Diversity is Good Business

I graduated from the International School of Bangkok in 1980. There were around 400 kids in my High School.

There were over 38 different nationalities represented! It was a true melting pot of ideas, world-views, religions, skill sets and more.

(By the way, Tim Geithner – former Secretary of the Treasury - was a classmate!)

Not only did this random mix of people work, it worked incredibly at a time in history where this was not the norm.

Diversity is good for business. I always say the best way to have a great idea is to have lots of ideas. I would add the best way to have a great company is to have lots of ideas from very different points of view, backgrounds, and mindsets.

In his fantastic book The Peaceable Kingdom, the Founder of The Richards Group says this.

“Your organization needs the differences … Different personalities, different ages, different cultural backgrounds, different priorities in life – they are volatile ingredients for a company culture to be sure. But then who really wants a company composed of inert ingredients anyway? Give me volatile.”

The world is flat. Everything has changed. The workplace has become the United Nations with people from a myriad of countries and walks of life. Companies that understand, embrace, and celebrate the new world will thrive and prosper. Companies that don’t will flounder and eventually fail. It’s that simple.

One of the most pressing issues at many companies today revolves around diversity and inclusion.

I am NOT talking about political correctness. Political Correctness is generally arbitrary and limiting. In my experience, Political cultures can’t hold a candle to Performance Cultures. I am talking about performance and people. Collaborating with a wide range of people makes for an incredible work environment, expands options, increases creativity, and is more profitable in every way imaginable.

Discriminating against people based on race, gender, lifestyle, religion, or other categorizations is not only illegal, it is bad form. To be narrow minded borders on having no mind at all. The more restrictive your point of view the less successful you will be in a world where diverse points of view abound.

Look around the room and boardroom, if everyone looks like you, you are not prepared for today’s business environment. Today’s market is diverse and varied. Customers come in all shapes and sizes.

Dollar bills are neutral and don’t care who is holding them. On the other hand, the people giving them out are NOT neutral about who they give them to. And they are less likely to share their wealth with people to whom they feel disconnected.

The workplace of today is one that is open to new ideas, embraces people of all kinds and lifestyles, and maximizes collaboration with a wide range of individuals and groups.

In my experience with dealing with leaders from a wide range of industries, the MOST successful people have a purposeful ability to see the other person’s point of view as well as their own. When you can know another person’s story as well or better than you know your own, then you are able to relate to AND be successful with a wide range of people.

Many people operate from one point of view, their own. Then they wonder why they are not successful and do not receive support from the people around them. How broad and open is your point of view?

Smart and successful people recognize there are limitless points of view and they are curious and open to learning about and interacting with people whose points of view differ from their own.

In Daniel Kahneman’s ground breaking book, Thinking Fast and Slow he describes an individual.

 "Steve is very shy and withdrawn, invariably helpful but with little interest in people or in the world of reality. A meek and tidy soul, he has a need for order and structure and a passion for detail.” Is Steve more likely to be a librarian or a farmer?"

Given the description, many people guess Librarian. 

Kahneman goes on to point out that there are 20 male farmers for every 1 male librarian so statistically speaking Steve is much more likely to be a farmer.

Biases and assumptions unwittingly cause us to check logic and our brains at the door.

We all know the obvious breeches

1. Racist or sexist remarks or jokes

2. Demeaning comments about different people groups or lifestyles

3. Belittling opinions and attitudes that don’t value other people

4. Criticizing lifestyles, races, or religions because it is not your own.

These egregious ways of being are outdated and have no place in the companies and organizations of today.

But what about more subtle forms? Let me share a few examples along with more powerful ways of acting.

1.   A 2-hour dinner with colleagues where the entire conversation revolves around golf when there are non-golfers at the table. (Or children, when not everyone has children)

a.  Vary the conversation and see what people are most interested in discussing.

b. Use getting to know you questions like …

What do you enjoy doing in your time off? What is your favorite thing to do on vacation? If you were not working in your current profession what would you want to do?

2.   Picking a restaurant with no gluten free or vegetarian options when there are participants who are gluten free or vegetarian. OR, going to a vegetarian only restaurant when there are meat eaters in the group. In either case, not taking into consideration the diners who will be participating in a meal is to potentially leave someone hungry or with very limited food options.

a.  Find out in advance what people are interested in eating and seek to accommodate food allergies and restrictions so that everyone present can have a great meal and a great time.

