I've read many reports about people claiming that the efforts for increasing diversity are poor; that under-represented groups are not getting as much attention as they should and should be encouraged more to fill certain positions. As callous as this may sound, diversity may not be as big an issue when managers have a proper mindset, but how can you identify this mindset outright and what does that mean for a company?
The problem of diversity has historically been that of unfair treatment of certain races or genders, or even heritage. It hasn't always been the one-sided issue of him or her, but discrimination based on culture such as being Irish or Eastern European; but these are less noticed nowadays as discrimination has taken a different banner. As people migrate to various regions, diversity grows. It has been happening for years and isn't going to stop anytime soon. Though there are some regions that are definitely more diverse than others, it is still plain to see the effects as years pass by.
But what is the casualty of not being diversified or being open to diversity? In my opinion, it is the cost of being unaware of the resources which are available. Many men and women of different cultures and backgrounds have experience which would be beneficial to the companies and corporations to which they are applying. The discriminatory manager is actually hurting their company by having underlying prejudices, passing on opportunities to attract new life to the company by making valuable investments. One of the main points of expanding business is reaching out to the demographics which have low interaction with your business, but this may not always be the case.
So what are the benefits of pushing diversity? At this point in time, in the cultural confusion which our country is undergoing, it is a necessity to require that diversity be advertised or pushed. Organizational watchdogs and individuals alike will dawn their soapbox and criticize companies or even universities for not having pages and brochures dedicated to diversity; but this doesn't mean that places are not diversified. But how can you avoid being criticized for not broadcasting diversity? Well, it seems like you can't. Even the passive voice is overthrown by the screaming of the few.
But I find that the problem of diversity is becoming less about who you're hiring and more about feelings. Companies don't want to offend anyone, but people are becoming more sensitive to obscure meanings which may lie behind commercials. When you're watching t.v, it is obvious that companies are trying to push diversity. See how many things you can spot.
As I see it, people are working hard to make their businesses as effective as they can be and diversity is a byproduct of this mentality. Though many companies yield opportunities based on the concept of appearing diverse, diversity isn't something that you do, it's something that you are. To bring this to a point, one of my favorite movies is "Remember the Titans". Based on historical events, it reminds us of how closed-minded we used to be. But the real part of it is that in the end, harnessing the abilities of the people in the team and working together, they were able to succeed and become unified. As they returned from camp, race wasn't an issue. To them it was a thing of the past. Taking advantage of opportunities to learn and grow is something that we can always benefit from.
My hope is that people will realize that race and gender shouldn't be an issue in accepting the capabilities and contributions of individuals. To quote Martin Luther King, "that they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character." Put aside the superficial bandages and attempts to repair the past and begin to see the new world as that of seizing opportunity. As managers and employees do this, productivity will increase and the issue of discrimination will fade to the recesses of the history.
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