Mike Coffey
Bite into this: Diversity education that won’t make you yawn.
Last Wednesday, I attended the DFW SMA’s Diversity Strategies panel discussion at the Gaylord Texan Resort in Grapevine. The group of five panelists not only represented a variety of perspectives, but brought a lot of value and insight to the table. Here’s a run down of the panel:
- Melissa Wallace, Manager of Diversity Strategies for American Airlines
- Elizabeth Otenaike, Diversity and Inclusion/Change Strategist for Lockheed Martin
- Gracie Vega, Vice President HR for Gaylord Texan Resort
- Sherri Elliott, President of Gen InsYght and Author of Ties to Tattoos
- Nancy Ruth, Program Manager for Cultural Awareness International
Generally, diversity and inclusion are topics that can begin to sound redundant to employers and employees alike, but I found the contributions from these five professionals refreshing. During the discussion, they covered several topics including the scope of diversity, recruiting, and understanding diversity as a competitive advantage within an organization. As far as diversity goes, many of us have mastered “talking the talk”, but how many companies actually “walk the walk”?
Recruiting strategies can have both a positive and negative impact on an organization, and implementing methods that take diversity into account doesn’t necessarily translate into race and gender considerations, according to Sherri Elliott. When asked how an organization can recruit and attract a diverse set of employees, she emphasized that although there are many factors to consider in the process, age and generational differences must be thoroughly understood.
Understanding the nature and impact of these generational differences may be to an organization’s advantage, particularly in times of economic distress when keeping valuable employees involved is crucial. Today, for example, more “Gen Yers” place more value on contributing worth to a company as opposed to reaping monetary benefits.
Another, perhaps more prevalent, diversity issue was touched on frequently throughout the discussion–differences in values, nationalities and backgrounds. From an HR standpoint, it is not enough anymore to ensure your workforce is diverse. In fact, this reality often creates unintended and completely avoidable problems that affect productivity and profitability within a company.
For example, Nancy Ruth, the program manager for Cultural Awareness International, cited a particular cross cultural conference call she encountered that underlined the consequences that can arise from not familiarizing oneself with cultural differences. This particular discussion, like so many others, faltered because of a lack of awareness–something organizations can help prevent by implementing the right programs and asking the right questions.
Perhaps the main send home in this entire panel discussion was that organizations and all individuals involved in running them must understand the intrinsic value and competitive advantage diversity provides. Greater success lies not only in the recognition of a problem, but also in the assessment of solutions.
As Nancy Ruth put it:
“We tend to give platitudes for being diverse, but leave that value of it on the table… find the value that the diverse workforce brings.”
In summary, simply ensuring you have a diverse workforce is not enough. Effective articulation of goals, self benchmarking and assessing and initiatives by all levels of management to ensure understanding among employees and employers is the cornerstone of today’s more productive and profitable organization. It’s not only an opportunity to strengthen and establish commitment and security. It’s a business case for diversity.
For a more in depth look at this subject, check out Mike’s podcast interview about workplace diversity with Scott Airitam of Leadership Systems.
Insanely dangerous idea? There’s an app for that!
Intelius, the online data broker notorius for selling information most people would consider personal to anyone who wants it, has released an iPhone application that is a must-have for the on-the-go stalker.
Their Date Check app is touted as a way for users to check out potential hook ups while they are still sitting next next to you at the bar. For a few bucks, you can use Date Check to check out your prospective paramour’s background – criminal history, address… even an asset check – by providing as little initial information as their cell phone number.
This is an insanely dangerous idea for at least two reasons. First, all criminal records databases miss a lot of records. A LOT. This means that anyone relying on Intelius to determine whether the Prince or Princess Charming they just met at the monster truck after-party has a criminal record are potentially missing important information. The danger in this, as in relying on any criminal records database, is that users may rely on the information to make critical decisions… with potentially devastating consequences.
Of even more concern to me about this app, however, is the giant potential for abuse. This app obviously doesn’t have any way of measuring the intent or goodwill of the user. Want that cute blonde’s address so you can show up at her front door to convince her that you are soul mates? This is the app for you! Have a more nefarious intent? No problem!
