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Diversity on TV: A New Modern Family

Diversity awareness has garnered the attention of television writers and network producers nationwide, perhaps more so than any other contemporary ideal.  Overall, the result has been positive:  critically acclaimed television shows that are widely accepted by masses of viewers who are equally as diverse as the programming itself.

Modern Family is one such show.  From homosexuality to interracial marriage, adoption, and cultural clash, very little is left unexplored by the writers of ABC’s well received new-age sitcom.  Aptly named, the show challenges viewers to reconsider the concept of family, as defined by twenty-first century culture.

Let’s meet the cast:

The Dunphys: High school sweethearts Phil and Claire are married with three children:  Haley, Alex, and Luke.  By far the most “traditional” of the show’s families, the Dunphys nevertheless provide 2 very important roles in the show’s dynamic.  First, they symbolize the typical American family of the 1950s, providing a rich contrast with their unconventional extended family.  Second, and most importantly, the Dunphys are arguably the most dysfunctional of the show’s 3 family units, impressing upon viewers that conventional systems are not by default the best.

The Tucker-Pritchett’s: Meet Claire’s brother, Mitchell, and his male life partner, Cameron.  Mitchell and Cameron symbolize the growing acceptance of homosexuality among Americans while also serving as a vehicle to deliver commentary on contemporary issues like sexual orientation, self-discovery, and self-acceptance.  Their adopted Vietnamese daughter, Lily, completes the Tucker-Pritchett family unit.  Representative of a growing population of Asian Americans, Lily helps viewers question long-held ideals of parenthood—namely the mother as nurturer, the father as breadwinner, and the child as biologically conceived by the two.

The Pritchett’s: Jay, father of Clair and Mitchell, is the patriarch of the family.  His wife, Gloria, and stepson, Manny, are of Columbian heritage are representative of the growing population of Hispanics in America.  A business owner working well past retirement, Jay Pritchett symbolizes America’s newest working class of aging Baby Boomers.  Traditional yet humble and compromising, he serves as a role model for Americans reaching their Golden Years only to discover that long-held certainties like social security, retirement, and tradition are not as concrete as promised.

Media and Conveying Diversity Issues

Modern Family first aired on ABC on September 23, 2009.  Since then, the show has received a half dozen Emmy Award nominations, won 3, and has received high praise from many minority organizations.  The Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) presented the show a Respect Award, commending its “positive portrayal of images and story lines that reflect a diverse America, including the depiction of a family headed by a gay couple,” (i).  The show has made an impact on American viewers and critics, leaving researchers to question the implications of programming with such rich undertones of diversity, acceptance, and inclusion.

Researchers have long debated the influence of media on the public:  does media shape the behavior, motivation, and expectations of the masses?  Or, does it simply provide an escape for millions of individuals who already have unique behavior, motivations, and expectations in virtue of their individual genetic makeup?  The argument is reminiscent of nature versus nurture, where the media is the nurturer in question.

When considering nature versus nurture, one is arguably predisposed to say that nurture conquers.  We are often thought to have the personality quirks of our parents, the values of our peers, or the linguistic dialect of our locale.  In this way, it would seem that our environment nurtures us and has a profound affect on the individual we become.  Television, then, is undoubtedly a powerful factor in determining how culture nurtures and individual.  In 2009, the LA Times reported that television viewing was at an all-time high among Americans, amounting to about 5 hours each day (i).  Individuals are spending more time watching television programming, begging the question of how that programming affects individual attitudes and behaviors.

Diversity training professionals may take either side of the nature versus nurture debate.  Sodexo, Inc. endorses the idea that culture motivates the individual.  In a previous article, we discussed the Sodexo approach to shaping employee motivation, exploring how the forward-thinking organization leverages employee support groups to derive insight on generational gaps and their respective motivations.

On the other side of the coin, we’ve shared research from diversity professionals that indicates discrimination among Hispanics and women is still very much a part of corporate business culture.  This undermines the argument that media nurtures the masses, as the realities of the contemporary workplace directly contradict the values presented through pop culture television programming.

Where do you side on the nature versus nurture debate?  Do societal constructs like media profoundly shape attitudes, behaviors, and motivations?  Message the TrainDiversity Twitter account and share your thoughts!

(i) http://www.abcmedianet.com/assets/pr/html/100710_20.html

(ii) http://articles.latimes.com/2009/feb/24/business/fi-tvwatching24

Training Diversity Presents: Employee Resource Groups

Training for diversity leverages the value that employee-differences inevitably add company culture.  Such value translates in many ways, from innovative out-of-the-box problem solving to an enhanced ability to identify with markets of customers or prospective clients.  As Cisco Systems Chief Diversity Officer Marilyn Nagel tells Diversity Journal, “we are focused [at Cisco] on creating an inclusive culture that maximizes the contributions of our vast workforce, and helps ensure we have the creative, collaborative environment we need to support our globalization strategy,” (i).

