Formal Diversity
Today businesses voluntarily put
diversity programs in place as a formal
way to accept differences among
employees. Managing diversity has
become a permanent feature.
Diversity doesn't just happen; it
requires careful management.
Otherwise the human tendency to
surround ourselves with people like
ourselves takes over.
Creating an effective program isn't
easy. Denise Rousseau, from Carnegie-Mellon University, recommends a three
pronged approach:
- Teach managers and employees how
to capitalize on differences in style,
skill and experience to achieve
common goals;
- Teach them how to deal with the
conflict inherent in a diverse
environment;
- Most importantly, promote sufficient
diversity through tenacious
recruitment, training and mentoring.
Cathleen Watson in "Executive
Female" Magazine, 9-10/96
Dealing With Stereotypes
Stereotypes are perpetuated by any
system which summarizes or simplifies
for convenience. Stereotypes are tools
for jumping to conclusions.
If our bias is that people can change,
then everyone is a living contradiction
who escapes the confines of a
stereotype. Yet, stereotypes come with
the territory in many organizations.
It seems absurd to sponsor exercises
against stereotyping when the
organization operates according to
EEO, census, ethnic, racial and gender
categories.
We need to own up to the stereotypes
permeating the work we do; they are at
odds with treating people according to
their individuality.
Dr. Harris Sussman in "Managing
Diversity," 12/96
Transformation
The year 1976 witnessed the
beginning of a transformation in the
lives of women that will change the
world forever.
In the United States for 200 years, the
closest women could come to power
was marrying it. In the past 20 years,
two women have become Supreme
Court Justices. Now women fly
airplanes, draft laws, climb mountains,
build skyscrapers, die in the line of
duty.
Our aim as women is not to have just
one woman make it to the White House
or become the CEO of a Fortune 500
company. We want lots of women in
exalted positions.
If whoever gets there first has to be
such a paragon, it makes it tough for
the less-than-perfect to follow her.
Let's praise the women who crashed
through the glass ceilings and look
forward to the day when there will be
no more firsts to celebrate.
What do women want? The answer is
simple. We want what everyone wants:
to have the power and the money to
follow our own dreams and ambitions.
Shannon Brownlee, senior editor,
U.S. News & World Report, in
"Working Woman," 11-12/96
Using Values in Diversity
Accepting diversity means we respect
the values of others when they differ
from ours. That respect must be
incorporated in how we communicate
with, motivate and collaborate with
people we work with and manage.
It is, for example, one thing to know
that an individual values family ties
more than you do. It is quite another to
recognize that value is at stake when he
or she is absent from work for what
seems to you an inconsequential family
event.
Because we tend to judge differing
values as negative, we need to look for
the positive side. How can that same
value be applied in ways consistent
with your values or the organization's
objectives?
For example, many American
trainers, when they work with people
from more traditional cultures, are seen
as authorities not to be interrupted or
questioned. But Americans thrive on a
high degree of participant involvement.
Insisting on those values
(individualism, directness and
openness) would only cause resistance.
However, if the group is told how
important it is for the trainer not to
lose face before his or her manager, the
trainer is likely to get more of the
desired behavior.
When people begin using their values
in new ways, the resultant nervousness
can be overcome. Reinforce the new
behavior; be sure to choose culturally
appropriate rewards.
George Simons, President, George
Simons International, (408) 426-0106, in "Managing Diversity," 1/97
Left Out
Employers are adding benefits such
as flexible working hours and day-care
subsidies; they're bending work rules
to make life easier for working parents.
Yet, discontent is growing. Many
single and childless employees say
they're getting short shrift on benefits.
They are tired of working longer
hours, traveling more, or otherwise
picking up the slack for colleagues
with family obligations.
Today, more companies and
employees are confronting these issues.
Baby boomers and the generation
coming up after them are less willing
to sacrifice personal lives for their jobs
in an era of waning corporate loyalty.
No easy answer, no one set of
policies, take care of the growing
problem. But to begin with, employees
should help educate their bosses and
make sure their own needs are met.
Kathleen Murray in New York Times,
12/96
Resources
"Weaving the Fabric of Diversity
Through Partnerships," Seelbach
Hotel, Louisville, KY, June 4-6,
sponsored by The CES National
Center for Diversity at Kentucky State
University. Registration fee: $225,
adult; $95 youth. Contact 502-227-5904 for more information.
"Redundancia," is a simulation that
makes language issues real and
palpable for English speaking
employees who deal with non-speakers. Available from HR Press,
P.O. Box 28, Fredonia, NY 14063, 1-800-444-7139.
"Latino Success: Insights from
America's Most Powerful Latino
Business Executives," by A.A. Failde
& W.S. Doyle, $22 from Simon &
Schuster.
"About My Sister's Business: The
Black Woman's Road Map to
Successful Entrepreneurship," Fran
Harris Fireside, $12, Simon &
Schuster.
"Unfinished Business: The Diversity
of Disability," a 32-min. video with
Tim Harrington, nationally known
speaker who has cerebral palsy. Copies
cost $179; contact 1-800-543-2119.
Quote of the Month
"While there are few women's firsts in
the abstract worlds of number theory
and quantum physics, women are right
out in front with practical solutions to
common problems.
"A safe prediction is that as long as
there's a disease that needs curing, a
new solar system that needs mapping,
a woman will be up to the job."
Working Woman Magazine, 11-12/96