It’s common these days to say that diversity training doesn’t work. But diversity consultants James Rodgers and Laura Kangas say it’s actually having unrealistic expectations about diversity training that doesn’t work.
Often leaders expect diversity training to rectify most of the diversity, equity and inclusion issues in the organization, improve morale, increase collaboration and enhance the hiring, retention and promotion of diverse candidates. That’s quite a bundle. “We are not aware of any training that can accomplish those objectives on its own,” they write in Diversity Training That Generates Real Change.
So despite the urgency that often surrounds diversity training, don’t expect a silver bullet. Keep in mind that most diversity training exercises are designed to educate but not motivate, and to inform but not transform. They run into a huge stumbling block, best described by Winston Churchill: “I’m always ready to learn, although I do not always like being taught.”
People resist the approach. They don’t want to be taught. That’s why instruction heads the authors’ list of ineffective diversity training approaches, along with establishing targeted audiences that need to be fixed, and presenting shaming and blaming information.
Instead, encourage introspection and experiential learning about others. The audience should cover the gamut of the work force, not groups that need to be re-educated. And they need a chance to practise new behaviours.
Awareness and sensitivity are often the main topics in diversity training. But the two consultants caution awareness cannot be confined to a litany of data and information. Often awareness comes from exchanging ideas and perspectives, learning about others who are different from you. “Sensitivity also cannot be imposed. It must be felt. The participant who really benefits from sensitivity must have their own reason for internalizing it,” Mr. Rodgers and Ms. Kangas say.
They argue a guiding principle must be that all humans are equally subject to the traps of unconscious discrimination. The participants must feel safe to state their views without denigration or ridicule. “In some types of diversity training, members of the majority (dominant) culture are told to listen to and validate the perspectives of minority (marginalized) groups. At the same time, they are asked to submit their own feelings and perspectives to intense scrutiny. This sets up a clear double standard which does not feel safe to anyone,” Mr. Rodgers and Ms. Kangas say.
They argue a successful diversity training session creates a “meritocracy of pain.” We all have pain and diversity training should be the great equalizer, not focusing on whose pain is greater. “Rather than picking on some participants for historical disparities for which they are not responsible, allow all participants to do their own personal reflection without scrutiny,” the consultants advise.
The goal of diversity training should be to help participants see other people as equal in value, in competency, in spirit, in creativity and in humanity. They say, “that translates into people with brown skin seeing people with white skin as equals, not as superior, not as more biased, not as an ‘up.’ Likewise, a person with white skin should learn to see a person in brown skin as equal, not as inferior, not as poor, disadvantaged, under-represented – not as a ‘down.’”
That happens from creating a human connection as they tell their stories. Such connection, unlike intellectual discussion, can generate action and change. Unfortunately, informational training is seductive: It’s easy to do and receives very little pushback. This approach is harder. It requires adept facilitators. But everyone has a story. Everyone has pain. And they all need to be part of the conversation.
The discussion will unearth unconscious bias. “To be human is to have bias,” consultants Pamela Fuller and Mark Murphy write with former AT&T Business chief executive officer Anne Chow in The Leader’s Guide to Unconscious Bias. “As logical and fair as we try to be, we are nearly always operating with a degree of bias, without ever being aware of it. But the sense that people who have biases are inherently ill-intentioned or morally flawed is one of the paradigms that stops us from making progress on this issue.”
Biases can be wide-ranging. Some are positive, but of course diversity training primarily grapples with those that are negative. After identifying the bias, it’s important to cultivate connection because a deep human need is to belong and feel connected. That requires empathy and curiosity about others.
“If we can meaningfully connect with others, we will often be surprised at what we learn, which is a clear check on biases and preconceived notions. Cultivating connection gives us a path through bias by getting to know people for who they truly are versus who we perceive them to be,” they write.
Courage is essential – the courage to identify bias, the courage to cope with bias, the courage to be an ally to others, and the courage to be an advocate for those on the brunt of biased acts. You need such courage, along with wisdom, to deal with unconscious bias and build a safe environment for diversity to flourish in your organization.
Cannonballs
- Gallup research shows 56 per cent of full-time workers surveyed in the U.S. feel their job can be done remotely from home. Five in 10 are working hybrid; three in 10 are exclusively working remotely; and two in 10 are entirely on site. Fully remote work arrangements are expected to continue decreasing to two in 10 for the long term, despite 34 per cent wanting to permanently work from home, increasing turnover risk.
- On that score, recruitment consultant John Sullivan says the actual cost of turnover can reach 10 times the departing employee’s salary, when you move beyond simple replacement costs to consider team disruption, lost productivity, lost intellectual property and the impact on customers and sales. He argues 95 per cent of turnover is preventable.
- Stop feeling guilty about delegating, holding back because subordinates are hard-pressed, cautions executive coach Dina Denham Smith. Rather than burdening your team, you are giving them the chance to grow and showing trust.
Harvey Schachter is a Kingston-based writer specializing in management issues. He, along with Sheelagh Whittaker, former CEO of both EDS Canada and Cancom, are the authors of When Harvey Didn’t Meet Sheelagh: Emails on Leadership.
Harvey Schachter