Forcing diversity in business is counterproductive
Date published: 2/4/2008
THERE'S PROBABLY no more universally held belief in busi- ness these days than that diversity in employment is a good thing. That's why it's important to pay attention to a recent comprehensive study that concludes that most diversity training these days is ineffective and, in some cases, counterproductive.
The problem is not the ends, but the means. As so often happens in American culture, a worthwhile goal may have morphed into a deadening tenet of political orthodoxy. Rather than preaching and demanding, companies ought to be finding concrete ways to encourage workers to buy into initiatives that increase the number of women and minorities in managerial positions.
There's another wrinkle to the current state of diversity training, according to the study. Employees can usually sense a hidden agenda in management directives. In this case, it's the credible suspicion that at some companies mandatory diversity training is more about protection from lawsuits than about raising the profile of minorities.
Let the numbers do the talking. A comprehensive review of data from 830 mid-size to large U.S. workplaces found that mandatory diversity training was followed by a 7.5 percent drop in the number of women in management and a 12 percent decrease in the number of black men in such positions.
By contrast, voluntary diversity training focused on specific organizational skills, such as mentoring relationships, produced positive results.
Noted Alexandra Kalev, a sociologist at the University of Arizona who led the research, "Forcing people to go through training creates a backlash against diversity." What's more, most diversity managers, when informed of these findings, told Ms. Kalev that they were not surprised.
The bottom line is that the time for symbolism is over, and the need for substantive efforts is overdue. High on the list should be policies that encourage managers to form relationships that make them more aware of the diverse talents within their companies.
Greater diversity in business leadership remains a critical goal for 21st-century America.
Diversity(posted by
erin020780
, Feb. 4, 2008 4:46 pm)
Diversity means difference.It's unification we're after. Talking racism makes people mad all over again. As for worthless diplomas -- it's an effrontery to ask anyone to do a good job and overall education standards are very low. As a person who is the sole breadwinner for a family of five knowing that graces would be granted to me if I were in a lower different income bracket and color, there are plenty of underperforming people of all colors here which argues against educational favoritism.
Diversity(posted by
CBVAUSA
, Feb. 4, 2008 6:27 am)
Any time an organization hires or promotes based on anything other than merit, an understandable backlash will occur in that organization. By basing decisions solely on merit credability is established and subordinates are much more likely to accept the individual placed in the position and willingly work toward set goals and objectives. Whenever any factor outside of merit is used, suspicion is generated and the organization harmed.It's sad that risk management plays such a great role corporations & gov't
DIversity, Schmiversity(posted by
LibBuster
, Feb. 4, 2008 12:45 am)
Yeah, FLS, how can you have this wonderful diversity if so
many black and Hispanic students graduate with worthless
diplomas with 8th grade reading and math levels? It is a
pipe dream. If we are ever to have REAL diversity and not
some sham diversity with double standards, we need to get
rid of the woefully filling government schools, privatize them,
and end welfare.
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