Resources The Summit on Leading Diversity April 8-11, 2002, in Atlanta linkageinc.com Women and Diversity Summit and Gala October 23-24, 2002, in Washington, D.C. BWNi.com Dr. Michael Kimmel michaelkimmel.com Marilyn Loden loden.com Dr. Vanessa Weaver alignmentstrategies.com Profiles in Diversity Journal diversityjournal.com Dr. Debra Meyerson Tempered Radicals: How People Use Difference to Inspire Change at Work (Harvard Business School Press, 2001) Advertisers' Web Sites For more information on these progressive companies, visit their Web sites: Ford Motor Company www.ford.com General Motors www.gm.com The McGraw-Hill Companies www.mcgraw-hill.com Pfizer Inc www.pfizer.com In the Field James Rector, publisher of Profiles in Diversity Journal, on Cross-Cultural Competence You publish an international showcase of diversity strategies in use by companies today. Can you comment on the emerging area of "cross-cultural competence"? Companies are getting bigger in their thinking about diversity--talking more about inclusivity and broadening their definitions--while they're also focusing on metrics, accountability, and practical skills. Cross-cultural competence efforts sometimes seem to echo this trend. The term means different things to different companies, but one leader commented to me that she found a pervasive lack of awareness of how much our own beliefs and behaviors in business reflect certain cultural norms and preferences--not a global reality. Cross-cultural competence entails coupling "big picture" questions of cultural norms with skill-based strategies for cross-cultural communication, conflict resolution, and dealing effectively with differences in the workplace. One hidden advantage to this right now may be its usefulness in domestic operations when mergers and acquisitions require different company cultures to suddenly work together as one.

In every industry, when corporations look in the mirror or out into the marketplace, they no longer see mostly white men in gray suits, but a world where differences are multiplying as the world shrinks. The typical consumer is changing. The composition of the American workforce is changing. The marketplace has gone global and isn't going back home again.

The fundamentals of the business case haven't changed except to grow more compelling. Benchmarking has shown that company diversity raises marketing opportunities; increases creativity and innovation; enhances recruitment and retention; boosts productivity; ups shareholder value; deepens customer loyalty; increases employee commitment and morale.

There's a new grasp of minority buying power. New insights about micro-inequities and subtle discrimination. An emerging inclusivity movement to bring everyone to the diversity table. Canny corporations know that to champion diversity is to rise with change and run with it--and lead the field.

Surpassing the Slowdown: Diversity Buying Power Now
No matter how complex business gets, it will always be a game of supply and demand. And right now, right here at home, diversity markets remain the best growth opportunity around. After all, that's where the new money is--and will be.



Check the numbers. Minority buying power has nearly doubled since 1990--and is growing 65% faster than U.S. buying power overall. African-Americans, Asian-Americans, Hispanics, and American Indians control nearly $1.3 trillion, up from $647 billion a decade ago, according to the Selig Center for Economic Growth. Minority purchasing power is headed upward of $2 trillion by 2015, and $3 trillion by 2030, says a Minority Business Development Agency report. In addition, while spending grew 64% between 1990 and 2001 for whites, that of Asian-Americans surged 125%; of Hispanics increased 118%; and of African-Americans rose 85%.

Gay and lesbian consumers also wield growing market muscle. "They spend three times what the average straight person spends," notes Edie Fraser, president of the Business Women's Network and Best Practices in Diversity. By 2004, their buying power will top $100 billion.

People with disabilities are another segment with a compelling purchasing presence. According to the Small Business Administration and the Golden Hills Organization, the disabled wield an aggregate income over $1 trillion today. And they are highly motivated to spend in quality-of-life industries such as travel, entertainment, clothing, and computers--which really need them right now.

And never underestimate the purchasing power of a woman. American women are the most powerful economic force on the planet, controlling an astonishing $5.2 trillion. Women purchase 82% of all products and services, including 80% of all health care, 75% of all OTC drugs, and 51% of all cars.