The method of creating an inclusive culture is up for debate, however, with professionals of various industries asserting two very different approaches:  Employee Resource Groups, and Employee Support Groups.

Diversity Training with Employee Resource Groups

Positives:

• Serve as a microcosm of the organization, helping employees to develop critical skills within a small group.
• Fosters open communication, innovation, and growth.

Potential Downfalls:

• Because they are a microcosm of the organization, they are poised to succeed or fail according to overall company culture.

Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) gather individuals of different background and experience together to engage in networking and problem solving.  In this way, ERGs are a microcosm of the larger organization, meaning they are a smaller but nonetheless representative population.  This leads to the development of skill sets, communication abilities, and overall workplace inclusion among employees of richly different backgrounds.  Ms. Nagel of Cisco Systems reports that “Many employees have told us that their ERGs helped them to develop leadership skills and gave them a way to make a difference outside of their regular day-to-day jobs,” (ii).  In this way, proponents of these networks argue that ERGs encourage employees to interact with their peers because they do so on a relatively small scale, protected by the intimate nature of the group.

These groups have a potential downfall, however, because they are directly affected by the larger core values of the organization within which they operate.  ERGs may benefit workers in highly-inclusive workplaces like those at Cisco, but form them in a workplace with low standards of inclusion and they will likely yield little value.  Companies that do not take proactive diversity training measures, for example, may have employees inhibited by fear, resentment, and ignorance.  In such workplaces, Employee Support Groups may prove more beneficial, serving as a means for individuals to meet, build trust, and share contemporary issues with their peers.

Training for Diversity with Employee Support Groups

Positives:

• Gives employees a place to meet/support peers of similar background.
• May serve as a vehicle for communicating contemporary workplace issues.
• May help identify true performance-enhancing motivators.

Potential Downfall:

• Segregates employees according to culture, age, or other demographic characteristics.
• Requires flexible guidance from Human Resources.

Employee Support Groups are composed of individual employees of similar ethnic background, religious belief, age, sexual orientation, or other demographic characteristics.  Management may proactively implement them, or they may be grassroots in nature.  Businesses, particularly Human Resources departments, must remain attentive to the latter as they are created on-the-fly.  Grassroots movements are headed by proactive individuals as a need for them arises, requiring Human Resources departments to be attentive, flexible, and prepared to facilitate group formation.

Proponents of Employee Support Groups argue that their existence furthers inclusion in the workplace.  According to advocates, these groups give individuals a secure setting to support one another, discuss the contemporary workplace issues they face, and encourages open discussion of such issues with other employee groups.  Another benefit, according to Sodexo Inc. VP Jane Buttermore, is that these groups help managers identify unique motivators for individual groups of employees.  Ms. Buttermore explains to Diversity Journal that Sodexo’s i-Gen program groups employees according to age.  This helps employees and management to openly explore the historical events, work principles, and motivators unique to each cohort of workers.  “Once each generation understands these drivers,” Ms. Buttermore explains, “they become a more effective and efficient workforce,” (ii).

Training Diversity on Twitter:  Share Your Thoughts!

Is your organization taking measures to promote diversity in the workplace?  We want to know about it!  Message the TrainDiversity Twitter account and share your experience with workplace inclusion, diversity, and other contemporary issues.  We enjoy learning about the unique diversity issues that business owners, mangers, and employees face on a daily basis.

(i) http://www.diversityjournal.com/the-value-of-a-progression-model-for-inclusion-diversity-initiatives/

(ii) See above.

(iii) http://www.diversityjournal.com/corporate/generations/i-gen/

Corporate Citizenship and Diversity Management in 2011

Corporate citizenship, or social responsibility, is the idea that an organization should be considered a citizen in the realm within it works.  Microsoft Corporation, to illustrate, is committed to “help[ing] people and business throughout the world realize their full potential” through the responsible production and distribution of computing software.  This commitment is broad in scale and general in terms, applicable to the many nations within the corporation operates.  What’s more, corporate citizenship and sound diversity management can be combined to achieve synergy in long term, socially responsible profit maximization.

Commitment to corporate citizenship varies in motive, depending on the organization.  In general, there are three primary motivators that shape an organization’s sense of corporate citizenship and social responsibility:

“Profit Maximization”

This view holds that the most important goal of the organization is to maximize profits at all costs.  Direct beneficiaries are the shareholders or owners of the organization, with the public receiving secondary benefit as the recipient of the organization’s products and services.  There is not explicit duty, however, to act in socially responsible ways other than to remain law-abiding.

