3 Tips to Leading Diversity

In the midst of the Derek Chauvin trial, many Americans are riveted by how the violence, and hatred rooted in the very foundation of the United States has resulted in discriminatory practices in our justice system.

This article is focused on the kind of diversity of experience that can and does cause conflict and even discrimination, especially in professional settings. It’s about doing a better job of seeing each other, communicating with each other and trying to understand each other so that the conflict our differences can generate doesn’t prevent us from achieving outcomes that benefit us all. 

Our individual experiences inform our choices, what we perceive as normal behavior, and what we might judge as abnormal. And yet we sometimes act as if everyone has had the same experience, has the same perception and will react the same way as we do. Of course, they haven’t, don’t and won’t...even in the same family. My brother is a decade younger and my experience as the first child born to young 20-somethings just starting out, is predictably different from his as the youngest of five. 

Now, if we could just silently “Bless their hearts” and keep our perceptions and judgments from outwardly affecting our reactions, our interactions would be absent of conflict. Unfortunately, when the other person doesn’t react in a way that is familiar to us, we often judge them negatively. 

On a team, diversity of expertise and experience is the secret sauce to success but negativity toward differences can stop differences from being expressed, create unresolved conflict and result in a team imploding. 

Here are three practices you can adapt to use differences to prevent implosion and expand your team’s success. 

Embrace Diversity 

Differences in thought, experience, and perception are what give a team its edge. 

As a leader, you have to understand the positive impact of differences, enthusiastically embrace the diversity of your team members and create a culture where they can be fully themselves. Look for diversity and focus on the many ways differences can improve your team.

One recent client shared her experience of drawing attention to the reasons a bathroom fixture being enthusiastically developed by her company wouldn’t work for women. She was the only woman on the team and able to articulate her very different experience; her presence and voice prevented a costly production error.

Yet, how many times in the last few years have we seen an offensive product get all the way from idea to on-the-shelf and wondered if anyone along the process at, for example, Prada, Gucci and Katy Perry, was able to recognize and point out that blackface is always offensive? 

In these cases and others, the lack of diversity was costly.

Express Diversity  

Having people in the space with a different point of view isn’t enough if they don’t feel safe in expressing that viewpoint.

On a team, each member has the right, even the responsibility to express fully who they are, what they know and what they bring to the team.  

As the leader, you’re responsible for creating a safe space for your team to express their diversity. You can do that by allowing your team members to express their thoughts on a course of action before you weigh in. And get comfortable hearing a difference of opinion. Understand that disagreement does not mean disrespect. Encourage others to listen for understanding by modeling that yourself. 

Assume the team member with a different perspective is as committed to the vision of the team as you are and just wants to make sure the team has considered all possibilities when choosing a course of action. They usually just want to know…

“Do you see me? Do you hear me? Does what I say mean anything to you?” ~ Oprah Winfrey 

As the leader, you don’t have to have all the answers you just have to be able to hear the answers. 

Explore Diversity 

It can be difficult for people to explain the origins of their reactions to their life experiences. Or maybe their knowledge in their area of expertise causes them to reach what they consider an obvious conclusion so it’s not obvious to them that a deeper explanation is necessary. Or maybe they don’t think anyone cares about the detail. 

If you don’t understand where your team member is coming from and need more information, show that you care by getting curious. Ask for clarification. The perspectives offered by your team can be different and correct at the same time; an exploration led by you can lead to deeper understanding of all the factors affecting a decision as well as more compassion by all sides. 

I’m not talking about explanations about all the many ways people are treated differently in the United States; as the leader, make sure you are educating yourself about the history of demographic discrimination in this country so you can adequately address any instances of discrimination and bias that occur. 

I'm talking again about the conflict that can arise when differences of expertise and experience are expressed. Don’t allow those differences to go unaddressed and unresolved. And if you’re the decision maker, an explanation on how you reached your decision may be required but consensus is not.

Taking the time to dig deeper for greater understanding, greater clarity can bring greater success to your team

If we’ve learned anything, it’s that differences on a team can make the difference. Embrace them, express them, explain them if necessary and allow differences to expand your success. 

Renita D. Alexander is the founder of Leadership Unlocked, a full service leadership development company focused on empowering leaders to unlock and leverage their innate, unique leadership DNA. 

She helps her clients show up and speak out authentically and powerfully. 

You can connect to Renita on her private Facebook group Leadership Unlocked and follow her club, Leadership Unlocked, on Clubhouse. Learn more about leading yourself in her book, Just Breathe: Leading Myself One Breath at a Time available via Xlibris.com