Diversity - a different view

A lot has been written about diversity, so much that it has become a well used term in our language and most of us think we know what it means. Commonly diversity is used to refer to differences in race, politics, gender, ethnicity, culture, language, age, sexual orientation and background. There is a wealth of legislation covering these and despite the existence of equality and diversity policies, it remains an issue for most organisations.

At Diamond Edge when we work with senior teams we use a diagnostic tool, the Team Diagnostic Assessment, that measures, from the team perspective ,a number of factors relating to Positivity and Productivity. Valuing Diversity is one of the seven Positivity factors and is defined as:

The team is open-minded and values differences in ideas, backgrounds, perspectives, personalities, approaches and lifestyles. Diversity is considered vital.

One of the most common difficulties amongst teams and in working relationships arises when there are unpopular opinions which are not listened to or appreciated. In the systems approach, these are referred to as the marginalised voices. Often there is wisdom in the unheard opinions that could be useful for the team, but due to the prevailing culture there is an unwillingness to listen to such diverse opinions. Sometimes this is because of a fear of conflict within the team, but the overall effect is that some team members will not be contributing to the team effort as fully as they are able.

There are a variety of tools and techniques to enhance a team's ability to truly value diversity. One tool is Lands Work, where we ask each function, department or role within the team to explore the "Land" of other team members as if they were tourists visiting a new land. By inhabiting their colleagues "Land" they gain new perspectives on what it is like to be that person in that role, or to be in another department or function.

In a recent example of working with a multinational organisation, with representatives form USA, Canada, Europe, Israel and Japan we asked team members from the different regions to tell the other regions what it was like to be, say, a US based person in this organisation. The US people were asked to sit out and listen whilst team members from the rest of the world moved into the space of the US and acted as tourists, exploring their roles, and experiencing what it was like to be a US based team member in this organisation. For the US team members it was an astonishing experience as they got to hear their fellow team members recognize and acknowledge just what it is like to be them!

For the Europeans, it was a massive surprise to learn that the US felt that Europe was at the forefront of the organisations strengths and were seen as pioneers. As various experiences were revealed, a much greater awareness and understanding of each others roles and function emerged. There was also an awareness of the rank and privilege (more about this in the next newsletter) that exists and how it impacts team members.

By working with differences of opinion and the unpopular and marginalised voices, which is another form of valuing diversity – diversity of views and opinions, the outcome will be a real appreciation of how each person’s unique skills and qualities contribute to the creation of a dynamic, interesting, and harmonious organisation.

If you're finding your working relationships hindered by lack of understanding of how others, or indeed how you work then you may want to take advantage of our team health check offer.