Driving Up Results With Diversity

Stefi bangs her fist on the table, once, twice, three times.

"Can we please discuss the relevant issues?" she asks in nearly perfect English, with only a hint of a German accent.

The others present at the table ignore her. Rick, a 50-something, reserved Chicagoan who otherwise has not spoken much all morning, lifts his head up for a moment.

"Have you said something?" he inquires, looking at Stefi.

Before Stefi has a chance to answer, another person starts talking. Rick again sinks into silent tranquility. On the other hand, Stefi looks exasperated and ready to leave. Still, nobody takes notice as they go on with their discussion.

A few minutes later, diversity consultant Rafael Gonzalez ends the discussion. Like a stage director, Gonzalez had assigned roles to the participants using a clever tactic. Each participant's role was identified on the front of a placard visible to everybody at the table -- except the person before whom the card was placed. Now that the exercise is over, the participants in this arranged "conference" are encouraged to reveal how they felt about how they were treated in the debate.

There are surprised "ooohs" and "aahs" as one person after another correctly guesses his or her assigned role, be it the class clown, the expert, or, like Rick and Stefi, respectively the ignorant and the ignored one. Gonzalez, like a magician whose difficult card trick has succeeded, grins while he reveals what really happened at the discussion table and how it relates to real-life conferences. His point is that employees have an intuitive perception of their true role within their organizations. If they feel ignored or ridiculed, they might try a few times to break out of that mold but they usually settle into that role given to them by others. These people often do not risk speaking out, which might cause their companies to lose potentially valuable input.

A lively conversation develops. We discuss how to encourage the quiet types and devise ways to curb the more garrulous ones. Now and then Gonzalez nods, and then he announces, "Let's talk cultural differences."

By this point, I already know that coming to this seminar was the right choice for me. I am fascinated by the practical and theoretical examples Gonzalez and his colleague, Larry Olmstead, both consultants with Leading Edge Associates, employ during the seminar. Teaching the course, "Driving Results with Diversity," the two foster an understanding of diversity, which they define as a complex interaction of culture, nationality, race, gender and a variety of other factors. Because diversity affects workplace communications, knowledge about it is crucial for achieving outstanding business results. In other words, whether employees get their point across by banging their fists on the table or keeping quiet might contribute to the success or failure of a company. How they behave depends on a plethora of underlying factors known as diversity.

Despite its long history in this country, diversity is still often misunderstood and underestimated, especially in organizational settings. Meanwhile, studies have clearly shown that an increased awareness of certain cultural, ethnic and gender traits actually heightens employee productivity. Olmstead provides a good illustration of how sales are linked to diversity.

"Take a look at the Diversity Inc. ratings of a company, and compare them with Fortune magazine's top 100 list," he says. "You'll find a correlation for diversity and growth in organizations. Successful companies see diversity as an asset."

Over the course of the day, it becomes clear to all of us just how key strategic diversity is in the development of a business, and how it should be included as an important component in all parts of a business plan. These parts encompass everything from leadership to workforce, from the starting mission to the final goal. Despite having such a wide array of applicable fields, diversity -- with proper training -- is not overwhelming. On the contrary, free expression of different viewpoints in the workplace can be a positive force, as the brainstorming at the end of our seminar proved to me. I received some great feedback on my business ideas and walked away with some truly innovative concepts to employ at my company, thanks to the people present. The fact that they came from different companies, organizational levels, backgrounds, geographic locations and, last but not least, ethnicities was mirrored in the freshness and originality of their suggestions.

As I leave the room, I again think about my idea for a marketing slogan for Maynard, "Diversity Counts." Larry Olmstead points out to me that this statement is qualitative, as well as quantitative. Truly, understanding diversity is important not only for appreciating a mix of co-workers. The more important lesson from the seminar is that having a large number of diverse employees puts the force in the workforce.

N.I. Stern joined the Maynard team in February 2008. Born and raised in Europe, she previously worked for a German-language weekly newspaper, Der Neue Pester Lloyd in Budapest, Hungary, where she covered culture and minority issues.