Want to attract diverse talent? Diversify your own network #DYON

In today's world of work where the only constant is change and the only certainty is increasing uncertainty, diversity and inclusion are as important as adaptability and creativity. According to McKinsey, "new research makes it increasingly clear that companies with more diverse workforces perform better financially."

The faster and bigger the changes, the more urgent and powerful a culture of equity becomes. Since I want to really understand my world to help make it better, I aspire to have a network that as much as possible matches the full range of experiences in it.

Despite this imperative, companies, particularly in the tech sector, are failing to improve diversity and inclusion in their workforce. In fact, it's getting worse. Just recently, it was reported that recruiters at Facebook actually 'stopped trying' for diversity after candidates were blocked by engineers. For the 2nd year in a row, Microsoft's share of women employees dropped despite having very innovative diversity and inclusion programs.

Here's an idea. Employees referrals make up 46% of all hires at top companies. And referrals are on the rise due to some amazing new tools to make it so much easier. Yet in reading the blog posts from Google, Microsoft, Apple on the topic, not a single one of them encouraged their employees to find ways to diversify their own connections. If such a significant and potentially increasing percentage of hires come from employee referrals, if we don't diversify our networks, we will not make much progress. Not to mention that employee referrals stay twice as long; there's unmistakable advantages all around.

Why not help every employee and team figure out how representative is their own network, discover how their existing connections with people from diverse backgrounds experience their relationships, and diversify their own networks in the most authentic and meaningful way possible. It's an "everyone a changemaker" economy now, and meaningful, diverse relationships will help us all realize our fullest potential.

I'll start with my own network. I spent last weekend viewing my connections on Linkedin. It was a lot of work as I have over 4000 connections thanks to almost 30 years of work as a recruiter and changemaker in Silicon Valley. I actually know the vast majority relatively well.  I’ve connected with some I didn’t know if I thought I could help them with my network or posts.    I didn't consciously network for purpose.

Not surprisingly, most of my network are engineers and entrepreneurs. Geographically, it's pretty narrow too. In my network, 61% are from just four cities: NY, DC, SF and Boston versus 14% out of all Linkedin members. I have no connections in Alaska nor North Dakota. In my defense, I mostly connect with people I worked with or met. I've worked mainly in SF Bay Area with shorter stints in DC, NYC and Hong Kong. And most engineers, entrepreneurs and social entrepreneurs work in these cities.

While my connections with women and underrepresented minorities are above industry norms, they are below US population levels.  

I looked at my network as follows: women; underrepresented minorities in STEM (African American, American Indians/Alaska Natives, and Latinos); and professionals with non-profit interests.

Women:

• My US network: 43%
• US civilian labor force: 47%;
• My network in US Tech Industry: 39%
• US Tech Industry: 29%;
• US tech jobs in my network: 27%
• US tech jobs: 16%

Underrepresented minorities:

• My US network: 25%;
• US population: 30%;
• US tech industry: 18%
• URMs in US tech jobs in my network: 13%;
• URMs in US tech jobs: 3%.

Nonprofit interests: My network: 24%; Large tech company alumni groups: 10%; All Linkedin members: 1%

I chose to highlight those with nonprofit interests as they represent a growing group of professionals who see purpose orientation as key to their success. When it comes to figuring out how to connect with people we don't know in authentic ways to improve diversity, inclusion and create a culture of equity, Linkedin members signaling nonprofit interests in your company or alumni networks can be a source of creative ideas.

The best way to break through the barriers created by promotional motivation and self-similarity is through shared passions and activity. Potent networks are not forged through superficial interactions but through changemaking to solve a tough challenge, forming teams, taking action and getting results with a diverse group of people. Shared activities can help you build a truly representative cross-section of different people around a common point of interest, instead of connecting similar individuals with shared backgrounds- which is the conventional, go nowhere, networking approach.

In the social sector, I've joined a group of amazing talent innovators to create an organization called Collaboration for Talent. (CfT) They see how collaborative partnerships and networking for purpose, not just for promotion, can be a force for eliminating network inequality. Your network is your net social impact. As a starting point, we are working together to provide a talent and engagement solution to every female and underrepresented minority run NGO in the world. Our ultimate goal is to transform the way people network to solve the most complex social problems