“’Not to Harm’ Profit Maximization”

In this view, profit maximization is balanced with a minimal duty to consider the communities with which the organization deals and operate in ways that avoid social wrongdoing.  Public interest affects corporate strategy and decision making, with the organization taking minimal efforts “not to harm” the public.

“Corporate Citizenship”

This polar extreme of social business responsibility is what most individuals think of when they hear either “corporate citizenship” or “social responsibility.”  This view challenges organizations with the duty to proactively act in ways that make society a better place.  Heated debates over global warming, unconscionable financial scandals, and the recent Deepwater Horizon oil catastrophe in the Gulf of Mexico are just three examples of contemporary issues or events that have pushed the public to demand more from big businesses.

Commitment to Corporate Diversity
Organizations may leverage diversity awareness, management, and training to further their commitment to social responsibility in the following ways:

Diversity and Innovation

Business leaders motivated by the “Profit Maximization” model of corporate citizenship will find diversity among employees and resources the key to remain competitive in the global marketplace.  Increasing the variance among intellectual input, for example, increases variance in opinion when it comes to problem solving and innovation.  In this way, diversity delivers a wide range of ideas to business leaders that often leads to new solutions, products, or services.

Diversity Awareness and Social Grace

Organizations taking the “’No Harm’ Profit Maximization” approach to corporate citizenship may leverage diversity among employees in a similar fashion.  A major component of diversity is ensuring equal opportunity for any qualified individual to enter the workplace, regardless of age, gender, race, sexual orientation, or religious affiliation.  Organizations may take this a step further to actively recruit new talent from the diverse communities within which they operate.  Over time, this will produce an employee base representative of the many communities the organization serves, giving them firsthand knowledge of the contemporary issues pertinent to each.  In this way, organizations will develop the empathy necessary to serve communities of end-users with social grace and consideration, reducing impact to the extent that they effectively do “no harm.”

Corporate Citizenship

Organizations wishing to make a full commitment to corporate citizenship by utilizing their products, services, and other resources to actively enrich the communities within which they work may leverage diversity similar to those using the “No Harm” method.  These organizations may likewise recruit a diverse group of new hires from each of the markets it serves and use them to gain insight, knowledge, and empathy for each respective community.  This empathy is instrumental in shaping policies that better serve those communities, developing products that solve their specific problems, or simply helping to reduce unemployment.  There are many applications of diversity management that will help organizations become superior Corporate Citizens, and each is as unique as the organization-community relationship itself.

More than ever before, public outcry for socially responsible corporations and small businesses creates an opportunity for organizations to gain a competitive advantage simply by reevaluating the ways in which they serve their communities of end-users.  Diversity training and management is a critical component of harnessing that competitive advantage, serving as the mechanism through which organizations may better empathize with and serve their markets.

Driving Profitability with Diversity Management

Business leaders often analyze particular aspects of operations by the numbers in downed economies.  With cash inflows shrinking and foreseeable sustainability uncertain, analysts rely heavily on metrics to provide concrete statistical data that shows what is and is not driving profitability.  Leaders are cautioned, however, not to overlook aspects of business culture that transcend individual aspects of operations.

Diversity management, for example, is an illusive component to analyze with traditional metrics.  Costs are typically clear, varying from the investment in individual diversity training resources to the opportunity cost of extended employee training.  The benefits are harder to pinpoint, however, often driving profitability through a number of intangibles like increased innovation, genuine public relations, or high rates of commitment among an organization’s members.

Diversity Training and Innovation

With diversity comes a multitude of different individuals from a range of cultural backgrounds, belief systems, and values.  Inherent in such a melting pot is a stark variance in perspective.  One’s own upbringing, cultural identity, or a number of other factors directly impacts the solutions they formulate to overcome problems.  With greater age, gender, and cultural diversity comes a greater variance of such perspective.  This ultimately drives the ability of the organization to problem solve in new, sometimes fantastical ways.  In this way, diversity primes businesses to embrace innovation by continually finding new solutions to problems.

Diversity Appreciation and Executives

Diversity training programs directly benefit company culture, instilling within employees a sense of acceptance and belonging.  This translates to increases in both employee morale and productivity.  Simultaneously, this also leads to decreases in employee turnover and subsequent costs of new employee recruitment and training.

For evidence, we turn to a study of over 11,000 executives conducted by the Ryerson University between 2006 and 2007.  The study found those who valued diversity within the organization to exhibit up to 14% more satisfaction with their careers than those who did not value diversity (i).  This evidences an increased sense of value and efficacy among diversity-minded executives, a trait that trickles down through organizations to greatly impact the individuals they lead.

