Leadership and Executive Development for women of all races, cultures and backgrounds
Issue link: https://diversitywoman.epubxp.com/i/510478
d i v e r s i t y w o m a n . c o m S u m m e r 2 0 1 5 D I V E R S I T Y W O M A N 25 from a diverse set of leaders. Despite the longer process time, the drug was ap- proved the second time around. Driving Two-Dimensional Innovation A study by the Center for Talent Innova- tion (CTI) reached similar conclusions as the Deloitte research. It scrutinized two types of diversity: inherent and acquired. Inherent diversity refers to traits you are born with, such as gender, ethnicity, and sexual orientation. Acquired diversity cen- ters on traits you gain from experience; for example, how working in another country can help you appreciate cultural diferenc- es. Companies that have leaders with three or more inherent diversity traits and three acquired diversity traits are characterized as having two-dimensional diversity. Te CTI study found that by correlating diversity in leadership with market out- comes, companies with two-dimensional diversity out-innovate and outperform others. Employees were 45 percent likeli- er to report that their frm's market share grew over the previous year, and 70 per- cent were likelier to report that their frm captured a new market. "Two-dimensional diversity unlocks innovation by creating an environment where 'outside the box' ideas are heard," CTI's CEO Sylvia Ann Hewlett wrote in a Harvard Business Review blog post. "When minorities form a critical mass and leaders value diferences, all employ- ees can fnd senior people to go to bat for compelling ideas and can persuade those in charge of budgets to deploy resources to develop those ideas." Guarding Against Groupthink Because the fundamental premise of diversity of thought rests on bringing together diferent ideas, it can also help guard organizations from groupthink. Some of the world's most innovative companies have relied on creative dis- agreement to foster growth. Take the famous example of Alfred Sloan, Gen- eral Motors CEO from 1923 to 1946. Sloan closed a senior executive meeting by saying, "Gentlemen, I take it we are all in complete agreement on the decision here." Everyone nodded. So he contin- ued, "Ten, I propose we postpone fur- ther discussion of this matter until the next meeting to give ourselves time to develop disagreement, and perhaps gain some understanding of what the decision is all about." Jef Bezos, the founder and CEO of Amazon.com, is also known to dislike "social cohesion" and prefers that em- ployees disagree openly in meetings. "Have Backbone; Disagree and Commit: Leaders are obligated to respectfully chal- lenge decisions when they disagree, even when doing so is uncomfortable or ex- hausting," states a leadership principle on the company's website. Te role of the manager or leader is key in fostering creative debate. "Te trick about safeguarding against groupthink is also training managers to be expert fa- cilitators, not controllers," says Deloitte's Medina. "You need an objective manager to combat groupthink, one who listens to diferent points of view and always asks 'What did I miss?' not 'Who agrees with what I just said?'" "If everyone on my team is constantly agreeing with me, I've made a terrible se- ries of hiring mistakes," says Stacy-Marie Ishmael, editor, news apps, Buzzfeed News. "As a leader or a manager, you need to create an environment that en- courages alternative viewpoints, while making it clear what will not be toler- ated—racism, sexism, various phobias shouldn't be given a pass in the name of 'playing devil's advocate.'" Ishmael has built and managed various teams at or- ganizations including Te Financial Times and Percolate, a technology startup based in New York. Testing the New Limit of Diversity at SAP SAP deployed the diverse thought strat- egy in an unexpected way—by recruiting employees with autism. "About two years ago, SAP started to work with people with autism in India," says Wittenberg. "We now have 50 full- time global employees with autism. Te program has had early successes, and SAP plans to roll it out into new markets this year. Te positive impact on our teams has been remarkable. Instead of focus- ing on what people are not good at, we looked at bringing the unique talents of these individuals to tackle business chal- lenges at SAP." SAP's goal is to have 1 percent of its workforce made up of employees with autism by 2020. Wittenberg says this program, com- bined with other diversity initiatives, has driven high employee engagement. Initiatives like these encourage more employees to bring their authentic selves to work. As she says, "Organiza- tions must be open to letting their peo- ple bring the authenticity and unique- ness they have to work." DW Ruchika Tulshyan is a Seattle-based journalist and content strategist. THINKSTOCKPHOTOS We Mean Business >