Estimated in 2003 to be an $ 8 billion industry, diversity training is now included in most learning and development course lineups. But still not without its controversy, naysayers conclude that diversity training does not work, at least not in improving the profile of visible diversity in managerial ranks.
In a paper published in the American Sociological Review in 2007, Frank Dobbin, professor of sociology in Harvard University’s Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Alexandra Kalev of the University of California, Berkeley, and Erin Kelly of the University of Minnesota concluded that training did not lead to increased representation of women and minorities in leadership positions. However, their study concluded that assigning accountability for diversity, mentoring and establishing employee network groups were more effective in changing the makeup of the managerial workforce. The authors’ maintained that the only truly effective way to increase the presence of minorities and women in managerial positions is through programs that create organizational responsibility.
I would agree that diversity training as a stand- alone activity will likely not accomplish the goals of any diversity program. However, I would also assert that training, when well conceived and effectively delivered can influence attitudes and behaviors and be a positive factor in success.
Even in the midst of a recession, there are shortages in such jobs as engineering, healthcare, and information technology. The Employment Policy Foundation estimates that 80 percent of the impending labor shortage will involve skills, not numbers of workers. Obviously, the pipeline issue is serious.
Workers have been on a roller-coaster ride for more than two decades as organizations have downsized, outsourced, reengineered, delayered, divested and otherwise transformed. These monumental changes have left workers frustrated, angry, and dispirited.
If someone from another planet dropped in and listened to any of our numerous news sources over the past several months, what clues about our culture might he/she take away?
I have long maintained that becoming proficient in diversity and inclusion is a competency and just like any other must be developed over time. In my book, Inclusion Starts with I, I posit that in order to achieve an inclusive work environment, we must start with the individual. After all, corporate cultures are made up of individuals, each with different world views and perspectives.