Managing Diversity in the Community

Finally, diversity management programs have benefits that extend beyond the culture of the organization and into the community.  Organizations must actively research, communicate, and empathize with the communities and target segments with which they wish to do business.  Failure to do so inhibits the organization from effectively serving those communities, devaluing their products and services until those individuals no longer desire them.  In this way, learning to manage aspects of business with the vastly different target segments within an organization’s market requires a fine attention to their inherent diversity.

One of the most effective ways to manage diverse communities of prospective clients and customers is to actively recruit individuals who represent those communities in terms of age, gender, and culture.  This has two main benefits, among others.  First, recruiting individuals who share cultural commonalities with the organization’s different target segments will help the organization reach those segments more effectively.  All aspects of the marketing process stand to benefit, from initial product development to advertising and branding.  Second, actively recruiting individuals who represent an organization’s prospective clients and customers shows those prospects that the organization understands them.  This makes possible the three components of highly successful business operations:  public trust, high quality customer service, and the development of brand affinity.

Is your organization actively involved in diversity management and training?  Join the conversation on Twitter by sharing your goals with the TrainDiversity Twitter account!

(i) http://ehstoday.com/training/news/executives-diversity-training-successful-1222/

Investing in Diversity Training: A Lesson from John C. Bogle

Diversity training programs are an investment.  They have a cost, requiring organizations to divert time and money from other core objectives.  Like investments, they involve risk; months of misguided training may yield almost no difference in employee inclusion, moral, or efficacy.  A final common ground is the element of time.  Diversity training programs must be actively pursued over a significant period of time in order to fully realize a return.  Given the commonalities, business leaders may approach the development and implementation of these employee-training programs in a manner similar to other investments.

Diversity Training:  Rely on Ordinary Virtues

In order to maximize the return of an investment in diversity training, we must first consider how other investments are most effectively approached, dissected, and arranged to maximize return.  To do so, we turn to acclaimed American investor John C. Bogle.

Born May 1929, this private sector icon founded The Vanguard Group, an investment management company based out of Pennsylvania that has grown to become the 2nd largest in the world, managing about 1.8 trillion in assets (i).  By mid 1970, the company introduced the Vanguard 500 Index, the first mutual fund index to be made available to the general public.

Mr. Bogle is perhaps best known for publishing Common Sense on Mutual Funds:  New Imperatives for the Intelligent Investor in 1999.  The book became a bestseller that year and is considered to be a classic must-read among American investors.  One of his greatest contributions, the book details the investment strategy for which this 2004 Time Magazine 100 Most Powerful People became most famous.  Along with this publication, Mr. Bogle is well known for his simplistic and concrete investment strategy (ii):

Rely on the ordinary virtues that intelligent human beings have relied on for centuries:  common sense, thrift, realistic expectations, patience, and perseverance.

Diversity Training Program Development

Leveraging the time-tested virtues of other successful individuals, Mr. Bogle asserts that success hinges upon the patient pursuit of sensible, thrifty, and realistic expectations.  This idea transcends financial investments and provides a foundation for effectively pursuing any investment of time, money, or energy.  Organizations are smart to apply these virtues when developing and implementing training programs, particularly those aimed at building diversity awareness and employee inclusion.

Business leaders may consider managing diversity in the workplace by creating programs according to Bogle’s ordinary virtues as follows:

Common Sense

Diversity training programs begin with a sensible consideration of what is needed and what is superfluous.  Organizations may start this preliminary assessment by working with Human Resources to determine the distribution of employees by characteristics like age, gender, and racial representation.  Once this blueprint is established, management can ascertain prevalent issues that employees are most interested in discussing, resolving, or for which awareness must be generated.  Drawing this input from employees in a way that is considerate is the biggest challenge here.  Encouraging employees to submit this information anonymously is recommended to minimize embarrassment, encourage forthright feedback, and reduce clash among different cultures of employees.

Realistic Expectations

Realistic expectations can be set for the diversity training program only after a sensible exploration of the diversity and relevant issues existing within the organization.  Next, leaders must set goals that will work to resolve discrimination, instances of non-inclusion, prejudice, and other issues brought to light by employees during the preliminary assessment.  Actionable steps must be planned to move the organization and its members closer to achieving these goals.  Finally, the organization should set aside future dates to periodically reflect on how the organization, both as a whole and as individuals, is getting closer or drifting further from attaining their diversity goals.

Thrift

A critical component of increasing return on investment is being ever-mindful of the cost associated with starting and maintaining that investment.  To minimize cost, organizations may coordinate with Human Resources to create internal diversity management programs that address the unique needs of the organization and its employees.

Encouraging the formation of employee support groups is a highly effective ingredient to minimizing expense while maximizing employee involvement and the opportunity for program success.  These groups provide a place for individuals of similar age, gender, or racial background to meet, identify with one another, and discuss the issues they face in the workplace.  What’s more, these groups can take the opportunity to share their perspective with one another and the organization as a whole, furthering the spread of awareness empathy.

