HRM CHRONICLES
Tribe-Mometer : Ranking Organizational Diversity
By Samson Osero
One partly cloudy Saturday afternoon , my friends , Angela and Daudi , were animatedly talking at a little known picnic site in Suswa plains . I showed up and interrupted : “ Good people , it seems like you have already begun our monthly catch-up meeting . Continue with your discussion as I settle down .” They were exchanging views on a company that had in the eleventh hour withdrawn from participating in the Employer of the Year Award survey . The company had feared that it would not be ranked among the top 10 because of its Diversity and Inclusion ( D & I ) status .
Community Label
I asked : “ What was the reading on their Tribe-mometer ? It must have been very high .” My friends laughed relaxedly before Angela , a seasoned HR professional , interjected : “ D & I is more than tribal representation in an organization . The tribes-hangover has worked against many D & I initiatives .”
Daudi , a political science lecturer , gave examples of three local organizations whose bosses had made them earn the title : “ small ” of the bosses ’ home counties . He categorically said : “ D & I in the entities was synonymous to wearing a label showing the community you belong to .” It is incidentally unfortunate that such companies suffer from a negative historical past . Previous CEOs had employed relatives from the same community . Yet , the old employees ’ files cannot be easily relegated into locked archives .
CEO Dilemma
A new CEO faces insurmountable forces when attempting to realign the composition of the workforce to reflect diversity at all levels . Spiritual nightmares of the immediate former CEO continue to haunt him or her , with the lingering challenge being to dismantle or not dismantle existing deep-rooted structures .
Meddling with staffing at senior management level would encounter fierce resistance from the board . The move is perceived as rocking a stable because interests of some board members become threatened . In daylight retaliation , a naive CEO could be shown the door at the conclusion of his or her probation period .
Based on my board membership experience ,
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Managers who are not keen on supporting direct reports to upgrade their skills are a stumbling block to organizational productivity . In the interest of supporting employees to pursue their career goals , companies should regularly table the mix of staff who attend both scheduled and open training programmes .
I quipped : “ At board level there is usually opaque horse trading when selecting a new CEO . The same games are played during approval of elevating employees to top management positions . However , the board guards HR changes under the pretext of confidentiality .”
Demographics
Shifting back to D & I , Angela told us : “ In some sectors , the current workforce demographics leave a lot to be desired . The succession of an ageing workforce is mind boggling . Gender parity especially at middle management level is yawning . Several organizations neither have employees with disabilities nor those from disadvantaged counties .”
Daudi and I looked at each other as if hell had broken loose . We mentally introspected on how some companies we know are not representative in terms of age , ethnicity , gender and disability . Angela interrupted our train of thoughts : “ Be frank gentlemen , tell me some organizations you know who have successfully cracked the D & I code .”
Sensing what Angela was up to , Daudi said : “ Mere listing of successful companies will not assist . Let ’ s focus on ways of making the workforce in companies most representative of various demographics .”
Diversity Card
D & I should not be a legitimate excuse to arbitrarily hire workers from underrepresented counties . I read the riot act : “ Hiring with diversity in the background should not override equal opportunity employment . I hope we are reading from the same script . Organizations should first focus on qualified candidates before playing the diversity card .” Talent managers express
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