Rich Peterson's Ten Up and Down Sides for Diversity in the Workplace:

1.)        Upsides

a.)          Organizations that continue to hire, develop, and promote minorities consistently outperform their competitors in good economic times as well as bad.

b.)          Diverse workforces are better equipped to problem-solve and handle change.

c.)     Promoting diversity creates happier employees. Diverse teams are more creative and innovative.

d.)         If companies want employees to develop, excel, and move up in the ranks, the employee then develops high morale, positive attitudes, and remarkable loyalty.

e.)Investing in minority employees produces high achievers.

f.)     Employees from different cultures, belief systems and socioeconomic backgrounds have access to a wider customer base and give their company an edge in marketing and sales.

g.)          When people who have routinely heard ‘no’ start to hear ‘yes, and believe they will be rewarded for trying, they will work harder and more diligently.

h.)         Multicultural workforces are more competitive globally. The majority of people in the marketplace who are your potential customers are not white men.

i.)     Diverse backgrounds can take advantage of a wider range of experience, perspectives, skills, and ideas.  

j.)            Diversity-minded companies have a better public image.

k.)           Earning a name for equality, diversity, and acceptance improves your appearance among customers, prospective employees, clients, and competitors.

1.)        Downsides

a.)          Where there is a lack of quantifiable measurements and payoffs, anecdotal evidence flourishes.

b.)          Workplace discrimination actually increases in an economic downturn. It often pushes minority groups out of sight. (When times are challenging, people tend to look out for their own group and disengage outsiders).

c.)     Companies often fall back on "head counts" in calculating diversity efforts because the issues surrounding measurement and surveying of other aspects can be too complicated.

d.)          Diversity has been promoted on the foundation of social justice, but to be successful, programs must be built on hard evidence.

e.)There is a great deal of defensiveness amongst diversity program providers.

f.)       Many companies track the success of their diversity efforts in terms of what they, “DO,” not necessarily what leads to a, “Payoff.”

g.)          Companies do not approach diversity in terms of a dollar return on investment. This makes CEO’s frown and disinterested.

h.)         Success is usually reported, but often only in shadowy generalities rather than compelling, quantifiable, or incontrovertible results.

i.)  There are no strong positive or negative effects of gender or racial diversity on business performance.

j.)     Since there is a distinct lack of reported evidence on the success or failure of diversity programs, most often what is presented is simply anecdotal evidence.

k.)          Typecasts change very slowly and placing people of contrary groups together does little or nothing to lower narrow-mindedness.

The challenge with Diversity Programs in general is that it is so hard to find companies willing to participate in diversity studies, the research is minimal.

Implementing strategies, programs and procedures to attract and retain talent including special emphasis on the attracting a minority workforce can be challenging. Knowing what works, what doesn’t and why is imperative! 

Establishing compelling employer brands and advertising campaigns that motivate and capture a diverse minority pool, is necessary when designing, developing, implementing, and evaluating strategic recruitment plans that play a key role in attracting and retaining the best talent possible.

As for strategies, increasing the client’s access to minority professionals, services generally falls into the following categories:

• Strategy development (developing a strategic diversity staffing plan)

• Image/Web site campaign development and placement (developing an external communications message that created national/worldwide awareness)

• Public relations (increasing the company's exposure with minority media, associations  and the local community)

• Diversity ResumeEvent (job fair in print and on the Internet)

• DiversityDirect (announcing current job openings to minority and community organizations via direct mail)

• Open house/event coordination (customized hiring and PR events)

• Direct sourcing of minority candidates (targeted candidate search services for all levels of minority professionals)

Recruiting on the Internet is just one of many sources to use to attract wide spectrum of diverse talent. Rich Peterson firmly believes that one theory is that minority job seekers view the Internet as a “colorblind environment, where their resumes will be judged based on skill sets, as opposed to their race, creed or nationality.  The Internet maximizes recruitment initiatives by reaching multiple, coveted, audiences—while simultaneously sending out essential diversity messages. Companies and federal agencies that enable the Internet audience to easily view and apply for open jobs are reaching one of the fastest growing and most diverse audiences available.  Since the Internet is primarily a ‘pull’ environment, its visitors have total control of where they go and what they see. This freedom of choice naturally encourages the growth of a diverse audience.  Organizations that offer a view into a diverse corporate culture through their Web site can show potential candidates that there is a commitment to providing the right mix of people and ideas. Organizations that can show potential candidates that there is a commitment to providing the right mix of people and ideas will achieve a greater sense of success.

There is no single source that can be used to meet all diversity hiring goals.  Successful diversity recruiting requires utilizing a number of inside and outside sources as well as knowledge of federal, state and local equal opportunity employment regulations.

Two key components in all diversity recruitment are:

1.) Culture--Define a culture and they will come.

2.) Look for ways for employees to identify themselves with company. 

The market research process is everything.  This helps the company make educated media decisions.  Some sample market research included:

    Area Labor Force Studies

    Cost of Living Surveys

    Compensation Studies

    Industry Trends and Information

    Demographic Studies

    Geographic Studies

    Layoff Statistics

    Relocation Policies and Procedures

    Media Analysis

    Cost-per-Hire Analysis

Rich Peterson says advancing discussion and participating in making your Diversity and Talent Acquisition programs tangibly different and unique is paramount.

For More Information:

www.richardnpeterson.com