Workforce Diversity
Workplace Diversity: A Recipe for Success
Imagine trying to bake a cake with only one ingredient. Not only would the results fall short of expectations, they would leave a bad taste in your mouth. To create the perfect dessert requires a number of ingredients, properly combined according to a plan, or recipe.
So it is with diversity in the workforce. Many firms build the corporate equivalent of a one-ingredient cake by not taking advantage of the wealth of talent and viewpoints available from people of different walks of life. Simply by opening up the decision-making process to different age, gender, racial, ethnic and religious groups, you enrich the chances of success.
True, if your company reaches 100 employees, federal regulations for diversity sourcing, retention and resource allocation kick in. So you may not have a choice. Plus much of what you want to do, or can do, may be controlled by your human resources department. But beyond mere compliance, a commitment to workforce diversity is plain good business. Here's how it can help:
- An inclusive management philosophy creates an environment in which the workforce feels free to come to the table with new ideas. When the workforce is empowered to make or veto decisions, new and better decisions result. The odds for success greatly increase as new ideas must pass through a number of relevance filters.
- New census statistics reveal that the U.S. population is more racially and ethnically mixed than ever before. Consequently, so are the customer bases of many large corporations. The more these different demographic and philosophical viewpoints are reflected, the more closely aligned the decision-making process becomes with the customer base and the more relevant the company becomes.
- By hiring a heterogeneous workforce, a company shows respect for the diversity of its customers, and it may increase the extent to which customers identify with the business. Customers are looking for reasons to do-or in many cases, not to do- business with you. They want to see products that relate to them and people that understand and speak their language.
- Recruiting is made easier. The more open the company is to advancing diversity in its decision-making process and within its management ranks, the more it becomes a magnet for attracting the best and the brightest workforce. People want to invest their time and energy into opportunities where their views will be well valued and they have an opportunity to make a difference.
Knowing what ingredients are required is only half the battle, however. Managers still must stick to a recipe to get the most out of their diversity goals. Here's how to promote diversity in the workforce:
Define your goals. Define publicly what you hope to accomplish by building a demographically rich environment within your organization and how you hope to achieve it. Clearly state what you will and won't tolerate in terms of acceptable behavior. Break down the recruiting processes between entry-level positions and positions that require more experience.
Train your existing workforce. Understand that the process of building a diverse workforce may create an emotional backlash. Develop programs to help your team understand their preconceived notions about race, sex, and national origin and how they affect the business. They also need to be trained to be more sensitive and inclusive in promoting a rainbow coalition.
Conduct an audit of your operation. To understand where your company is compared to other businesses, have a consultant come in and conduct a diversity litmus test. Where are you and where can you be. Benchmark yourself to other businesses. What results have they had and how have they gotten there.
Recruit intentionally. Whether you do the recruiting or it is handled by HR, consciously look to bring in people that don't think like you or look like you. But don't look for differences for the sake of differences. You still want the most qualified prospects that share the same work ethic and core values such as honesty, integrity, dedication, and commitment.
Develop the right corporate culture. Foster an environment in which opposing views are not only tolerated, but accepted, understood and valued. In that way, team members believe that their contributions are valued-and valuable-and you will open the floodgates to new and exciting vistas. You don't want a group of people afraid to express their opinions because they fall outside the boundaries of the corporate mindset or what may be "politically correct." Rather, actively encourage team members to express themselves openly and honestly.
Build a team. In other articles within this Management Tips series, we talked about how to nurture a team environment. Go back and review those suggestions and put those practices to good use here.
Talk about the results. Identify your stakeholders, both internally and externally, and spend time talking about your goals, objectives and results. Everybody can develop a compelling story to tell about the importance of diversity within the organization. Repeat it in front of your employees, your customers, your shareholders, your recruitees and your community. This will help get your name in front of potential employees.
The key to any diversity program is to further your business objectives by looking for the best and the brightest workforce-not one that reflects a quota mentality. Diversity for diversity's sake can lead to an over-reliance on one "type" of employee or recruiting method and undermine you and your company's success.