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Why Diverse Teams Are Smarter

Heidi Grant

Research shows they’re more successful in three important ways.

Striving to increase workplace diversity is not an empty slogan — it is a good business decision. A 2015 McKinsey report on 366 public companies found that those in the top quartile for ethnic and racial diversity in management were 35% more likely to have financial returns above their industry mean, and those in the top quartile for gender diversity were 15% more likely to have returns above the industry mean.

DR David Rock is cofounder of the Neuroleadership Institute and author of Your Brain at Work .
Heidi Grant is a social psychologist who researches, writes, and speaks about the science of motivation. Her most recent book is Reinforcements: How to Get People to Help You . She’s also the author of Nine Things Successful People Do Differently and No One Understands You and What to Do About It . She is EY US Director of Learning R&D.

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Greater Good Science Center • Magazine • In Action • In Education

How Diversity Makes Us Smarter

The first thing to acknowledge about diversity is that it can be difficult.

In the U.S., where the dialogue of inclusion is relatively advanced, even the mention of the word “diversity” can lead to anxiety and conflict. Supreme Court justices disagree on the virtues of diversity and the means for achieving it. Corporations spend billions of dollars to attract and manage diversity both internally and externally, yet they still face discrimination lawsuits, and the leadership ranks of the business world remain predominantly white and male.

It is reasonable to ask what good diversity does us. Diversity of expertise confers benefits that are obvious—you would not think of building a new car without engineers, designers, and quality-control experts—but what about social diversity? What good comes from diversity of race, ethnicity, gender, and sexual orientation? Research has shown that social diversity in a group can cause discomfort, rougher interactions, a lack of trust, greater perceived interpersonal conflict, lower communication, less cohesion, more concern about disrespect, and other problems. So, what is the upside?

the value in diversity problem solving approach suggests that

The fact is that if you want to build teams or organizations capable of innovating, you need diversity. Diversity enhances creativity. It encourages the search for novel information and perspectives, leading to better decision making and problem solving. Diversity can improve the bottom line of companies and lead to unfettered discoveries and breakthrough innovations. Even simply being exposed to diversity can change the way you think.

This is not just wishful thinking: It is the conclusion I draw from decades of research from organizational scientists, psychologists, sociologists, economists, and demographers.

Informational diversity fuels innovation

This makes obvious sense when we talk about diversity of disciplinary backgrounds—think again of the interdisciplinary team building a car. The same logic applies to social diversity. People who are different from one another in race, gender, and other dimensions bring unique information and experiences to bear on the task at hand. A male and a female engineer might have perspectives as different from one another as an engineer and a physicist—and that is a good thing.

“We need diversity if we are to change, grow, and innovate”

Research on large, innovative organizations has shown repeatedly that this is the case.

For example, business professors Cristian Deszö of the University of Maryland and David Ross of Columbia University studied the effect of gender diversity on the top firms in Standard & Poor’s Composite 1500 list, a group designed to reflect the overall U.S. equity market. First, they examined the size and gender composition of firms’ top management teams from 1992 through 2006. Then they looked at the financial performance of the firms. In their words, they found that, on average, “female representation in top management leads to an increase of $42 million in firm value.” They also measured the firms’ “innovation intensity” through the ratio of research and development expenses to assets. They found that companies that prioritized innovation saw greater financial gains when women were part of the top leadership ranks.

Racial diversity can deliver the same kinds of benefits. In a study conducted in 2003, Orlando Richard, a professor of management at the University of Texas at Dallas, and his colleagues surveyed executives at 177 national banks in the U.S., then put together a database comparing financial performance, racial diversity, and the emphasis the bank presidents put on innovation. For innovation-focused banks, increases in racial diversity were clearly related to enhanced financial performance.

Of course, not all studies get the same results. Even those that haven’t found benefits for racially diverse firms suggest that there is certainly no negative financial impact—and there are benefits that may go beyond the short-term bottom line. For example, in a paper published in June of this year , researchers examined the financial performance of firms listed in DiversityInc ’s list of Top 50 Companies for Diversity. They found the companies on the list did outperform the S&P 500 index—but the positive impact disappeared when researchers accounted for the size of the firms. That doesn’t mean diversity isn’t worth pursuing, conclude the authors:

In an age of increasing globalization, a diverse workforce may provide both tangible and intangible benefits to firms over the long run, including increased adaptability in a changing market. Also, as the United States moves towards the point in which no ethnic majority exists, around 2050, companies’ upper management and lower-level workforce should naturally be expected to reflect more diversity. Consequently, diversity initiatives would likely generate positive reputation effects for firms.

Evidence for the benefits of diversity can be found well beyond the U.S. In August 2012, a team of researchers at the Credit Suisse Research Institute issued a report in which they examined 2,360 companies globally from 2005 to 2011, looking for a relationship between gender diversity on corporate management boards and financial performance. Sure enough, the researchers found that companies with one or more women on the board delivered higher average returns on equity, lower gearing (that is, net debt to equity), and better average growth.

How diversity provokes new thinking

Active Listening

Connect with a partner through empathy and understanding.

This effect is not limited to race and gender. For example, last year professors of management Denise Lewin Loyd of the University of Illinois, Cynthia Wang of Oklahoma State University, Robert B. Lount, Jr., of Ohio State University, and I asked 186 people whether they identified as a Democrat or a Republican, then had them read a murder mystery and decide who they thought committed the crime. Next, we asked the subjects to prepare for a meeting with another group member by writing an essay communicating their perspective. More important, in all cases, we told the participants that their partner disagreed with their opinion but that they would need to come to an agreement with the other person. Everyone was told to prepare to convince their meeting partner to come around to their side; half of the subjects, however, were told to prepare to make their case to a member of the opposing political party, and half were told to make their case to a member of their own party.