Companies know they must be diverse because their customers are diverse. "At Ford," says Rosalind Cox, manager of diversity and worklife planning, "we know that we must value and understand our worldwide customers if we are to create products that will delight them. Building a diverse, talented, and committed workforce is key to our success."Similar thinking prevails at the McGraw-Hill Companies. "To meet our aggressive growth goals," says CEO Terry McGraw, "our employees must reflect the increasingly diverse backgrounds and traditions of the markets we serve."

"The numbers on buying power absolutely make the business case," notes Fraser, "and CEOs in every industry are definitely getting the message."

Enlightened Evolution: Simple Steps Can Promote Diversity Throughout an Organization
Yes, diversity markets control more purchasing power than ever before. And lately some women and people of color have risen to high-profile jobs as CEOs and economic experts. Yet diversity at the top remains the exception, not the rule.

Some fault skill gaps; others see problems in the pipeline. But a new focus is on "micro-inequities" and subtle discrimination, those everyday acts of exclusion, devaluation, and discouragement that push diverse employees down--or out. Seen singly, these acts might appear trivial. But viewed systemically, they are the working conditions that can make or break careers and company performance.

Micro-inequities are so woven into organizational cultures that they appear unbiased--if they are discerned at all.They can reside in unspoken company norms, like assessing job performance based on "face time" rather than productivity and quality--which disadvantages working parents. Or they can be embedded in such seemingly bias-free practices as the use of brief first interviews for recruitment, which can encourage interviewers to rely on first impressions and likeness to themselves in hiring decisions.

The revolutions that brought diversity into the workplace won't do it this time, says a recent Harvard Business Review article. Rather, argue co-authors Debra Meyerson of Stanford Business School and Joyce Fletcher of Simmons School of Management, a "small wins" approach can whittle away barriers--without triggering backlash or resistance.

There is no standard formula for a small wins approach, but there are benefits that apply across the board. For one thing, small wins arise readily and can be put into action easily. Plus, say Meyerson and Fletcher, "Small wins have a way of snowballing. One small change begets another, and eventually they add up to a whole new system."

Inner Strength: The New Inclusive Work Environment
Corporate diversity has been growing--as an idea as well as a business imperative. Today, it's about even more than leveling the playing field for those who haven't had their fair share of opportunity in the past. It's about rethinking the ways we work to get the most out of everyone.

Diversity has become a more inclusive initiative. At Pfizer, for instance, "Diversity is understood in its broadest sense: diversity of thought, of experience, and of background," comments Helen Lang Suskin, vice president for global market analytics. "GM's long commitment to diversity," notes Rod Gillum, vice president for corporate relations and diversity, "has focused on expanding the definition beyond race and gender to the many dimensions involved in this area."

That expansive definition makes good sense since it helps unify a company workforce. All employees, no matter what their background, life stage, situation, or position, share a common interest in company success. "No matter where we live and work," explains Joginder Singh, Ford's director of business strategy, "there are common threads that unite us. We all want Ford to be a profitable, shareholder-value-driven, global company."

And it makes good business sense, too. "To support the company's global growth goals," notes Ivy Latimer, director of EEO and diversity initiatives at McGraw-Hill, "we need to leverage gains in growing diverse markets."

At Pfizer, adds Karen Katen, president of the U.S. Pharmaceuticals Group, "we believe that an actively diverse workforce is better able to solve complex business problems as well as meet the needs of individual customers."

Plus, inclusivity helps companies leverage assets already in the organization. GM's new global Center of Expertise on Diversity and Growth Markets "is yielding an understanding of the needs and life stage triggers of individual groups," says executive director Judy Hu, "that can tap into cultural nuances relevant to our consumers." An example is a recent Chinese language television commercial for the Buick Rendezvous. As companies grow more inclusive in their thinking about diversity, they are starting to come full cycle. Perhaps the newest diversity dimension today is the so-called majority male. "While they have been blamed for inequity in the past, the truth is most white men don't have any more power or opportunity within an organization than women or minorities do," explains Marilyn Loden, noted author of several books, including the best-seller, Workforce America! Managing Employee Diversity As a Vital Resource.

