By Annie Yoder,
CPA, CFE, CFF,
director of development,
[email protected]
(New Philadelphia office)
Workplace diversity continues to be a
focal point for many businesses and
an additional element of a successful
workplace is diversity of thought.
A key component of diversity is
addressing hiring and promotion
practices for different races, genders
and religions. Additionally, businesses
should encourage their unique teams
to freely interact and collaborate to
reach the common goal of growing the
business.
What Is Diversity Of Thought?
Diversity of thought is based on the
concept that a person’s thinking is
shaped by their background, person-
ality, culture and experiences. Studies
show businesses that employ a
diverse workforce tend to experience
greater diversity of thought because
their team members ultimately bring a
variety of ideas, opinions and points
of view to the table.
Why should you embrace diverse
thinking in your business?
• HEALTHY CONFLICTS. Tre-
mendous growth emerges
from pressure experienced in
productive conflict. Without con-
flict, innovation can stagnate.
Long-term success comes from
healthy conflicts that value and
respect diverse thinking styles.
• EXPANDED THINKING. Ex-
panding your thought process
helps you connect with others
while facilitating a variety of ideas
or solutions. Diversity of thought
can also result in a more relatable
business and can attract a more
diverse group of customers.
• PERFORMANCE. Diversity of
thought results in more actively
engaged employees, which im-
proves performance and helps
maintain long-term success.
• TRUST. A company that values
diversity of thought gives em-
ployees the confidence to share
their opinions in any setting. This
trust ultimately allows individuals
to connect with those who hold
ideals that differ from their own.
Is Your Business Lacking?
While many leaders see the value of
promoting diversity of thought in busi-
ness, most businesses continue to fall
short in their efforts to adapt. Here are
some signs that your business is lack-
ing in this particular area:
• Leaders throughout the orga-
nization seek control and don’t
influence their employees.
• People are defined by the busi-
ness rather than the business
being defined by its people.
• Employees on all levels aren’t en-
couraged to voice their opinions.
• The business operates in silos,
isolating team members from each
other.
• Group-think presents itself in
decision-making more often than not.
How Can You Embrace
Diversity Of Thought?
Differences of opinions throughout
your business can help build a com-
petitive advantage. Being a leader of
your organization, you have the author-
ity to alter how your business operates.
Bring diversity of thought to your
business with the following actions:
• HIRE DIFFERENTLY. Avoid can-
didates who don’t align with your
business’s culture, but be open to
hiring individuals who challenge
the status quo. This will open the
door to more top talent. During
interviews, consider asking candi-
dates to describe their definition of
a great corporate culture and how
they’d solve a business challenge
your team is currently up against.
You’ll get a sense of whether the
individual thinks differently than
others in your organization while
evaluating if they’re a right fit for
your company.
• PROMOTE DIFFERENTLY. To re-
tain and promote diverse-thinking
individuals, use a more team-
based performance review structure
to create an organizational culture
that inspires and empowers
employees.
• CHANGE MANAGEMENT STYLE.
Rather than bringing your team
together to try to reach a consensus,
take a system-focused approach to
business conflicts. A more system-
driven team will be more productive,
creative and empowered to share
their thoughts.
Bringing on a more diverse workforce
and embracing diversity of thought is
proven to have a widespread positive
impact on business results.
Have you embraced diversity of thought in
your business? Email [email protected]
to share your results for a chance to be
featured in a future article.
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