Patience and Perseverance

Continually encouraging patients and perseverance is one of the more challenging elements of a successful diversity training program.  Campaigning for awareness takes time; unfortunately, time opens the doors for instances of insensitivity to cripple confidence and growth for both employees and the organization.  It is important to consider patients and perseverance as the underlying glue of any diversity training program.  Setting realistic goals, taking actionable steps to achieve those goals, and openly discussing both successes and challenges keeps employees mindful of progress and helps to cultivate patience.

How does your organization assess diversity in the workplace?  Join the conversation and message the TrainDiversity Twitter account with your experience with workplace diversity!

(i) http://wwsg.com/bogle-john

(ii) http://www.motivationtoday.com/motivational_quotes/inspiring_quotes_and_stories.php

Training for Diversity: Effective Employee Support Groups

In our last article, the Diversity Awareness Blog examined three major trends that are actively contributing to diversity in the workplace.  These diversity trends include a shift towards a more equitable distribution of male-to-female workers, increasing representation of minorities, and most interestingly an increase in age diversity among employed Americans.  The need for tactful diversity training will grow as these dimensions of diversity continue to increase, challenging organizations to actively search for new ways to build inclusion and leverage the power of their workforce.  Employee support groups and employee-drive grassroots groups are just two ways organizations can grow with the uniqueness of their workplace.

Diversity and Employee Support Groups

Management may help to build awareness and appreciation for diversity by facilitating employee support groups within their organizations.  Many leading businesses, from locally-niched retailers to multinational powerhouses, recognize the potential for increased employee interaction and cohesion that only interoffice support groups are capable of delivering.  Sodexo Incorporated, the leading provider of food and facilities management in North America, is one such company.

Jane Buttermore, Vice President of Operations at Sodexo Inc., leads the company’s intergenerational employee network.  The network, called iGen, creates an opportunity for employees of all ages and racial backgrounds to gather and discuss generational differences.  Ms. Buttermore explains that the support group has generated “unprecedented interest” among the employees at Sodexo, spurring the participation of over 550 employees in just six months.  “Our i-Gen meetings,” Ms. Buttermore explains in an issue of Diversity Journal, “offer program training that educates and builds awareness around each generation’s unique attributes and the historical events that have shaped their lives,” (i).  In training and educating employees with respect to their generation, iGen is able to extrapolate the motivators, work ethic, and reward systems unique to each generation of employees.  “Once each generation understands these drivers,” Ms. Buttermore explains, “they become a more effective and efficient workforce.”

Employee Networks and Grassroots Movements

Employee support groups and networks need not be implemented from the top-to-bottom.  Today’s diverse workplaces are seeing a new trend in grassroots movements among employees who wish to create their own networks (ii).  Employee-created groups offer places for individuals of similar age, background, or physical ability to meet, identify with one another, and develop as professionals within their organization.  Gini McCain, directory of HR Communications at 3M Corporation, warns that these grassroots movements require HR oversight, however.  “Above all,” she states, “HR professionals must recognize their employees’ need for community or desire to identify with specific core issues,” (iii).  In this way, HR departments serve as a means to ensure that these grassroots groups facilitate inclusion while also adding value to the organization and its members.

These new grassroots groups represent a significant opportunity for the organizations that foster them.  For example, members of these groups are ideal for leading diversity training programs and seminars geared towards spreading awareness for their particular group and issues.  As Ms. McCain warns, however, HR must actively manage these groups so as to not divide the workplace into segregated factions.  HR must learn to take on a mentoring role to properly align these groups, managing workplace diversity to effectively increase inclusion and participation.

Effectively Leveraging Workplace Diversity

One lesson to take from leading multinational organizations Sodexo and 3M Corporation:  diversity training programs are a two way street.  Employee support groups, whether employer- or employee-driven, require independence in virtue of their role as inclusive and cathartic outlets for participants.  There is a balance to be achieved, however.  On the other side of the coin, HR departments add value by helping these groups align with overall company objectives and engage with the rest of the organization to build awareness and empathy.  Toegether, HR and employee support groups are symbiotic, helping one another to create sustained and healthy growth.

(i) http://www.diversityjournal.com/corporate/generations/i-gen/

(ii) http://www.asaecenter.org/Resources/whitepaperdetail.cfm?ItemNumber=12156

(iii)  See above.

Workplace Diversity: A Decade of Growth

The past decade has seen explosive growth in workplace diversity.  Today, businesses of all sizes and industries are striving to harness the power individual differences, looking for ways to solidify such a unique and vast pool of talent.  Diversity training programs are instrumental in creating cohesion; however, an examination of diversity trends is equally necessary in order to achieve success.  Analysis of the gender, age, and racial makeup of American employees between 2001 and present day will help to identify areas where training is necessary, as well as provide insight as to which elements of diversity are likely to impact the businesses of tomorrow.

