Diversity Executive - September 2008 - (Page 22) 235.7 80 million Projected minority population in 2050. Up from 79 million in 2000. Percentage of consumer goods purchasing decisions made by women in North America. [if] they feel like they’re there because of regulatory reasons,” Thurman said. “If you feel like you’re here because you’re smart, you’re talented, you can add value and you have longterm opportunities, you work very differently. So if I approach bringing you into the organization at any level from the perspective of compliance, guess what I get? A less productive employee. And ultimately that drops to my bottom line.” For this reason, “diversity has to be woven into the things that you do,” Whiting said. “When your CEO is talking about the business [goals] to employees, he needs to be talking about [them] from a diverse perspective. When you’re launching a product, you need to look at it from a diverse perspective, as well. All of this needs to come together as you look at where you want to make the right progress in your company.” Creating a Strategy While these kinds of deep discussions around diversity and inclusion might happen across the country, diversity executives need to know how to translate those ideas into action. The first step toward creating a proactive diversity and inclusion strategy requires company leaders to ask themselves a fundamental question: “Why is diversity important to our organization in terms of the products and services that we offer?” “As a starting point, let’s take three answers off the table: ‘It’s the right thing to do,’ ‘talent war’ and ‘for compliance reasons,’” Tapia said. “Why take them off the table? I clearly agree with all $1.2 Projected buying power of Hispanic consumers in 2012. trillion Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Week and Selig Center for Economic Growth, University of Georgia. three, but they don’t answer the question around the products and services side. So companies have to really wrestle with it.” Some might find it easier than others, but Tapia said every client he’s ever worked with — from steel companies to health care providers to management consultancies — has found a compelling answer to that question. “Without that answer, you cannot really hardwire it into the business and make that drive your strategies,” he said. The resulting strategies also must realistically support the organization’s diversity aspirations, said strategic diversity management consultant R. Roosevelt Thomas. “If your aspirations with respect to diversity management go beyond your paradigm, you’re going to have difficulty making sustainable progress,” he said. As with any people strategy, senior management must buy into diversity and inclusion, and demonstrate its personal commitment regularly. “Diversity and inclusion have to be driven by leadership,” Whiting said. “[To build a successful strategy, focus on] working closely with the leaders, getting them engaged and involved and committed around developing the right kind of diversity goals and objectives to move people forward.” While diversity and inclusion practices require top-down involvement, organizations must cultivate an atmosphere that encourages employees to think and connect with one another on a personal level. IBM revenue from women and minority customers was $200 million in 2002. 22 Diversity Executive | www.diversity-executive.com | September/October 2008 http://www.diversity-executive.com
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