Diversity Beyond the Checkbox

(From Stanford Social Innovation Review) When organizations employ "diversity checkboxes" to increase representation of the underrepresented, for example, by simply increasing the number of diverse employees on staff, they miss opportunities for impactful collaboration, argues thought leader Nicole Anand. For organizations to succeed at diversity and inclusion initiatives, they must embrace people’s different approaches to problem-solving that are shaped by their unique lived experiences. This takes time.

These three tactics can help move diversity and inclusion efforts:

• Embrace the complexity of diversity. If the goal is innovation, then the approach must be to recognize different perspectives and ways of working. 
• Design a process that works for marginalized persons, not only the organization. Consider designing a multi-step process that first makes the job application process accessible to people of color. Once hired, encourage a sense of belonging by taking an interest in how diverse employees think through problems and then making decisions to then mainstream those practices.
• Understand that the “challenge” is exactly what is desirable. Diversity in approaches to problem-solving means those who are doing it differently may be perceived as disruptive rebels for having an alternative path to improving social issues. The goal is not assimilation but collaboration for expanded thinking and unconventional action.

More at Stanford Social Innovation Review

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