Are we force fitting inclusion & diversity

An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity ~ Martin Luther King, Jr

General

When we change, initially the initial mechanism over compensates. Meaning when we realise that a behaviour is no longer working for us (either as an individual or as an organisation or even as a country) we move across the spectrum in order to do the opposite. It is true for diets, for exercise, and for sleep. It is also true for reservations and the wave of 'diversity and inclusion' that we are observing today.

Not only are organisations focussed on trying to maintain diversity, they are paying professionals large salaries with a single point agenda to maintain diversity and inclusion and to show the world that they indeed are ones 'walking the talk.'

What is Diversity & Inclusion

In its simplest form, diversity means being composed of differing elements. In a workplace, diversity means that the workforce is made up of employees with different races, gender identities, career backgrounds, skills and so on. People from diverse backgrounds bring diverse perspectives and hence the organisation becomes more 'encompassing'.

Inclusion is the practice of providing everyone with equal access to opportunities and resources. Inclusion efforts in the workplace help to give traditionally marginalized groups — like those based on gender, race or disabilities — a means for them to feel equal in the workplace. Inclusive actions, like creating employee resource groups or hosting information sessions, make the workplace a safer, more respectful environment for all employees.

Where is the Gap?

Race. Traditionally the western world (as a fallout of tenets of Abrahamic religion) is racist, sexist and non inclusive. Slavery was abolished as late as December 1865 in the US, in 1848 in French colonies, and in 1833 by the British Empire. It took the British ten more years to abolish slavery in India through The Indian Slavery Act, 1843, also Act V of 1843, an act passed in British India under East India Company.

Sex. In the United States, as late as 1965, the Voting Rights Act directed the Attorney General to enforce the right to vote for African Americans. women of Asian origin were added to the vote bank as late as 1952 and it took a 1975 extension of the Voting Rights Act, prohibiting discrimination against language minority citizens, to expand voting access to women who rely heavily on languages other than English.

Sexual Orientation. Religious?admonitions?against sexual relations between individuals of the same sex (particularly men) long stigmatized such behaviour, but most legal codes in?Europe?were silent on the subject of?homosexuality?and?bisexuality. The judicial systems of many predominantly Islamic?countries?invoked Shariah in a wide range of?contexts, and many sexual or quasi-sexual acts, including same-sex intimacy, were criminalized in those countries and made subject to severe penalties, including execution. Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgenders were discriminated against.

Inclusion

Workplace diversity training first emerged in the?mid 1960s?following the introduction of equal employment laws and affirmative action. Prior to this, many companies had known histories of racial discrimination. These new laws prompted companies to start diversity training programs that would help employees adjust to working in more integrated offices. Unfortunately, diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) training programs of the past have struggled to yield substantial improvement.

One popular approach to DEI adopted by executives was outlining a list of workplace do’s and don'ts. Employees underwent mandatory training days where they sat through long workshops and filled out various personality and bias questionnaires. Unfortunately, these programs were largely ineffective at improving workplace diversity and harmony; while employees could digest the information and rules presented to them, the positive effects of diversity training rarely lasted longer than a couple days. Reinforcing this conclusion, a 2019 Harvard Business Review experimental study found that bias-focused training particularly had little effect on the behavior of male or white employees — who typically hold the most power within an organization. Specifically, these mandatory training programs were sometimes poorly perceived by employees to be overly controlling. This compelled some employees to rebel and skirt around training rules, thereby making the DEI training somewhat counterproductive.?

An October 2020 survey conducted by Fortune and Deloitte revealed that 96% of CEO’s agree that DEI is a personal strategic priority for them. Executives have also invested in DEI initiatives in nearly every aspect of their business, such as talent recruitment, community engagement, executive leadership composition, and data and metrics transparency. The addition of the 'Chief Diversity Officer' position to many executive boards has further cemented the value that diversity brings to a business’ performance and reputation.

Overcompensation

Justin Hall wrote and excellent article of this in 2019 (link below)

The moment you start actively looking for reasons to?not?hire certain people, or you start hiring certain people just to tick boxes - you’ve completely gone down the wrong path. There’s a real danger here that we end up demonising a group of people, and essentially making them feel like an outsider. That is wrong, and rather than solving the diversity issues within the workplace, it’ll actually make things worse. All you’ll end up with is another group of people who feel ostracised and made to feel like their ability and experience still isn’t enough.

What we want

DEI can only really be measured by progress —?not by intention. Moreover,?it’s not just about how diverse your team is, but it’s how supported and successful diverse employees are while working with you. This is where introspection (and a great deal of qualitative performance management) comes in. If you’re afraid to look or ask, you’re probably suffering diversity fatigue.

I had a discussion on the subject with a leader in the US, who is Asian-American, in her mid-30s, working for a global enterprise. “It’s a ‘favorite child’ mentality,” she said. “Our company puts out a statement in support for Black Lives Matter, and then they put out a statement saying they’re against Asian hate crimes. It turns into: ‘Who’s going to get the better statement? The BLM folks? Or the Asian groups?’ Meanwhile, the company is doing all these things, but we don’t see any physical or visible change in the organization. This is no longer about the color of your skin, but the person that you are and how loudly you can shout.”

The main aim of a business organisation is to make money (and if possible do good to society). For that, they need to hire the best talent they can. And that would depend on the pool of talent that comes to the organisation looking for work. Or, when the organisation goes for campus recruitment, to get the best talent they can find. So let us say they go one year to a college and engage an Asian girl. Will they stop interviewing Asian girls from then on? I sure hope not.

So what exactly is the Vice President DEI being paid for? Racial discrimination? HR covers that. You want specialists? Then have VP Divorce, VP Domestic Violence and VP Drug Abuse as well. If you are shaking your head, you see how bizarre this is.

Providing equal opportunity means that selection/rejection would only be based on performance. Irrespective of gender, race, sexual orientation. Thats all. You don't need a VP DEI to ensure that. You need an Ombusperson who anyone who feels wronged can put up their complaints to - about performance about not getting along and about bias.

If, as an organisation, you are putting up posts that Black Lives Matter, don't white or yellow or brown or rainbow lives?

Conclusion

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) is just the most recent version of a game that’s been played for decades now—a game designed to make people feel like progress is being made toward equality, with one-day trainings or identity-specific affinity groups. In reality, the game itself hinders that very progress.

The solution, like all others, lies in keeping things simple. Select the best talent, based on performance and take action against anyone who discriminates. That's all. You will have a diverse and inclusive organisation. You don't need to showcase that you do!