Understanding the Diverse Workforce:

It’s a Matter of Respect!

Developed and Facilitated by: Jan Dwyer Bang, MBA, CSP

After attending this session, you will be able to:

• Recognize the benefits of honoring and respecting multiple perspectives

• Identify why inclusion is critical to your agency’s success

• Discover and model the words, attitudes, and behaviors that support inclusion and respect

A diverse workforce:

An atmosphere where a variety of people and ideas is welcomed and valued.

An environment that naturally enables people to contribute to their fullest potential and support of their agency’s goals

Definitions

Respect: The state of being honored or esteemed, to show consideration for, treat courteously or kindly

Workplace diversity: The variety of differences between people in an organization. It is the collective strength of experiences, skills, talents, perspectives, and cultures that each employee brings to the workplace.

Definitions

The Four Layers of Diversity1. Organizational Dimensions

2. External Dimensions

3. Internal Dimensions

4. Personality

Diversity

Inclusion: Respecting and valuing the unique dimension that each individual adds to an organization. It includes engaging similarities and differences to create a culture of belonging where people are valued and respected.

Definitions

Culture: A set of accepted behaviors, patterns, values, assumptions, and shared common experiences.

Definitions

Cross-Cultural Iceberg: A Metaphor for Understanding

The effort to provide an equal work experience, free from discrimination, for all people.

Equal Employment Opportunity

DOP champions the commitment of the State to employ a workforce that reflects Washington’s diversity in culture, race, ethnicity and gender and to provide a work environment free from discrimination. DOP is dedicated to achieve equal employment opportunity for people of color, persons over 40 years of age, persons with disabilities, women, and disabled and Vietnam –era veterans.

Statement - DOP

Refers to the tools and programs designed to ensure equal opportunity and to increase active good faith efforts to attract, develop, and retain a diverse workforce

Affirmative Action

What Affirmative Action is NOT:

•Affirmative action is not about quotas. Rather, goals serve as flexible targets and are a ways of measuring good faith efforts to make all aspects of the entire affirmative action program work.

•Affirmative action is not "reverse discrimination". Affirmative action does mean taking affirmative steps to attract minorities and women for available employment opportunities and to ensure that candidates are evaluated fairly using non-biased job-related selection criteria.

•Affirmative action does not reward race or sex in place of merit. It is intended to ensure that employers hire the most qualified people, including members of groups that previously have been subject to unlawful discrimination.

Oversimplifications of people groups

Is a form of prejudice that can form damaging images of a people because of a particular characteristic without any knowledge of the person

Stereotype

Diversity Profile (As of 9/30/2010)

WA State Employee Diversity Data

Categories Statewide

%

Female

Persons with Disabilities

Vietnam Era Veterans

Disabled Veterans

Persons of Color

Persons Age 40 and Older

Black

Hispanic

Native American

Asian

Caucasian

51

3

5

1

18

71

5

5

2

6

82

Each group will answer the following questions. The group that gets the most answers correct – wins!

1. The actual term “affirmative action” was used by President Kennedy. TRUE OR FALSE

2. Affirmative action includes the policies and procedures to guarantee employment to everyone. TRUE OR FALSE

Competition

Competition

3. What are the two goals of a diverse workforce?

4. What do you do if you believe you have been discriminated against?

5. Identify some examples of inclusion in the workplace.

6. What are some barriers to inclusiveness?

7. What are the four layers of diversity?

8. What is the definition of a stereotype?

9. What does the exposed tip of the cross cultural ice berg represent? What does the submerged part of the iceberg represent? Share why culture is often compared to an ice berg.

Competition

10.The millennials (Employees born between 1980 and 2000, or 1981 and 1999) have the following work characteristics: (Select all that apply)

a) They are used to working in teams and want to make friends with people at work.

b) They work well with diverse coworkers.c) They are not open to feedbackd) Are the most connected generation in history

Competition

EXTRA CREDIT:

What is the name of Jan’s business and what is it based on?

Competition

A diverse workforce…

1. Enhances the quality of problem solving and innovation.

2. Increases productivity.

3. More actively engages customers in a global workplace.

4. Attracts and retains the best employees.

5. Decreases costs.

Benefits of Diversity

1. Assumptions

2. Perceptions

3. Stereotypes

4. Lack of Knowledge of other cultures

5. Ineffective communication

Barriers to Inclusiveness

Assumptions

• Catch yourself every time you say, “I assumed…” or “I thought…”

• Practice validating your assumptions before things go wrong

• Notice your tendency to assume negatively based upon faulty data, a negative bias or stereotype, or the fact that you don’t know the person very well

•Our perceptions represent how we interpret or view what goes on around us.

•When new information does not coincide with pre-conceived ideas or past experience it receives little consideration, is distorted, or ignored.

Perceptions

Perceptions

“Virtually every problem in human relations stems from a difference in

perception.”

– Robert L. Katz

FOULED UP FILES ARE THE RESULT OF FOOLISH NEGLECT AND FINISHED FILES ARE THE RESULT OF SCIENTIFIC STUDY COMBINED WITH THE EXPERIENCE OF MANY YEARS

Count the F’s in the sentence

What do People want from their jobs?