This is such a bad and dangerous idea that I won’t even post a link to their site. Google it and you’ll see what a bad idea this really is.
Is Your Office Full of “Shiny Happy People?”
How many people in your organization are “happily employed, using their skills, with a sufficient feeling of security to plan the future, and a minimum of stressful overload?”
In an article on the Harvard Business blog, Rosabeth Moss Kanter calls hitting this “sweet spot” the goal of progressive companies employing value-based management techniques to encourage innovation and profitability. This, says Kanter, involves a shift in corporate mindset from managing employees to giving them the tools and opportunities to be successful. It’s an interesting read that highlights what Kanter calls “vanguard companies” in this area, including Procter and Gamble and IBM efforts.
On a related note, during the upcoming HR Southwest Conference, Al Lucia will be presenting presentation title highlighting the importance of maximizing employee engagement and commitment. Register today!
Consumer protection collaboration grows to sixty members
Imperative is one of the three founding members of ConcernedCRAs, a group of background screening firms collaborating in an effort to raise the marketplace’s awareness of consumer protection issues . In less that six months and with no advertising other than word of mouth, the group has to over 60 members! We released the following press release today.
Do we need an Innocence Project for employment applicants?
Entre Nax Karage is one of the many wrongfully convicted murder defendants in Texas proven innocent by DNA testing and the Innocence Project. Although he was pardoned by Governor Rick Perry (the actual perpetrator was identified with DNA testing) and his criminal conviction was erased from Dallas County’s records, he has continued to pay the price of his wrongful conviction.
North Texas SHRM: The Business Case for Diversity with Scott Airitam
LISTEN NOW:
In many organizations, few training topics suck the air out of the room faster than diversity training. However, succesful companies are finding that diverse workforces provide new depths of innovation, customer service, and brand recognition… in essence, making them more competitive in the marketplace. So how do we get past the basics of counting people in certain categories and move into an area where the company can really draw on the diversity of experience and background in its workforce?
Mid-Cities HR presents “HR: Be a Solution, Not a Problem”
LISTEN NOW:
Despite all the talk of HR’s “seat at the table,” in many organizations, HR is still a paper-pushing function. In others, we’re the equivalent of Dr. No. Is it any wonder that HR is still not seen as a partner in many companies?
North Texas SHRM hosts personal creativity coach Stephen King
Every day, we all face problems that cry out for creative solutions. And, if you’re like me, you’ve worked with people who can look at a seemingly complex problem and say, “Oh, here’s what you need to do” and then proceed to outline an elegant solution that solves the problem.
Discussing HR Metrics and Analytics with Dr. George Benson
LISTEN NOW:
Like every other department, human resources managers are being asked to measure the effectiveness of their activities and report their impact on the organization’s bottom line.
Most HR professionals are familiar with measurements like cost per hire and HR expense as percentage of company revenue. But do those kinds of measurements really reflect HR’s contribution? How do you really measure HR – particularly as HR moves from a strictly transactional function to a consultative business partner?
Stimulus Plan Escapes E-Verify…For Now
One would be hard-pressed to find someone unaware that the government is currently trying to pass a stimulus bill to help jump start our economy. However, finding someone fully aware of the specific details outlined in both versions of the bill (i.e. House and Senate versions) might prove more difficult.
The New York Times reported that the two versions of the stimulus overlap on “90-plus percent” of the issues. But after the Senate passes their version today, a conference committee will begin drafting a final version of the bill, making the necessary compromises on the other 10 percent of the issues.
It is in this 10 percent where employers and HR professionals can find a signicant difference between the two bills. The House version of the stimulus plan included the following stipulation:
SEC. 1114. REQUIRED PARTICIPATION IN E-VERIFY PROGRAM.
None of the funds made available in this Act may be used to enter into a contract with an entity that does not participate in the E-Verify program described in section 401(b) of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 1324a note).
This provision was removed from the Senate version of the bill, but it could be reinstated as compromises are discussed later this week.
E-Verify is the federal government’s program for verifying online new hires’ authorization to work in the US. President Obama has put on hold until May a Bush Administration Executive Order that would required all federal contractors to utilize the system.