The result: Democrats who were told that a fellow Democrat disagreed with them prepared less well for the discussion than Democrats who were told that a Republican disagreed with them. Republicans showed the same pattern. When disagreement comes from a socially different person, we are prompted to work harder. Diversity jolts us into cognitive action in ways that homogeneity simply does not.

For this reason, diversity appears to lead to higher-quality scientific research.

In 2014, two Harvard University researchers examined the ethnic identity of the authors of 1.5 million scientific papers written between 1985 and 2008 using Thomson Reuters’s Web of Science, a comprehensive database of published research. They found that papers written by diverse groups receive more citations and have higher impact factors than papers written by people from the same ethnic group. Moreover, they found that stronger papers were associated with a greater number of author addresses; geographical diversity, and a larger number of references, is a reflection of more intellectual diversity.

What we believe makes a difference

Diversity is not only about bringing different perspectives to the table. Simply adding social diversity to a group makes people believe that differences of perspective might exist among them and that belief makes people change their behavior.

Members of a homogeneous group rest somewhat assured that they will agree with one another; that they will understand one another’s perspectives and beliefs; that they will be able to easily come to a consensus.

But when members of a group notice that they are socially different from one another, they change their expectations. They anticipate differences of opinion and perspective. They assume they will need to work harder to come to a consensus. This logic helps to explain both the upside and the downside of social diversity: People work harder in diverse environments both cognitively and socially. They might not like it, but the hard work can lead to better outcomes.

In a 2006 study of jury decision making, social psychologist Samuel Sommers of Tufts University found that racially diverse groups exchanged a wider range of information during deliberation about a sexual assault case than all-white groups did. In collaboration with judges and jury administrators in a Michigan courtroom, Sommers conducted mock jury trials with a group of real selected jurors. Although the participants knew the mock jury was a court-sponsored experiment, they did not know that the true purpose of the research was to study the impact of racial diversity on jury decision making.

Sommers composed the six-person juries with either all white jurors or four white and two black jurors. As you might expect, the diverse juries were better at considering case facts, made fewer errors recalling relevant information, and displayed a greater openness to discussing the role of race in the case.

These improvements did not necessarily happen because the black jurors brought new information to the group—they happened because white jurors changed their behavior in the presence of the black jurors. In the presence of diversity, they were more diligent and open-minded.

Consider the following scenario: You are a scientist writing up a section of a paper for presentation at an upcoming conference. You are anticipating some disagreement and potential difficulty communicating because your collaborator is American and you are Chinese. Because of one social distinction, you may focus on other differences between yourself and that person, such as their culture, upbringing and experiences—differences that you would not expect from another Chinese collaborator. How do you prepare for the meeting? In all likelihood, you will work harder on explaining your rationale and anticipating alternatives than you would have otherwise—and you might work harder to reconcile those differences.

This is how diversity works : by promoting hard work and creativity; by encouraging the consideration of alternatives even before any interpersonal interaction takes place. The pain associated with diversity can be thought of as the pain of exercise. You have to push yourself to grow your muscles. The pain, as the old saw goes, produces the gain. In just the same way, we need diversity—in teams, organizations, and society as a whole—if we are to change, grow, and innovate.

This essay was originally published in 2014 by Scientific American. It has been revised and updated to include new research.

About the Author

Katherine W. Phillips

Katherine W. Phillips, Ph.D. , is the Paul Calello Professor of Leadership and Ethics Management at Columbia Business School.

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22 Working in Diverse Teams

Learning Objectives

Describe how diversity can enhance decision-making and problem-solving
Identify challenges and best practices for working with multicultural teams
Discuss divergent cultural characteristics and list several examples of such characteristics in the culture(s) you identify with

Decision-making and problem-solving can be much more dynamic and successful when performed in a diverse team environment. The multiple diverse perspectives can enhance both the understanding of the problem and the quality of the solution. Yet, working in diverse teams can be challenging given different identities, cultures, beliefs, and experiences. In this chapter, we will discuss the effects of team diversity on group decision-making and problem-solving, identify best practices and challenges for working in and with multicultural teams, and dig deeper into divergent cultural characteristics that teams may need to navigate.

Does Team Diversity Enhance Decision Making and Problem Solving?

In the Harvard Business Review article “Why Diverse Teams are Smarter,” David Rock and Heidi Grant (2016) support the idea that increasing workplace diversity is a good business decision. A 2015 McKinsey report on 366 public companies found that those in the top quartile for ethnic and racial diversity in management were 35% more likely to have financial returns above their industry mean, and those in the top quartile for gender diversity were 15% more likely to have returns above the industry mean. Similarly, in a global analysis conducted by Credit Suisse, organizations with at least one female board member yielded a higher return on equity and higher net income growth than those that did not have any women on the board.

A photo shows a diverse team of business professionals working together on a laptop.

