In a brilliant article in the Harvard Business review this
month, the most knowledgeable diversity researchers bar none, Dobbins and
Kalev, explain, once more, that despite massive spends on diversity training,
it quite simply doesn’t work. Let me repeat that – it doesn’t work. I’ve been
writing about this for over ten years, presenting the evidence, talking about
it at conferences but still I experience L&D as a profession that would
rather just deliver courses, that don’t work, than think about solving the real
business problem.
Merill Lynch paid out half a billion in fines over 15 years,
no small sum. Yet the numbers of minority candidates and women senior managers
have only increased marginally in most large companies. Dobbins and Kalev
represent the evidence from 1000 studies in over 800 companies, over 30 years, to
show that diversity training not only DOES NOT WORK, it is actually
COUNTERPRODUCTIVE. The effect of compulsory courses is short-lived and can
result in a backlash effect. Blaming and shaming doesn’t work and training
should not be presented as ‘re-education’. You can choose to ignore this
evidence, and ‘Keep becalmed and carry on’ or be taken seriously by senior
management and do the right thing.
What doesn’t work?
Compulsory training
This doesn’t work and often produces negativity around its
accusatory tone. Negative messages and implied threats don’t work. It often
fails to change attitudes as it uses inappropriate presentation and exposition
training techniques. The evidence is clear – avoid this as your main strategy.
The evidence also suggests that it tends to particularly hurt women in the
organisation.
Testing
Testing doesn’t work as the evidence shows that white men (managers’
friends) are often given a pass and the test results are interpreted inconsistently.
Bottom line – managers fiddle the tests. As Dobbins and Kalev stress, it
actually hurts minorities and women. Performance appraisals show similar results,
with male managers showing bias in outcomes.
Grievance processes
The evidence suggests that this can produce conflict and a
culture of accusation and complaint, as well as resulting in retaliation,
negating what you’re trying to achieve.
What works?
Voluntary training
Voluntary training eliminates the forced and accusatory
strain that often exists, when you are identified as needing such a course and
also within the course, where you may be made to feel unnecessarily identified
as a culprit.
Mentoring
This seems to have a positive, beneficial effect on actual
diversity outcomes.
College recruitment programmes (minorities)
Targeted initiatives for minority groups in schools and
colleges, work, as they are don’t plaster over the problem after the event but
tackle the issue at root.
College recruitment (women)
Ditto.
Diversity programmes
These programmes, that tend to focus on management
interventions and strategic progress, work better than crude compulsory
courses.
Diversity manager
A Diversity manager will be able to identify a strategy and
implement subtler approaches, as well as having the authority to effect change.
This move has proven efficacy.
Conclusion
To genuinely build a constructively fair and meritocratic
organisation that values everyone, regardless of race, gender and
socio-economic background, most diversity strategies have to change. It needs a
subtler, less compulsory and more managerial, strategic approach that eschews glib,
compulsory courses and grievance procedures, in favour of more voluntary and
subtle approaches, along with positive interventions pre-recruitment. In short,
don’t berate with courses, test or use grievance procedures as a substitute for
good management. Full HBR article here.
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