Growing Workplace Diversity:  Gender, Age, and Race

Gender

Gender has seen a substantial realignment since the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s.  The landscape has slowly shown a more equitable distribution as Federal equal opportunity legislation has increased workplace accessibility for females.  According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the number of employed females in the United States has grown by 3.3% between the years of 2001 and 2010.  Contrast this with the overall increase of employed males for the same decade, which amounts to only 0.33%.  This trend is constant across racial lines, with Caucasian, African American, Hispanic, and Asian women all exhibiting higher employment rates than respective males.

Despite increased employment rates, a great divide still persists between male and female employees.  Female employees, for example, make an average of 70 cents per dollar compared to equally qualified male employees, illustrating that some degree of gender discrimination still exists.

Age

Today’s workplace now exhibits a degree of age diversity never before seen in American culture.  Historians point to at least two causes of this new quality:  Aging Baby Boomers and a tumultuous economy.  The Baby Boomer generation has increased the number of individuals nearing retirement, creating a top-heavy distribution of working Americans.  However, this cohort is working well past age 65, perhaps because of the second cause for increased diversity in worker age:  The economy.

The United States has ridden the burden of a chaotic economy since the dot-com bubble burst of the late 1990s.  Moving into 2001 and beyond, the American public was further rocked by the unconscionable acts of Enron, Bernie Madoff, the sub-prime mortgage crisis, and the collapse of seemingly too big to fail investment brokerages.  Now, 2011 is characterized by a large portion of aging Americans who continue to work for stability, extra income, and peace of mind.

On the opposite side of the age distribution, rapidly proliferating technology is pulling young adults into the upper echelons of Corporate America at a faster rate than ever before.  As a result, four generations of Americans are now working side-by-side in the workplace (iii).  Today, there is a growing need for diversity training that helps these four very different cohorts identify, communicate, and transfer skills among one another.

Race

Racial representation has grown significantly since 2001, as greater proportions of African, Asian, and Hispanic Americans have entered the workforce.  Employment has fallen among Caucasians since 2001, dropping from 113.88 million to a present day level of 112.75 million.  African, Asian, and Hispanic Americans have seen only increased workplace representation, however, amounting to 0.03, 8.5, and 22.9 percent, respectively.  American business culture is undoubtedly growing more diverse, and organizations are smart to anticipate this distribution to become more even over time.

Training for Diversity

Diversity training programs must be built to specifically address the rapidly evolving gender, age, and racial employment trends in the United States.  Successful programs must be built to leverage national, industry-specific, and interoffice trends.  It is no longer adequate to spread general awareness and appreciation for differences among individuals.  Rather, successful diversity training requires thoughtful consideration of influential diversity trends on both a macro and micro level, as well as developing a strategy to leverage those trends to combat stereotypes, spur inclusion, and fuel innovation.

(i) White, African American, and Asian Employment Statistics: http://www.bls.gov/webapps/legacy/cpsatab2.htm

(ii) Hispanic Employment Statistics:  http://www.bls.gov/webapps/legacy/cpsatab3.htm

(iii) http://www.diversityjournal.com/corporate/generations/i-gen/

Global #Business Leaders Leverage Diversity

What do the telecommunications, aerospace, and computer industry have in common?  Each is led by forward-thinking organizations that proudly engage in diversity.  The global business landscape of today is built on the ideas, intelligence, and collective work of our multicultural world.  Successful businesses are comprised of individuals who do not merely engage in diversity training because it is thing right thing to do.  Rather, they actively diversify because development, marketing, and sales depend on it.

Aligning Organizational Diversity with the Real World

There is an undeniable link between the success of a business and its ability to reach end users.  The very notion of branding is based on this assumption; successful brands are those that garner affinity from their end consumers.  In a global economy, the population of end-users is heterogeneous.  It is large, varied, and rich in dimensions like religion, ideology, and social customs.  Modern business is consequently challenged to reach a large and diverse group, convincing each unique individual that their product, service, or brand is right for them.

