groupthink. Changing the culture of a workplace is challenging but rewarding work. However, there won't ever not be a demand for inclusive and diverse workplaces.
Now is always a good time to start, but if previous efforts failed, the organization needs to take a different approach. Ensure diversity in your hiring practices by making sure that you are looking at talent from all backgrounds. Don't needlessly apply barriers to entry in the hiring process, like advanced degrees, expensive certifications, or experience with certain firms. We are also different in life opportunities. Consider the disparity between people around the world in terms of access to education, quality food and water, healthcare, proper living conditions, law and employment opportunities.
All of these aspects contribute to shaping our own unique and beautiful identities and influence the way we experience life and interact with our surroundings. How can we not include Diversity in peace education? Diversity embraces so many of our characteristics as individuals; our different origins, ways of communicating, beliefs, preferences, and dreams. Being an active global citizen starts with having the courage to be curious and explore and seek to understand our differences.
Within CISV, we explore our own identity as individuals and are encouraged to consider ourselves within our community, local or wider, in a global level. Respect and inclusiveness are at the heart of peace education. After all, to build a more just and peaceful world we need to respect one another and our differences, and act to include everyone in this journey!
We encourage you to reflect, explore, learn, and discuss with your friends what Diversity means to you and how you plan to apply Diversity Education within CISV this year! Coming up next: tips for trainers who will be training leaders, staffs, boards, or Junior Branch in the content area of Diversity! When I created a business resource group at Mercedes-Benz USA, my goal was to create an all-inclusive environment where our differences could be acknowledged while fostering spaces for connection, professional development and collaboration with each other.
The goal of diversity and inclusion in the workplace should be to foster connections between diverse professionals in order to move the business forward. In this arrangement both the employees and business have opportunities for growth. Including everyone in the conversation, and making sure the same opportunities are provided to everyone, regardless of race, gender, socio-economic background, sexuality etc, is the only way to gain the benefits that come from being truly diverse and inclusive.
When a company supports diversity and inclusion, they are actively trying to fight against bias , discrimination , and prejudices.
Many recruiting processes fall prey to unconscious bias and stereotypes based on candidate age, gender, race, appearance, etc.
This is something that absolutely needs to change. Increase diversity by mitigating bias during the hiring process using techniques like performance-based hiring. Simon Lyon, Editor of The Sound Junky :In general, diversity refers to understanding a person for the differences that they might have from you.
These differences can be based on race, ethnicity, gender, socioeconomic status, age, physical abilities, religious beliefs, political beliefs, or ideologies. Instead of committing such acts, workplaces should instead focus on promoting diversity and inclusion. The only way to change mindsets is to bring people from different backgrounds together and work with each other every day.
People tend to hate each other based on their beliefs and race and never look past it and try to know the person. Workplaces could ensure they hire people from different backgrounds and bring them together. They would be doing society a huge favor as people will start learning about the importance of diversity and inclusion and how badly it is needed. These contributions are rewarding not only for the employee but for the company as well.
From my perspective, diversity is an essential factor in the workplace ; it gives an opportunity to bring new concepts, new perspectives, and solve problems in the best possible way. If you work in a diverse culture, you get more creative ideas and a platform to learn something new. Such diversity opens up the door of discussions. I believe my response is comprehensive. Please reach out to me, if you need to ask something else.
Matias Nunez at USA Wholesale : Diversity to us means developing the best possible team with the main focus being to find individuals that are highly SELF-motivated to do their best in life whether that be with their work or with their personal life. By focusing on that and always keeping a large pool of candidates to interview , we have organically created diversity in our company. Tom Winter, co-founder of DevSkiller : Diversity, to me, encompasses all avenues — age, socioeconomic background, race, gender, sexuality , and identities.
A lack of diversity can actually create a high staff turnover and actually deter international customers to your company.
Curiosity and allowing the space to be wrong. Right now we have millions of people who have been activated either personally or as an ally by the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and countless other victims of racial injustice.
We may never personally know or be able to feel the injustices that many marginalized groups experience but what we can do is humanize them. So what we can do is take the time to educate ourselves through materials like White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo.
From there we can treat everyone with the same sense of curiosity we had in preschool. Hi, my name is x, how are you today? What holidays do you celebrate? Include people in the conversation instead of assuming you understand their diversity. When I look at company sites with photo profiles, I sometimes see one demographic repeatedly occurring, which tells me they are not interested in diversifying. Diversity means not judging someone by their appearance, name on an application, sexual orientation , or preconceived notions you may have about a particular demographic.
At varying levels, I believe all of us need to educate ourselves about those different from us to erase as many of those stigmas as possible. I know people have held preconceived beliefs about me, so it is my job as a leader to lead by example and not make the same mistakes. Nita Evans, who is the Chair of the Masters of Arts in Social Impact program at Claremont Lincoln University : As a systems change leader and social justice activist, she has spent her career advancing an equity agenda by working to close the opportunity gap for the most vulnerable and marginalized groups in society.
As part of our commitment to diversity, we can work towards creating an equity culture by using a racial-equity lens to change processes and systems. The same holds true for the educational system, healthcare system and criminal justice system. We must each ask ourselves, what part do I play in creating a future where institutional barriers are removed and diversity is engendered? It is a world where everyone has access to job opportunities and fair treatment. Now is the time to say, I will do my part, I will lead with empathy and compassion and commit to being the change I wish to see.
Together, we can build a diverse world where all people feel safe, protected, respected and valued in the workplace. My advice is to employees and employers alike is to be proactive. Seek opportunities for education, learning and growth.
Many institutions are offering diversity training for companies, organizations and individuals to learn how to become better equipped at building a diverse culture. Luz Claudio , Chief of the Division of International HealthMount Sinai School of Medicine : I believe that diversity and inclusion means actively leveling the playing field for underrepresented minorities who have historically been marginalized in the workplace.
It means removing barriers that limit the professional development of people of color and it means accepting them in leadership roles by seeing the value and contribution we make to the overall success of the organization.
What we need is the acknowledgement that we have been excluded and devalued, and the rectification of these situations by actively and intentionally promoting our equal participation in leadership roles. So for us, becoming intentional about inclusion was about making people feel comfortable.
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