• From Supervisors

• High wages

• Job security

What do People want from their jobs?

From Employees

1. Full appreciation of work done2. Feeling of being in on things

“We see things not as they are, but as we are.”

-Dr. Wayne Dyer

Stereotypes

Stereotype: A conventional, oversimplified conception, opinion, or image.

"Elderly Americans are the neglected sector of the fashion industry, stereotyped by blue hair and polyester pantsuits" (American Demographics).

Stereotypes

• First used in the 18th century to describe a printing process designed to duplicate pages of type

• In the 19th century, psychiatrists used this term to describe a repetitive behavior

• A lack of awareness and misinformation are the foundation of making stereotypes

How to handle Stereotypes

• Look at yourself first – what stereotypes do you hold?

• Examine the basis of widely held stereotypes – you can take the power away when you see that many times they are based on wrongly held assumptions

• Work to accept differences – in yourself and others

Enhancing your Cultural Competency

• Slow down• Get to know other cultures• Examine your own assumptions• Be an active listener• Getting beneath the surface takes time –

ask questions and seek to understand without judgment

• Before interacting with a certain culture, do the research

The Speaker-Listener Technique

•Rules (for both) - Speaker has the floor, share the floor, no problem solving

•Rules for the Speaker – Speak for yourself, talk in small chunks, stop and let the listener paraphrase

•Rules for the Listener – Paraphrase what you hear, don’t rebut, focus on the speaker’s message

Adapted from “A Lasting Promise” by Scott Stanley, Daniel Trathen, Savanna McCain, and Milt Bryan

Listen from the inside out

•Paraphrase (To make sure you understood AND to show the speaker you’ve heard)

•Acknowledgement (Feelings crave acknowledgement)

Adapted from “Difficult Conversations” by Douglas Stone, Bruce Patton, and Sheila Heen

Active

Thoughtful

PPT 4-2

PPT 4-2PPT 4-2

Questioning

Accepting

PPT 4-3

PPT 4-2PPT 4-2

PPT 4-3PPT 4-2

PPT 4-3

Active

Thoughtful

Accepting

Questioning

PPT 4-2PPT 4-3

PPT 4-4

Thoughtful Steadiness

Accepting

Influence

Accepting

Steadiness

Active

Questioning

Dominance

PPT 4-7

Influence

Active

Dominance

Questioning Questioning

Conscientiousness

PPT 4-2PPT 4-3

PPT 4-4

Thoughtful Steadiness

Accepting

Influence

Accepting

Steadiness

Active

Questioning

Dominance

PPT 4-7

Influence

Active

Dominance

Questioning Questioning

Conscientiousness

Direct, results-oriented Expressive, Relationship

Supportive, Cooperative Analytical, Deliberative

Conflict and StressConflict and Stress

PPT 6-2

PPT 6-2

D i

SC

Tends to:ASSERT

Tends to:SUPPRESS

PPT 6-16

PPT 6-2PPT 6-16

D i

SC

Focuses on:FEELINGS

Focuses on:LOGIC

PPT 6-17

Responses to Conflict

PPT 6-2PPT 6-16PPT 6-16PPT 6-17

WITHDRAWGoal: Justice

COMPLYGoal: Harmony

EXPRESSGoal: Acknowledgement

DEMANDGoal: Victory

Focuses on:FEELINGS

Tends to:SUPPRESS

Focuses on:LOGIC

Tends to:ASSERT

PPT 6-18

OH-23

Is there a predominant style that describesyour team?

D culture – quick decisions, direct answers and a competitive atmosphere. Interpersonal communication may suffer in this environment and those less assertive may feel overwhelmed

i culture – energetic atmosphere, a focus on innovation, and lots of time spent in meetings or social gatherings. Those less people-oriented may be frustrated by the focus on group activities and poor planning and lack of details may prevent an I culture from implementing any ideas

OH-23

S culture – stability, predictability, and friendliness. Values strong teamwork and a management work-life balance. Stagnation may be a risk in this culture and efforts to move the organization forward may met with hesitation

C culture – quality, accuracy, and order. Cynical toward new ideas and trust usually has to be earned. The group may miss opportunities because it spends so much time analyzing and may resist growth for fear of lowering its standards

Is there a predominant style that describes your team?

OH-23

Implications of Group Culture

What does your group value the most? What types of behaviors does it reward? What does it encourage?

D culture - Results, independence, achievement, decisiveness, and success

i culture - Enthusiasm, optimism, collaboration, passion, and fun

S culture - Thoughtfulness, teamwork, humility, stability, and harmony

C culture - Accuracy, dependability, precision, competency, and quality

Diversity Competencies

• Respect• Empathy • Understanding• Interpersonal Skills• Knowledge• Feedback

After attending this session, you will be able to:

• Recognize the benefits of honoring and respecting multiple perspectives

• Identify why inclusion is critical to your agency’s success

• Discover and model the words, attitudes, and behaviors that support inclusion and respect

OH-23

Action Planning