Take for example Ms. Diane Gage Lofgren, Senior Vice President and Brand Strategist at leading healthcare provider Kaiser Permanente.  Ms. Lofgren is a recent honoree of a 2011 Catalyst Gender Diversity Award, receiving exclusive recognition alongside other diversity-minded CEOs of multinational corporations Kraft and Time Warner.  Ms. Lofgren attributes Kaiser Permanente’s mounting success to the common ground the company shares with its primary target:  Women.  Women tend to be the purchasers of healthcare, and Kaiser has made outstanding efforts to recruit and advance women in the workplace.  “The workforce reflects the communities we serve,” she stated during the awards ceremony, “And they believe [in our commitment to diversity] because they see it in our senior leaders.” (i)

The most effective way to reach a diverse market is to actively recruit, hire, and utilize personnel who mirror or otherwise identify with the market.  All members, form lower level employees to publicly known owners and Directors, must have a firm understanding of the markets with which the business strives to interact.  Successful product development, marketing, and servicing hinges upon a thorough understanding of the end user, and diverse organizations have a distinct advantage when competing in equally diverse marketplaces.

Diversity Blog Lauds Corporate Leaders

Many businesses share the diversity-minded approach that Ms. Lofgren and Kaiser Permanente exude.  From phones to planes to computers, the makers of the some of the world’s most successful devices are being recognized as leaders in diversity:

AT&T

The name American Telephone and Telegraph truly underscores the rich history of this telecommunications giant, founded in 1886.  AT&T is currently the largest provider of both fixed and mobile telephony and has been recognized for the following awards in 2010 alone (ii):

• 2010 Corporation of the Year, awarded by the Minority Supplier Council
• 2010 Diversity Leader Award, given by the Profiles in Diversity Journal
• Best 10 Corporations for Veteran-Owned Businesses, Vetreprenuer Magazine

The Boeing Company

Founded in 1916 by William Boeing, this company is best known for their 20^th century commitment to bringing multinational air travel to the masses.  The company has been recognized as a world leader in company diversity and inclusion, receiving the following awards in 2010 (iii):

• Recognized by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation in 2010 for excellence in inclusion and a nondiscriminatory workplace
• Top 10 Employer, ranked by readers of Careers and the DisABLED magazine
• Honoree in Women of Color in Technology awards, 2009

IBM

Headquartered in Armonk, New York, International Business Machines is a leader in worldwide technological innovation and consultation.  Services include computer hardware and software development, hosting, mainframe computing, and nanotechnology consultation.  A multinational powerhouse, this tech company has gained international recognition as a leader in global diversity.  Most recently, IBM has been awarded (iii):

• 7^th Place, 2011 DiversityINC Top 50 Companies
• 2010 Employee Resource Group of the Year, awarded by US Business Leadership Network
• 2010 Winner of DiversityInc #1 Company for Global Diversity award

Does your organization actively pursue diversity?  Join the conversation on Twitter!  Show support for diverse and inclusive workplaces by messaging the Training Diversity Twitter account, Twitter handle @Traindiversity!

(i) http://www.theglasshammer.com/news/2011/04/01/catalyst-honors-companies-making-a-difference-in-gender-diversity/comment-page-1/

(ii) http://www.att.com/gen/corporate-citizenship?pid=6427

(iii) http://www.boeing.com/aboutus/diversity/awards.html

(iv) http://www-03.ibm.com/employment/us/diverse/awards.shtml

The Dodd Frank Act

It’s no secret that diversity training programs have been an integral part of President Obama’s agenda.  Since taking office, the President has issued several Executive Orders to promote diversity in Federal workplaces, particularly among Americans with disabilities.  There is a growing trend for these diversity awareness programs, and they are beginning to appear in Federal law.  The administration’s response to the financial debacle of 2008, the Dodd-Frank Act, illustrates this growing interest in employee diversification.

Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act

As the lengthy name infers, the Dodd-Frank Act seeks to increase consumer protection by issuing a sweeping round of regulatory reforms to add stability, accountability, and transparency to the financial markets of the United States.  A primary goal of the Act is to do-away with the naive, Too Big to Fail perception that many Americans held with respect to the American financial system prior to its collapse.

The Dodd-Frank Act is certainly not the first piece of Federal legislation to follow an epic debacle.  One may recall a similar retroactive strike to increase accountability and transparency among accounting firms immediately following the Enron scandal of 2001.  Unlike previous cases of reactive government regulation, however, the Dodd-Frank Act is unique in its explicit requirement for diversity among the entities it regulates.  These include the Department of the Treasury, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Federal Housing Finance Agency, each Federal Reserve Bank, Federal Reserve Board, National Credit Union Administration, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection.  Specifically, the Act requires the following of these covered Federal agencies:

1. Each covered Federal agency must create an Office of Minority and Women Inclusion, or OMWI.  This Office is responsible for overseeing all aspects of agency operation “relating to diversity in management, employment, and business activities.”
2. OMWI Directors are charged with the development of standards to ensure fair inclusion of minorities, women, as well as businesses owned by minorities and women, in all activities of the agency.
3. OMWI Directors are further charged with establishing procedures to determine if an agency contractor, and their respective subcontractors, has made a good faith effort to include minorities and women in their workforce.  Additionally, an annual report is to be submitted to Congress to detail agency compliance as well as note specific challenges encountered while searching for and hiring qualified minority and female employees.
4. OMWI Directors must also develop standards within their respective agencies for the following areas:  equal employment opportunity and active diversity of the workplace, increased participation of minority- and female-owned businesses, and assessment of the diversity policies of regulated entities.