Additional research on diversity has shown that diverse teams are better at decision-making and problem-solving because they tend to focus more on facts, per the Rock and Grant article. A study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology showed that people from diverse backgrounds “might actually alter the behavior of a group’s social majority in ways that lead to improved and more accurate group thinking.” It turned out that in the study, the diverse panels raised more facts related to the case than homogeneous panels and made fewer factual errors while discussing available evidence. Another study noted in the article showed that diverse teams are “more likely to constantly reexamine facts and remain objective. They may also encourage greater scrutiny of each member’s actions, keeping their joint cognitive resources sharp and vigilant. By breaking up workforce homogeneity, you can allow your employees to become more aware of their own potential biases—entrenched ways of thinking that can otherwise blind them to key information and even lead them to make errors in decision-making processes.” In other words, when people are among homogeneous and like-minded (non-diverse) teammates, the team is susceptible to groupthink and may be reticent to think about opposing viewpoints since all team members are in alignment. In a more diverse team with a variety of backgrounds and experiences, the opposing viewpoints are more likely to come out and the team members feel obligated to research and address the questions that have been raised. Again, this enables a richer discussion and a more in-depth fact-finding and exploration of opposing ideas and viewpoints in order to solve problems.

Diversity in teams also leads to greater innovation. A Boston Consulting Group article entitled “The Mix that Matters: Innovation through Diversity” explains a study in which they sought to understand the relationship between diversity in managers (all management levels) and innovation (Lorenzo et al., 2017). The key findings of this study show that:

The positive relationship between management diversity and innovation is statistically significant—and thus companies with higher levels of diversity derive more revenue from new products and services.
The innovation boost isn’t limited to a single type of diversity. The presence of managers who are either female or are from other countries, industries, or companies can cause an increase in innovation.
Management diversity seems to have a particularly positive effect on innovation at complex companies—those that have multiple product lines or that operate in multiple industry segments.
To reach its potential, gender diversity needs to go beyond tokenism. In the study, innovation performance only increased significantly when the workforce included more than 20% women in management positions. Having a high percentage of female employees doesn’t increase innovation if only a small number of women are managers.
At companies with diverse management teams, openness to contributions from lower-level workers and an environment in which employees feel free to speak their minds are crucial for fostering innovation.

When you consider the impact that diverse teams have on decision-making and problem-solving—through the discussion and incorporation of new perspectives, ideas, and data—it is no wonder that the BCG study shows greater innovation. Team leaders need to reflect upon these findings during the early stages of team selection so that they can reap the benefits of having diverse voices and backgrounds.

Challenges and Best Practices for Working with Multicultural Teams

As globalization has increased over the last decades, workplaces have felt the impact of working within multicultural teams. The earlier section on team diversity outlined some of the highlights and benefits of working on diverse teams, and a multicultural group certainly qualifies as diverse. However, there are some key practices that are recommended to those who are leading multicultural teams so that they can parlay the diversity into an advantage and not be derailed by it.

People may assume that communication is the key factor that can derail multicultural teams, as participants may have different languages and communication styles. In the Harvard Business Review article “Managing Multicultural Teams,” Brett et al. (2006) outline four key cultural differences that can cause destructive conflicts in a team. The first difference is direct versus indirect communication, also known as high-context vs. low-context communication . Some cultures are very direct and explicit in their communication, while others are more indirect and ask questions rather than pointing our problems. This difference can cause conflict because, at the extreme, the direct style may be considered offensive by some, while the indirect style may be perceived as unproductive and passive-aggressive in team interactions.

The second difference that multicultural teams may face is trouble with accents and fluency. When team members don’t speak the same language, there may be one language that dominates the group interaction—and those who don’t speak it may feel left out. The speakers of the primary language may feel that those members don’t contribute as much or are less competent. The next challenge is when there are differing attitudes toward hierarchy. Some cultures are very respectful of the hierarchy and will treat team members based on that hierarchy. Other cultures are more egalitarian and don’t observe hierarchical differences to the same degree. This may lead to clashes if some people feel that they are being disrespected and not treated according to their status. The final difference that may challenge multicultural teams is conflicting decision-making norms. Different cultures make decisions differently, and some will apply a great deal of analysis and preparation beforehand. Those cultures that make decisions more quickly (and need just enough information to make a decision) may be frustrated with the slow response and relatively longer thought process.

These cultural differences are good examples of how everyday team activities (decision-making, communication, interaction among team members) may become points of contention for a multicultural team if there isn’t adequate understanding of everyone’s culture. The authors propose that there are several potential interventions to try if these conflicts arise. One simple intervention is adaptation , which is working with or around differences. This is best used when team members are willing to acknowledge the cultural differences and learn how to work with them. The next intervention technique is structural intervention , or reorganizing to reduce friction on the team. This technique is best used if there are unproductive subgroups or cliques within the team that need to be moved around. Managerial intervention is the technique of making decisions by management and without team involvement. This technique is one that should be used sparingly, as it essentially shows that the team needs guidance and can’t move forward without management getting involved. Finally, exit is an intervention of last resort, and is the voluntary or involuntary removal of a team member. If the differences and challenges have proven to be so great that an individual on the team can no longer work with the team productively, then it may be necessary to remove the team member in question.

Developing Cultural Intelligence

There are some people who seem to be innately aware of and able to work with cultural differences on teams and in their organizations. These individuals might be said to have cultural intelligence . Cultural intelligence is a competency and a skill that enables individuals to function effectively in cross-cultural environments. It develops as people become more aware of the influence of culture and more capable of adapting their behavior to the norms of other cultures. In the IESE Insight article entitled “Cultural Competence: Why It Matters and How You Can Acquire It,” Lee and Liao (2015) assert that “multicultural leaders may relate better to team members from different cultures and resolve conflicts more easily. Their multiple talents can also be put to good use in international negotiations.” Multicultural leaders don’t have a lot of “baggage” from any one culture, and so are sometimes perceived as being culturally neutral. They are very good at handling diversity, which gives them a great advantage in their relationships with teammates.

