The Great American Workplace: Promoting Diversity

Posted on July 15, 2014 in Consulting

Having just celebrated the birth of our country, I think about a personal and one of my  favorite American stories. My father-in-law was born in a small town in Poland. In 1938, at age 5, his parents and brother boarded a ship for America to escape the rise of anti-Semitism and the Nazis, who would soon thereafter invade Poland. The family knew no English and little about where they were going. They arrived and made their home in Houston Texas. The boys worked hard, did well in school, and went to Rice University when it was a scholarship school. My father-in-law went to medical school; his brother went to law school. They had kids, who had a bunch of kids. When I joined the family, years later, I noticed a Waterford piece with the inscription, “Celebrating 50 Years in America.”   When I see those words, it reminds me that not all Americans fully appreciate what we have.

Reflecting on that phrase this past July 4^th, I thought about what makes the American workplace great.   And, in particular, why a nation of immigrants should take pride in and foster diversity at work.

Diversity helps encourage different perspectives and solutions in the workplace. People of different cultures may have unique solutions to problems and bring personal history that enhances the workplace. 

Employers, unfortunately, sometimes adopt practices that unintentionally limit diversity. So I thought I would offer a few thoughts on how employers should help celebrate America with employment practices that encourage diversity.

Nepotism has the most damaging impact on diversifying a workplace. An employer that hires family members, particularly in key management positions, imposes a glass ceiling on non-family members and excludes people from consideration irrespective of merit. Some workers are discouraged knowing that the lack of blood relation precludes their advancement.

Employers often seek new hires by asking their good employees for recommendations. Sometimes that can work out quite nicely. However, it can unfortunately result in decreasing the diversity of an application pool. If we accept the veracity that segregation still exits, which it sadly does, then hiring practices consistent with this approach can be unintentionally discriminatory. There is an additional negative consequence with hiring friends of employees. If things go badly with one employee, the employer may likely lose two people.  

Employers should look to new sources for applicants and make sincere efforts to post jobs in publications or through resources that cast a broad net across a community. Consider using Workforce Solutions, the State of Texas’ private sector solution to helping people find jobs.   http://www.wrksolutions.com/

Finally, diversity is critical to the bottom line. Large American corporations take diversity seriously. So seriously that prospective vendors won’t get in the door if they cannot demonstrate diversity as a core value.  

I hope you enjoyed this newsletter and take the time to appreciate our American workplace.