Are Your Employees Sending Their Robot Surrogates to Work? Several years ago, we conducted an organizational assessment for the president of a mid-size company who wanted to build a more diverse workforce. As a result of the assessment, we helped his executive team revamp their recruiting and hiring strategy to be more inclusive, and increase diversity amongst their new hires….
Three Ways to Prevent Discrimination in Your Business Whether discrimination is unintentional or intentional, the impact is the same, and no amount of rationalization makes it acceptable. Here are three ways you can prevent discrimination in your business. 1- Be conscious of your personal biases and learns to filter them out. Bias and wrong assumptions won’t go away without intervention….
When Howard Schultz announced the “Race Together Campaign,” he was met with criticism by those in denial that there are any issues regarding race in the US, and by social activists who said he “did it wrong.” Schultz may not have “done his research,” or created a working foundation for baristas and customers to have constructive discussions on race, but…
A key component of any diversity and inclusion/ culture change process is the ability to understand one’s own biases and assumptions. Learning to recognize personal unconscious biases and assumptions, enables leaders to see the world through other peoples’ eyes, and practice “inclusionist leadership” behaviors. This results in employees having opportunity and motivation to use their skills and experience to be…
Here is the 4th Way to Foster Breakthrough Innovation Through Diversity Leadership. 4- Be introspective and get real about your biases and assumptions. Your behavior that results from those biases and assumptions can impede participation and innovation. Ask yourself, “Whom am I not seeing? Do I greet all of my employees or just the ones who are like me? Do…
A participant in one of my Diversity and Cultural Intelligence programs this week said that it was just a matter of having an open mind. That’s like using the word “respect.” To many people having an open mind is being around people who are just like themselves. I don’t even know what that means any more. Most people think they…
1- Decide to be curious and express interest in other people and their cultures. Learn how to ask questions in appropriate ways about food, rituals, working with others, and what they want you to know about them. Diversity intelligence requires interest in others. 2- Research your own cultural background and identify ways in which your culture, and early experiences have influenced your…
We can’t leverage diversity and create inclusive workplaces if we don’t examine our own biases and learn how to filter them out. 1- Become aware that we all have biases. Some biases are unconscious.. We don’t realize we’re thinking a certain way. In other situations people are aware of their judgments of other groups and think those judgements are facts….
Here is an action you can take to leverage diversity and prevent biased thinking. Inclusionist Leadership Action #1 Be conscious of your visceral reaction or any thoughts or judgements you have about the next 3 people you see. What story immediately comes to mind without a second thought? Notice their age, clothing, skin color, age and any other visible characteristics at…
I’ve found ten key ways to raise your Cultural IQ. Here are the first five. 1- Decide to be curious and interested in learning about other cultures, and really understanding diversity in new ways. This means you’re willing to take a risk, observe other people’s behaviors and ask questions in appropriate ways. If you’re not interested or willing to view…
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