In order to help people become better team members in a world that is increasingly multicultural, there are a few best practices that the authors recommend for honing cross-cultural skills. The first is to “broaden your mind”—expand your own cultural channels (travel, movies, books) and surround yourself with people from other cultures. This helps to raise your own awareness of the cultural differences and norms that you may encounter. Another best practice is to “develop your cross-cultural skills through practice” and experiential learning. You may have the opportunity to work or travel abroad—but if you don’t, then getting to know some of your company’s cross-cultural colleagues or foreign visitors will help you to practice your skills. Serving on a cross-cultural project team and taking the time to get to know and bond with your global colleagues is an excellent way to develop skills.

Once you have a sense of the different cultures and have started to work on developing your cross-cultural skills, another good practice is to “boost your cultural metacognition” and monitor your own behavior in multicultural situations. When you are in a situation in which you are interacting with multicultural individuals, you should test yourself and be aware of how you act and feel. Observe both your positive and negative interactions with people, and learn from them. Developing “ cognitive complexity ” is the final best practice for boosting multicultural skills. This is the most advanced, and it requires being able to view situations from more than one cultural framework. In order to see things from another perspective, you need to have a strong sense of emotional intelligence, empathy, and sympathy, and be willing to engage in honest communications.

In the Harvard Business Review article “Cultural Intelligence,” Earley and Mosakowski (2004) describe three sources of cultural intelligence that teams should consider if they are serious about becoming more adept in their cross-cultural skills and understanding. These sources, very simply, are head, body, and heart . One first learns about the beliefs, customs, and taboos of foreign cultures via the head . Training programs are based on providing this type of overview information—which is helpful, but obviously isn’t experiential. This is the cognitive component of cultural intelligence. The second source, the body , involves more commitment and experimentation with the new culture. It is this physical component (demeanor, eye contact, posture, accent) that shows a deeper level of understanding of the new culture and its physical manifestations. The final source, the heart , deals with a person’s own confidence in their ability to adapt to and deal well with cultures outside of their own. Heart really speaks to one’s own level of emotional commitment and motivation to understand the new culture.

The authors have created a quick assessment to diagnose cultural intelligence, based on these cognitive, physical, and emotional/motivational measures (i.e., head, body, heart). Please refer to the table below for a short diagnostic that allows you to assess your cultural intelligence.

Cultural intelligence is an extension of emotional intelligence. An individual must have a level of awareness and understanding of the new culture so that he or she can adapt to the style, pace, language, nonverbal communication, etc. and work together successfully with the new culture. A multicultural team can only find success if its members take the time to understand each other and ensure that everyone feels included. Multiculturalism and cultural intelligence are traits that are taking on increasing importance in the business world today. By following best practices and avoiding the challenges and pitfalls that can derail a multicultural team, a team can find great success and personal fulfillment well beyond the boundaries of the project or work engagement.

Digging in Deeper: Divergent Cultural Dimensions

Let’s dig in deeper by examining several points of divergence across cultures and consider how these dimensions might play out in organizations and in groups or teams.

Hofstede's cultural dimensions theory. Comparison of 4 countries: US, China, Germany and Brazil in all 6 dimensions of the model.

Low-Power versus High-Power Distance

How comfortable are you with critiquing your boss’s decisions? If you are from a low-power distance culture, your answer might be “no problem.” In low-power distance cultures , according to Dutch researcher Geert Hofstede, people relate to one another more as equals and less as a reflection of dominant or subordinate roles, regardless of their actual formal roles as employee and manager, for example.

In a high-power distance culture , you would probably be much less likely to challenge the decision, to provide an alternative, or to give input. If you are working with people from a high-power distance culture, you may need to take extra care to elicit feedback and involve them in the discussion because their cultural framework may preclude their participation. They may have learned that less powerful people must accept decisions without comment, even if they have a concern or know there is a significant problem. Unless you are sensitive to cultural orientation and power distance, you may lose valuable information.

Individualistic versus Collectivist Cultures

People in individualistic cultures value individual freedom and personal independence, and cultures always have stories to reflect their values. You may recall the story of Superman, or John McLean in the Diehard series, and note how one person overcomes all obstacles. Through personal ingenuity, in spite of challenges, one person rises successfully to conquer or vanquish those obstacles. Sometimes there is an assist, as in basketball or football, where another person lends a hand, but still the story repeats itself again and again, reflecting the cultural viewpoint.

When Hofstede explored the concepts of individualism and collectivism across diverse cultures (Hofstede, 1982, 2001, 2005), he found that in individualistic cultures like the United States, people perceived their world primarily from their own viewpoint. They perceived themselves as empowered individuals, capable of making their own decisions, and able to make an impact on their own lives.

Cultural viewpoint is not an either/or dichotomy, but rather a continuum or range. You may belong to some communities that express individualistic cultural values, while others place the focus on a collective viewpoint. Collectivist cultures (Hofstede, 1982), including many in Asia and South America, focus on the needs of the nation, community, family, or group of workers. Ownership and private property is one way to examine this difference. In some cultures, property is almost exclusively private, while others tend toward community ownership. The collectively owned resource returns benefits to the community. Water, for example, has long been viewed as a community resource, much like air, but that has been changing as business and organizations have purchased water rights and gained control over resources. Public lands, such as parks, are often considered public, and individual exploitation of them is restricted. Copper, a metal with a variety of industrial applications, is collectively owned in Chile, with profits deposited in the general government fund. While public and private initiatives exist, the cultural viewpoint is our topic. How does someone raised in a culture that emphasizes the community interact with someone raised in a primarily individualistic culture? How could tensions be expressed and how might interactions be influenced by this point of divergence?