Inclusivity means bringing white men under the diversity umbrella, too. Work-family balance, a top diversity area, for example, is seen by most as a woman's issue. Yet the Families and Work Institute's recent National Study of the Changing Workforce found virtually no difference between women and men in levels of stress over parental versus professional commitments. A recent study by the Radcliffe Public Policy Center found that for young men, this diversity area is a critical job characteristic--even more important than money, power, or prestige. "Men have been saying that for years," notes Dr. Michael Kimmel, author of Manhood in America and The Gendered Society, and an international consultant on men in organizations. "What's new is that men are beginning to walk their talk. They want balance, and some are embracing diversity in order to achieve it."

By emphasizing common ground and equal opportunity for all, inclusive diversity leverages the immense talent and experience storehouse in majority male employees. It grants everyone the individuality from which flow creativity and the commitment to go that extra mile. As if that weren't enough, it can also breed cost-effective solutions. "If you fix the system for everybody," concludes Loden, "you don't have to keep doing it umpteen times--once for women, once for minorities, once for every group in the variegated American workforce."

Seeing the Light: Strengthening Employee Relations in a Diverse Workplace
Here are some consensus recommendations on what works:
Start at the top. The most successful diversity initiatives begin with consistent, visible sponsorship from the highest levels of the organization.
Emphasize common ground. The evidence for the business case mounts higher every day.Make sure employees understand that diversity can provide competitive advantages to the company that thereby help everyone.
Tout inclusivity. Definitions of diversity are broadening as companies reach for conditions that let all employees do their best work. This shift promises direct as well as indirect benefits all around.
Get the facts. Diversity-related policies or policy changes should be supported by credible, relevant data, and further substantiated with ongoing impact assessments.
Make it pay.Linking diversity management to compensation, promotion, and succession planning helps convince employees that diversity is a priority.
Show it's a perk. Remind people that successful diversity management experience is becoming a valued and career-building business competence. Acknowledge the real world. Training and feedback should include specific skills, such as cross-cultural communication, conflict resolution, and team-building.

The High Cost of Miscommunication and Missed Opportunities
The workplace has changed, but what exactly are the new rules? Some managers feel they're struggling in a gray zone of subtleties, miscues, and miscommunication, where everyday interactions suddenly seem questionable--or actionable.

Subtle discrimination is unlike the hostile environment of sexual harassment law, which revolves around intent. In contrast, it is often inadvertent, arising from unspoken assumptions we all unfortunately carry.

But it costs companies dearly. For one thing, they lose--and must replace--promising personnel. A landmark Catalyst study found that 65% of management women of color who were leaving their jobs said their employers failed to address subtle gender bias. Almost three-quarters (72%) of them said their companies didn't deal adequately with subtle racism. For another, judgments in discrimination suits are increasing sharply. The median jury award in employment practices cases rose 44% between 1999 and 2000, to $218,000. Twenty percent of all verdicts topped $1 million. And those numbers don't include the cost of legal representation, lost productivity, or negative publicity. It's an attention-grabbing tab. Yet subtle discrimination is not so plain to see.

"Managers often ask, 'Can I tell a woman colleague that her blouse is pretty?'" says Kimmel. "I tell them, if you're looking at it, then yes; if you're looking down it, no."

That sexual innuendo, conveyed by a glance, is actually more obvious than the subtle discrimination that often affects hiring, firing, or promotions: a tacit sense of "fit" for the job. A benchmark study by the Center for Creative Leadership in 1995 found what subsequent research continues to report: Diversity is stalled by managers' "greater comfort with their own kind."

In tackling such tough issues, training is key, but specialists agree that companies must strike a balance between indifference to difference and a fawning overindulgence of it. "Effective training," Kimmel says, "starts by recognizing the good intentions of managers and executives to be fair and to bring out the best in their people."