3.  Using broad statements to lump everyone in the same category.

a.  Millennials are …

b. Women don’t like …

c.  Hispanics like …

d. Successful people are outgoing …

e. If you don’t go to the gym or work out you are a …

Labels of any sort are generally limiting. Anytime you lump a group of people into a set of characterizations you are setting yourself up for failure. Avoid the use of phrases that begin with the word “ALL -----_______ people … OR people from ________ ALL … More subtle but equally limiting are phrases that go something like this. “I haven’t met a person from ________ yet that didn’t _______.”

4.  Lack of situational awareness. Not knowing who is in the room and what they care about.

a.  The best way to find out who is in the room is listening. By the way, if you truly adopt an inclusive mindset and awareness then hopefully you reach the place where you don’t have to change what you say to “fit the crowd”. If you wouldn’t say it if certain people were in the room, why are you saying it at all?

5.  Perpetuating a “good old boy” network

a.  The boardroom has expanded. Decision makers, customers, buyers, influencers, leaders are coming from all walks of life and when you perpetuate a monochromatic club you limit yourself and those around you.

6.  Using outdated terms like waitress and stewardess

a.  If you don’t know the more modern terms it’s time for a language and system upgrade. By the way, it is server and flight attendant.

7.  Ridiculing people for their political or social convictions or positions.

a.  Be a question mark rather than an exclamation point. If you are surprised or don’t understand another person’s point of view approach it like a curious learner rather than a bull in a china shop defending your own position. You just may learn something!

8. Addressing emails to “Gentlemen, Men or Ladies”

a.  Try “team” or other more inclusive phrases instead.

9.  Stereotypical assignment of roles like making the Female on the team the social activities/schedule coordinator (to do things like make dinner arrangements or plan the team outing, etc.)

a.  Try rotating these roles to a wide range of individuals

10. When describing female behaviors adjectives used are often judgment based while men are described using more action based terms. For example, women are referred to as “aggressive”, when men are called “go-getters”.

a.  Ask yourself, “If a person of a different gender, age group, race, lifestyle was doing or saying this would I interpret it differently.

11.  Personal circumstances are discussed or brought up frequently in conversations with women (For example, “Wow, you travel and who is watching your kids while you away”; A man would almost never be asked that question)

a.  STOP stereotyping or Typecasting people

12.  Not being aware of Cultural differences and different personalities and communication styles.

a.  Are you familiar with the nuances of the cultures with whom you interact? Are you aware of how they view the world? Are you aware of the different behavioral and personality styles? Are you willing to adjust to them in order to connect or do you make everyone adjust to you?

13. Jokes around accents, stereotypical behaviors, and reductionistic characterizations

a.  Humor is a beautiful way to enjoy life and connect with other people, but it can also be one of the most offensive means of communication when wielded by someone who has not taken others into consideration.

14.  Building homogeneous teams as far as personalities and work styles is limiting.

a.  Look for opportunities to respect different personalities and work styles and build teams using a broader spectrum for maximum effectiveness.

Consider these interesting statistics

·    60% of the World’s Population are In Asia

·    Out of 7.5 Billion people only 60 million play golf

·    In comparison … Estimated number of Pokémon Go downloads by September 2016 – 500 million. Largest percentage of players? Males 21-27 years old

·    By 2060 it is estimated that Whites will make up less than 10% of the world population

·    31 % of the World Population is considered Vegetarian

·    Only 25% of the World Population speaks some level of English

·    Millennials greatly outnumber Baby Boomers in the US

It’s time for a new way of thinking, acting, speaking. You and your company can lead the charge on reinventing the way we work and with whom we work. It makes for a better workplace, is more world friendly, and is just good business.

The Global Company Culture Association brings people together from all over the world to share their best ideas and practices. Join us at www.GlobalCompanyCultureAssociation.com and let’s create the culture of tomorrow today.

#GlobalCompanyCultureAssociation #GCCA #CompanyCulture #CorporateCulture #WorkplaceCulture #TheCultureArchitect #CEO #HR #ACompanyofOwners #WorkEvolution #Association #Work #CultureTransformation #culture #DarenMartin #JoinTheEvolution #Evolution #AnEvolutionAtWork #TimGeithner #StanRichards #TheRichardsGroup #ThePeacableKingdom #DanielKahneman #ThinkingFastandSlowdrop #Diversity #Inclusion #ISB #InternationalSchoolBangkok #Bangkok #Thailand