Masculine versus Feminine Orientation

There was a time when many cultures and religions valued a female figurehead, and with the rise of Western cultures we have observed a shift toward a masculine ideal. Each carries with it a set of cultural expectations and norms for gender behavior and gender roles across life, including business.

Hofstede describes the masculine-feminine dichotomy not in terms of whether men or women hold the power in a given culture, but rather the extent to which that culture values certain traits that may be considered masculine or feminine . Thus, “the assertive pole has been called ‘masculine’ and the modest, caring pole ‘feminine.’ The women in feminine countries have the same modest, caring values as the men; in the masculine countries they are somewhat assertive and competitive, but not as much as the men, so that these countries show a gap between men’s values and women’s values” (Hofstede, 2009).

We can observe this difference in where people gather, how they interact, and how they dress. We can see it during business negotiations, where it may make an important difference in the success of the organizations involved. Cultural expectations precede the interaction, so someone who doesn’t match those expectations may experience tension. Business in the United States has a masculine orientation—assertiveness and competition are highly valued. In other cultures, such as Sweden, business values are more attuned to modesty (lack of self-promotion) and taking care of society’s weaker members. This range of difference is one aspect of intercultural communication that requires significant attention when the business communicator enters a new environment.

Uncertainty-Accepting Cultures versus Uncertainty-Rejecting Cultures

When we meet each other for the first time, we often use what we have previously learned to understand our current context. We also do this to reduce our uncertainty. Some cultures, such as the United States and Britain, are highly tolerant of uncertainty , while others go to great lengths to reduce the element of surprise. Cultures in the Arab world, for example, are high in uncertainty avoidance ; they tend to be resistant to change and reluctant to take risks. Whereas a U.S. business negotiator might enthusiastically agree to try a new procedure, the Egyptian counterpart would likely refuse to get involved until all the details are worked out.

Short-Term versus Long-Term Orientation

Do you want your reward right now or can you dedicate yourself to a long-term goal? You may work in a culture whose people value immediate results and grow impatient when those results do not materialize. Geert Hofstede discusses this relationship of time orientation to a culture as a “time horizon,” and it underscores the perspective of the individual within a cultural context. Many countries in Asia, influenced by the teachings of Confucius, value a long-term orientation, whereas other countries, including the United States, have a more short-term approach to life and results. Native American cultures are known for holding a long-term orientation, as illustrated by the proverb attributed to the Iroquois that decisions require contemplation of their impact seven generations removed.

If you work within a culture that has a short-term orientation , you may need to place greater emphasis on reciprocation of greetings, gifts, and rewards. For example, if you send a thank-you note the morning after being treated to a business dinner, your host will appreciate your promptness. While there may be a respect for tradition, there is also an emphasis on personal representation and honor, a reflection of identity and integrity. Personal stability and consistency are also valued in a short-term oriented culture, contributing to an overall sense of predictability and familiarity.

Long-term orientation is often marked by persistence, thrift and frugality, and an order to relationships based on age and status. A sense of shame for the family and community is also observed across generations. What an individual does reflects on the family and is carried by immediate and extended family members.

Time Orientation

Edward T. Hall and Mildred Reed Hall (1987) state that monochronic time-oriented cultures consider one thing at a time, whereas polychronic time-oriented cultures schedule many things at one time, and time is considered in a more fluid sense. In monochromatic time , time is thought of as very linear, interruptions are to be avoided, and everything has its own specific time. Even the multitasker from a monochromatic culture will, for example, recognize the value of work first before play or personal time. The United States, Germany, and Switzerland are often noted as countries that value a monochromatic time orientation.

Polychromatic time looks a little more complicated, with business and family mixing with dinner and dancing. Greece, Italy, Chile, and Saudi Arabia are countries where one can observe this perception of time; business meetings may be scheduled at a fixed time, but when they actually begin may be another story. Also note that the dinner invitation for 8 p.m. may in reality be more like 9 p.m. If you were to show up on time, you might be the first person to arrive and find that the hosts are not quite ready to receive you.

When in doubt, always ask before the event; many people from polychromatic cultures will be used to foreigner’s tendency to be punctual, even compulsive, about respecting established times for events. The skilled business communicator is aware of this difference and takes steps to anticipate it. The value of time in different cultures is expressed in many ways, and your understanding can help you communicate more effectively.

