Agenda Introductory activity What diversity is (and what it is not) - - PDF document

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Diversity & Inclusion

Jason Kanov, Ph.D Nick Sanchez, J.D.

Associate Professor of Management Employment Inclusion Manager Western Washington University Western Washington University

Agenda

— Introductory activity — What diversity is (and what it is not) — What we are working toward — Various approaches — Important assumptions — Discussion

What is Diversity?

— Diversity = difference? — Diversity encompasses but is not limited to difference — Diversity is the collective, all-inclusive mixture of

differences and similarities

— Diversity pertains to EVERYONE

Thomas (2009)

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What We’re Working Toward

“Diversity calls for managing people who aren’t like you and who don’t aspire to be like you. It’s taking differences into account while developing a cohesive whole.”

– Dr. R. Roosevelt Thomas, Jr. CEO of R. Thomas Consulting & Training,

• Inc. and founder of the American Institute

for Managing Diversity

What Weʼre Working Toward

Melting pot

• vs.
• Salad bowl

(or cultural mosaic)

The Goal is 
 Inclusiveness

— Itʼs more than avoiding lawsuits… — Itʼs more than not discriminating… — Itʼs more than Affirmative Action… — Itʼs more than shattering glass ceilings… It’s about fundamentally transforming the culture of an organization

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(Well-Intentioned?) But Misguided Approaches

— Denial or ”Colorblindness”

— “People are all the same deep down.”

— Suppression

— “Don’t ask, don’t tell.”

— Assimilation

— “You can play with us as long as you play by our rules.”

— Isolation

— “Separate but equal.”

— Tolerance

— “We put up with each other.”

Adapted from Thomas & Woodruff (1999)

Inclusive Approaches

— Reparation

— Actively offset inequities — Use this approach sparingly

— Mutual Adaptation

— All parties make adjustments — No one group is privileged or advantaged — Ongoing mutual adjustments are made as necessary

based on the needs of any one situations

Adapted from Thomas & Woodruff (1999)

Important Assumptions

Working toward inclusiveness must… — Be a sustained, long-term undertaking — Be comprehensive — Involve efforts to actively increase diversity — Be more than a dispassionate, intellectual exercise — Make you uncomfortable