For Further Reading:  The Securities and Exchange Commission has made the complete Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act is available for download here.

Contrasting the Dodd-Frank Act with Sarbanes-Oxley

Contrasting the Dodd-Frank Act with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 highlights the emerging role that diversity is playing in both private and public sectors in America.  Both Acts have been major regulatory moves by the Federal government to respond to two of the most unconscionable economic and consumer crises of the past decade.  Each has been constructed to increase accountability and transparency in their respective industries; the former addressing the financial industry and predominantly Federal agencies while the latter regulating accounting firms within private businesses.  As with most pieces of regulatory Federal legislative, each establishes more coherent laws, oversight entities, reporting requirements, and consequences for non-compliance.  A major difference between the two Acts, however:  attention to diversity.

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act contains no explicit statements with regard to diversification.  By contrast, the Dodd-Frank Act contains extensive language spanning over 500 pages that establishes specific Offices to oversee the “diversity in management, employment, and business activities,” (166) of all covered agencies.  These covered agencies (recall that a complete list is noted above) are the main players when it comes to regulating Wall Street as well as many other critical drivers of our financial system.   By requiring the active diversification of these agencies and the Offices that oversee them, the Act impresses upon public and private sectors alike that diversity is a solution.  Diversity in recruitment, employment, and contractual dealings, it seems, is a mechanism to mitigate risk in the financial industry in the very same way that diversifying a stock portfolio hedges against the systematic risk associated with free markets.  By gathering a larger range of opinion, experience, and knowledge from many individuals of different backgrounds, Federal agencies are hoping to paint a more vibrant picture to use for analysis and decision-making.

Of course, only time will tell of the impact this requirement for diversification will have on our financial system.  We invite you to share your thoughts on the Training Diversity Facebook Page, or join the conversation on Twitter by messaging the @TrainDiversity Twitter account.

Marketing to Diverse Communities

Successful diversity training programs are those that are well rounded and all encompassing.  Training employees to value the differences inherent in every individual is different from teaching them to take inventory or balance spreadsheets.  Training for diversity requires thought and consideration that transcends individual aspects of business operations.  Such training builds awareness that strengthens both internal aspects of business along with external public relations.  Specifically, tuning in to the diverse community within which your organization operates may open new market segments, develop brand affinity within pre-existing segments, and develop an overall positive public image.

Tips for Marketing with Diversity in Mind

There are several proactive ways to engage with the community to build relations with specific target markets.  First, however, you must analyze the various cultural communities with which your organization has business relations.  Additionally, consider the cultures with which your organization wishes to build relations.  Within these cultural segments, take particular note of the different countries, religions, and customs contained therein.  In today’s global marketplace, it is not enough to know that a certain percentage of your target audience is of Middle Eastern origin.  The Middle East is an eclectic variety of countries, religions, and customs.  Individuals within that target market may be Turkish, Persian, Arabian, or of a dozen other ethnic backgrounds.

Full consideration of the diversity of your target market may seem overwhelming.  Keep the following principles in mind when analyzing both current and future customer segments:

1) Take the time to know and understand specific cultural customs. Cultural diversity carries with it an array of differences in the way things are done.  Negotiation tactics, for example, differ greatly between Western and Eastern cultures.  Conflict resolution methods vary, as Westerners prefer frank speech and explicit disclosure of compromise.  By contrast, Easterners prefer speaking through an intermediary, or moderator, and may explicit disclosures insulting.  Personal space is another element that needs consideration, particularly when members of your organization are making personal contact with customers or business affiliates.  Again, a difference is apparent among Western and Eastern preferences.  Westerners find close-proximity communication comfortable, while Easterners prefer to have up to 5 feet of personal space at all times. Finally, know that bartering is practical and a standard for doing business in many countries.  Western countries, especially the United States, do not typically barter.  Understand that this may be a custom in the countries of your customers and business partners, and avoid the urge to take offense when it happens.

2) Become a polyglot, and show it. A polyglot is an individual who is well versed in several languages.  As technology continues to proliferate, the global marketplace will become more accessible and knowledge of different languages will become a significant competitive advantage.  Know the language spoken by your different target segments, and consider having marketing materials printed in multiple languages.

3) Get proactive:  Join in on community events. The best way to learn about a culture is through immersion.  Searching for cultural events in your community is the best way to know and understand your target segments.  This will build empathy and understanding, two critical components to exemplary marketing and customer service.