Review & Reflection Questions

Why are diverse teams better at decision-making and problem-solving?
What are some of the challenges that multicultural teams face?
How might you further cultivate your own cultural intelligence?
What are some potential points of divergence between cultures?
Brett, J., Behfar, K., Kern, M. (2006, November). Managing multicultural teams. Harvard Business Review . https://hbr.org/2006/11/managing-multicultural-teams
Dodd, C. (1998). Dynamics of intercultural communication (5th ed.). New York, NY: Harper & Row.
Earley, P.C., & Mosakowski, E. (2004, October). Cultural intelligence. Harvard Business Review . https://hbr.org/2004/10/cultural-intelligence
Hall, M. R., & Hall, E. T. (1987). Hidden differences: Doing business with the Japanese . New York, NY: Doubleday.
Hofstede, G. (1982). Culture’s consequences (2nd ed.). Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
Hofstede, G. (2001). Culture’s consequences: Comparing values, behaviors, institutions, and organizations across nations (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Hofstede, G. (2005). Cultures and organizations: Software of the mind (2nd ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.
Lee, Y-T., & Liao, Y. (2015). Cultural competence: Why it matters and how you can acquire it. IESE Insight . https://www.ieseinsight.com/doc.aspx?id=1733&ar=20
Lorenzo, R., Yoigt, N., Schetelig, K., Zawadzki, A., Welpe, I., & Brosi, P. (2017). The mix that matters: Innovation through diversity. Boston Consulting Group. https://www.bcg.com/publications/2017/people-organization-leadership-talent-innovation-through-diversity-mix-that-matters.aspx
Rock, D., & Grant, H. (2016, November 4). Why diverse teams are smarter . Harvard Business Review . https://hbr.org/2016/11/why-diverse-teams-are-smarter

Author & Attribution

This remix comes from Dr. Jasmine Linabary at Emporia State University. This chapter is also available in her book: Small Group Communication: Forming and Sustaining Teams.

The sections “How Does Team Diversity Enhance Decision Making and Problem Solving?” and “Challenges and Best Practices for Working with Multicultural Teams” are adapted from Black, J.S., & Bright, D.S. (2019). Organizational behavior. OpenStax. https://openstax.org/books/organizational-behavior/ . Access the full chapter for free here . The content is available under a Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0 license .

The section “Digging in Deeper: Divergent Cultural Dimensions” is adapted from “ Divergent Cultural Characteristics ” in Business Communication for Success from the University of Minnesota. The book was adapted from a work produced and distributed under a Creative Commons license (CC BY-NC-SA) by a publisher who has requested that they and the original author not receive attribution. This work is made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license .

A set of negative group-level processes, including illusions of invulnerability, self-censorship, and pressures to conform, that occur when highly cohesive groups seek concurrence when making a decision.

a culture that emphasize nonverbal communication and indirect communication styles

a culture that emphasizes verbal expression and direct communication styles

a competency and a skill that enables individuals to function effectively in cross-cultural environments

cultures in which people relate to one another more as equals and less as a reflection of dominant or subordinate roles, regardless of their actual formal roles

culture tends to accept power differences, encourage hierarchy, and show respect for rank and authority

cultures that place greater importance on individual freedom and personal independence

cultures that place more value on the needs and goals of the group, family, community or nation

cultures that tend to value assertiveness, and concentrate on material achievements and wealth-building

cultures that tend to value nurturing, care and emotion, and are concerned with the quality of life

cultures with a high tolerance for uncertainty, ambiguity, and risk-taking. The unknown is more openly accepted, and rules and regulations tend to be more lax

cultures with a low tolerance for uncertainty, ambiguity, and risk-taking. The unknown is minimized through strict rules and regulations

focus on the near future, involves delivering short-term success or gratification and places a stronger emphasis on the present than the future

cultures that focus on the future and delaying short-term success or gratification in order to achieve long-term success

an orientation to time is considered highly linear, where interruptions are to be avoided, and everything has its own specific time

an orientation to time where multiple things can be done at once and time is viewed more fluidly

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Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University

Organizations Leadership Oct 1, 2010

Better decisions through diversity, heterogeneity can boost group performance..

Katherine W. Phillips

Katie A. Liljenquist

Margaret A. Neale

Expanding diversity in the workplace is often seen as a good way to inject fresh ideas into an otherwise stagnant environment, and incorporating new perspectives can help members tackle problems from a number of different angles. But only a few have looked into exactly why or how this is so.

New research finds that socially different group members do more than simply introduce new viewpoints or approaches. In the study, diverse groups outperformed more homogeneous groups not because of an influx of new ideas, but because diversity triggered more careful information processing that is absent in homogeneous groups.

The mere presence of diversity in a group creates awkwardness, and the need to diffuse this tension leads to better group problem solving, says Katherine Phillips, an associate professor of management and organizations at the Kellogg School of Management. She and her coauthors, Katie A. Liljenquist, an assistant professor at Brigham Young University, and Margaret A. Neale, a professor at Stanford University, demonstrate that while homogenous groups feel more confident in their performance and group interactions, it is the diverse groups that are more successful in completing their tasks.

Diversity in the Workplace Can Produce New Ideas

Though people often feel more comfortable with others like themselves, homogeneity can hamper the exchange of different ideas and stifle the intellectual workout that stems from disagreements. “Generally speaking, people would prefer to spend time with others who agree with them rather than disagree with them,” Phillips explains. But this unbridled affirmation does not always produce the best results. “When you think about diversity, it often comes with more cognitive processing and more exchange of information and more perceptions of conflict,” Phillips says. In diverse settings, people tend to view conversations as a potential source of conflict that can breed negative emotions, and it is these emotions that can blind people to diversity’s upsides: new ideas can emerge, individuals can learn from one another, and they may discover the solution to a problem in the process. “It’s kind of surprising how difficult it is for people to actually see the benefit of the conversations they are having in a diverse setting,” observes Phillips.

“Generally speaking, people would prefer to spend time with others who agree with them rather than disagree with them.”

Phillips says the study is one of the first to look beyond the newcomer’s impact on a group and to focus instead on how the newcomer shifts alliances, thereby enlivening group interaction. “A lot of the research on newcomers has really specifically focused on the effect of newcomers as a source of new information,” Phillips says. “We know though that not all new ideas come from newcomers. Sometimes new ideas are sitting in the group already, just waiting for the right moment to come up.”

