Deep Diversity
Out of the myriad of stories told among my colleagues, external consultants, and our internal counterparts, one theme emerges more than others, diversity requires a systematic, informed approach in any organization.

A 1998 study of U.S. diversity training accomplished by the International Labour Office in Switzerland, identified eight benchmarks for effective diversity training:

• the initiatives enjoy strong, visible, consistent support from the client organization's top management;
• training is closely tailored to the specific circumstances of the client organization;
• training is motivated by the client organization's important operational goals;
• trainers have qualifications in management or organizational development;
• training focuses on discrimination as a general process rather than unique issues of special groups;
• training is designed to change trainees' behavior rather than attitudes alone;
• training is completmented by improvements in the client organization's human resource management practices; and
• training is part of broad efforts at organizational development.

Deeper Diversity and Everyday Management

I was recently asked to mediate a conflict between two supervisors. The requesting managers recognized that diversity was a factor based on the fact that one was an Hispanic male and the other a white female in a traditionally-male craft.

In preparation for my work, I reviewed the assessment, written jointly by the managers, which concluded that there were "racial and sexual tensions" between the supervisors. "Holy locomotives!" I lurched, "they have sounded the whistle and engaged the gears, but are on the wrong track."

Was this conflict motivated by racial and sexual tension? No! Gender and cultural misunderstandings between the supervisors, which were put right by a small amount of education and a facilitated dialogue, were the underlying factors. Was there tension? Yes, it is natural to expect tension when conflict is present. And yes, when diversity is a factor, deeper tensions may exacerbate the issues.

The two managers--well-meaning and well-respected white male engineers--had not considered when they wrote and forwarded the memo, per organizational procedures, to four other administrators:

• the descriptors, sexual and racial tension, are "loaded" and, like one bullet in a chamber, threaten dangerous professional consequences; and
• such labels may be career stoppers for an Hispanic man and for a woman in a mostly-male profession.

• a lifetime of negative events experienced by an individual--or the group with which they identify--can be expected to tinge their experience in emergent issues;
• when managers do not understand the dynamics of diversity, they may inadvertently perpetuate racism, sexism or other ...isms; and
• the organization's routine procedures and practices--business as usual--may lack checkpoints that are diversity informed.

Deep Diversity Requires More

Deep diversity requires more. Internal consultants such as human resource, equity and diversity, labor and employee assistance specialists, touchstones for authenticity, confess that they have been disappointed that equity and diversity training has such short-term effect. Their routine interactions with ordinary employees about ordinary actions inform them of patterns within the organization that reveal its truer nature. Until everyday attitudes and actions demonstrate a genuine transformation at the level of the daily work of employees, the work has not been accomplished.

Deep Diversity Offers More, Risks More

Deep diversity work encourages development of an organizational character that more athentically reflects truly American principles of equal opportunity, fairness and remediation. In organizations where these values are fully integrated, a diversity intervention reveals the precious find. When these values are uncommon, diversity efforts require more ploughing, more harrowing, more seeding, feeding and weeding. Be aware tht in these cases, resistence and the stakes--like rocks in the farmer's field--can be expected to rise more often and higher.Business-as-usual is often the farmer's catastrophe.

Deep diversity means doing deeper assessment, deeper diagnosis, broader education and wider skill building. It may require:

• reparation for injustices of the past;
• reengineering of systems and procedures to ensure equity in routine management actions;
• education and coaching of managers and supervisors for cross cultural and diversity competence; and
• education of employees about diversity, conflict resolution and dialogue across differences.