In their study, the researchers focus on whether the newcomer to the group agreed or disagreed with established group members, or “oldtimers” as Phillips refers to them. Sometimes a newcomer’s perspective aligned with one held by one or more of the current oldtimers (these agreeing oldtimers were called allies). By identifying allies, Phillips and her colleagues could determine if the benefits of having a newcomer only occurred when they brought in a new idea.

In the experiment, participants from fraternities and sororities were divided into fifty same-gender four-person groups. Each group performed the same task: read a set of interviews conducted by a detective investigating a murder. Participants decided on the most likely suspect individually before entering the groups to discuss his or her decision. In each four-person group, three individuals were always members of the same fraternity or sorority (the oldtimers) and the fourth individual (the newcomer) was either from that same fraternity or sorority (an “in-group”) or from a different one (an “out-group”).

After completing an unrelated task, the oldtimers were brought together and were given twenty minutes to come to a consensus on the most likely murder suspect. Five minutes into the discussion, a newcomer joined the group. Their task remained the same, but now they had to take the newcomer’s views into consideration. After the discussions were finished, each member rated their confidence in the group’s decision on the murder suspect, their feelings on how effective the group discussion went, how each person felt they fit into the group, and who they believed really committed the murder.

The Out-group Advantage

Unsurprisingly, oldtimers felt more comfortable with newcomers who belonged to their sorority or fraternity. But the biggest discovery was the sheer advantage an out-group newcomer gave a group—and this advantage was even more pronounced when the newcomer did not bring in a new idea. Diverse groups with out-group newcomers guessed the correct murder suspect with far greater frequency, while in-group newcomers hindered the groups’ accuracy (Figure 1). And though out-group newcomers increased group accuracy and performance, these groups reported much lower confidence in their decisions.

“When these diverse groups perform well, they don’t recognize their improved performance,” Phillips points out. “When people have visceral feelings and emotions,” she says, “it’s really hard to explain them away as “good” when they are feeling really bad.” Regardless of the outcome, a diverse group’s members will typically feel less confident about their progress largely due to the lack of homogeneity.

Homogeneous groups, on the other hand, were more confident in their decisions, even though they were more often wrong in their conclusions. In non-diverse groups, Phillips says, “often times the disagreements are just squelched so people don’t really talk about the issue. They come out of these groups really confident that everybody agreed when in fact not everybody agreed. There were new ideas and different opinions that never got discussed in the group.”

Phillips believes understanding the relationship between oldtimers who ally themselves with both in-group and out-group newcomers is important, because these relationships allow for disagreements to occur as well as newcomers’ opinions to be heard. “It is important to remember that these group members did not know each other for very long before identifying strongly with the group,” she says.

“When a newcomer comes in, it interrupts the group. It changes the flow of the process and makes people stop and pay attention to the person,” Phillips says. Whether they stop and pay attention to the newcomer is up to the group. But if they do, the pain will probably be worth the gain.

Member of the Department of Management & Organizations faculty until 2011

About the Writer Bunkhuon Chhun is a freelance science and legal writer based in Longmont, Colorado.

Phillips, Katherine W., Katie A. Liljenquist and Margaret A. Neale. 2009. Is the pain worth the gain? The advantages and liabilities of agreeing with socially distinct newcomers. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin 35: 336-350.

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October 1, 2014

How Diversity Makes Us Smarter

Being around people who are different from us makes us more creative, more diligent and harder-working

By Katherine W. Phillips

Edel Rodriguez

The first thing to acknowledge about diversity is that it can be difficult. In the U.S., where the dialogue of inclusion is relatively advanced, even the mention of the word “diversity” can lead to anxiety and conflict. Supreme Court justices disagree on the virtues of diversity and the means for achieving it. Corporations spend billions of dollars to attract and manage diversity both internally and externally, yet they still face discrimination lawsuits, and the leadership ranks of the business world remain predominantly white and male.

It is reasonable to ask what good diversity does us. Diversity of expertise confers benefits that are obvious—you would not think of building a new car without engineers, designers and quality-control experts—but what about social diversity? What good comes from diversity of race, ethnicity, gender and sexual orientation? Research has shown that social diversity in a group can cause discomfort, rougher interactions, a lack of trust, greater perceived interpersonal conflict, lower communication, less cohesion, more concern about disrespect, and other problems. So what is the upside?

The fact is that if you want to build teams or organizations capable of innovating, you need diversity. Diversity enhances creativity. It encourages the search for novel information and perspectives, leading to better decision-making and problem-solving. Diversity can improve the bottom line of companies and lead to unfettered discoveries and breakthrough innovations. Even simply being exposed to diversity can change the way you think. This is not just wishful thinking: it is the conclusion I draw from decades of research from organizational scientists, psychologists, sociologists, economists and demographers.

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Information and Innovation

The key to understanding the positive influence of diversity is the concept of informational diversity. When people are brought together to solve problems in groups, they bring different information, opinions and perspectives. This makes obvious sense when we talk about diversity of disciplinary backgrounds—think again of the interdisciplinary team building a car. The same logic applies to social diversity. People who are different from one another in race, gender and other dimensions bring unique information and experiences to bear on the task at hand. A male and a female engineer might have perspectives as different from each other as an engineer and a physicist—and that is a good thing.

Research on large, innovative organizations has shown repeatedly that this is the case. For example, business professors Cristian Dezsö of the University of Maryland and David Gaddis Ross of the University of Florida studied the effect of gender diversity on the top firms in Standard & Poor’s Composite 1500 list, a group designed to reflect the overall U.S. equity market. First, they examined the size and gender composition of firms’ top management teams from 1992 through 2006. Then they looked at the financial performance of the firms. In their words, they found that, on average, “female representation in top management leads to an increase of $42 million in firm value.” They also measured the firms’ “innovation intensity” through the ratio of research and development expenses to assets. They found that companies that prioritized innovation saw greater financial gains when women were part of the top leadership ranks.

Racial diversity can deliver the same kinds of benefits. In a study conducted in 2003, Orlando Richard, now at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, and his colleagues surveyed executives at 177 national banks in the U.S., then put together a database comparing financial performance, racial diversity and the emphasis the bank presidents put on innovation. For innovation-focused banks, increases in racial diversity were clearly related to enhanced financial performance.

Evidence for the benefits of diversity can be found well beyond the U.S. In August 2012 a team of researchers at the Credit Suisse Research Institute issued a report in which they examined 2,360 companies globally from 2005 to 2011, looking for a relation between gender diversity on corporate management boards and financial performance. Sure enough, the researchers found that companies with one or more women on the board delivered higher average returns on equity, lower gearing (that is, net debt to equity) and better average growth.

How Diversity Provokes Thought

Large data-set studies have an obvious limitation: they can show only that diversity is correlated with better performance, not that it causes better performance. Research on racial diversity in small groups, however, makes it possible to draw some causal conclusions. Again, the findings are clear: for groups that value innovation and new ideas, diversity helps.

In 2006 Margaret Neale of Stanford University, Gregory Northcraft of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and I set out to examine the impact of racial diversity on small decision-making groups in an experiment where sharing information was a requirement for success. Our subjects were undergraduate students taking business courses at the University of Illinois. We put together three-person groups—some consisting of all white members, others with two white members and one nonwhite member—and had them perform a murder mystery exercise. We made sure that all group members shared a common set of information, but we also gave each member important clues that only he or she knew. To find out who committed the murder, the group members would have to share all the information they collectively possessed during discussion. The groups with racial diversity significantly outperformed the groups with no racial diversity. Being with similar others leads us to think we all hold the same information and share the same perspective. This perspective, which stopped the all-white groups from effectively processing the information, is what hinders creativity and innovation.

Credit: Edel Rodriguez

Other researchers have found similar results. In 2004 Anthony Lising Antonio, a professor at the Stanford Graduate School of Education, collaborated with five colleagues at the University of California, Los Angeles, and other institutions to examine the influence of racial and opinion composition in small group discussions. More than 350 students from three universities participated in the study. Group members were asked to discuss a prevailing social issue (either child labor practices or the death penalty) for 15 minutes. The researchers wrote dissenting opinions and had both Black and white members deliver them to their groups. When a Black person presented a dissenting perspective to a group of white people, the perspective was perceived as more novel and led to broader thinking and consideration of alternatives than when a white person introduced that same dissenting perspective . The lesson: when we hear dissent from someone who is different from us, it provokes more thought than when it comes from someone who looks like us.

This effect is not limited to race. For example, in 2013 professors of management Denise Lewin Loyd of the University of Illinois, Cynthia Wang of Northwestern University, Robert B. Lount, Jr., of the Ohio State University and I asked 186 people whether they identified as a Democrat or a Republican, then had them read a murder mystery and decide who they thought committed the crime. Next, we asked the subjects to prepare for a meeting with another group member by writing an essay communicating their perspective. More important, in all cases, we told the participants that their partner disagreed with their opinion but that they would need to come to an agreement with the other person. Everyone was told to prepare to convince their meeting partner to come around to their side; half of the subjects, however, were told to prepare to make their case to a member of the opposing political party, and half were told to make their case to a member of their own party.

For this reason, diversity appears to lead to higher-quality scientific research. In 2014 Richard Freeman, an economics professor at Harvard University and director of the Science and Engineering Workforce Project at the National Bureau of Economic Research, along with Wei Huang, then a Harvard economics Ph.D. candidate, examined the ethnic identity of the authors of 1.5 million scientific papers written between 1985 and 2008 using Thomson Reuters’s Web of Science, a comprehensive database of published research. They found that papers written by diverse groups receive more citations and have higher impact factors than papers written by people from the same ethnic group. Moreover, they found that stronger papers are associated with greater numbers of not only references but also author addresses—geographical diversity is a reflection of more intellectual diversity.

The Power of Anticipation

Diversity is not only about bringing different perspectives to the table. Simply adding social diversity to a group makes people believe that differences of perspective might exist among them, and that belief makes people change their behavior.

Members of a homogeneous group rest somewhat assured that they will agree with one another, understand one another’s perspectives and beliefs, and be able to easily come to a consensus. But when members of a group notice that they are socially different from one another, they change their expectations. They anticipate differences of opinion and perspective. They assume they will need to work harder to come to a consensus. This logic helps to explain both the upside and the downside of social diversity: people work harder in diverse environments both cognitively and socially. They might not like it, but the hard work can lead to better outcomes.

In a 2006 study of jury decision-making, social psychologist Samuel Sommers of Tufts University found that racially diverse groups exchanged a wider range of information during deliberation about a sexual assault case than all-white groups did. In collaboration with judges and jury administrators in a Michigan courtroom, Sommers conducted mock jury trials with a group of real selected jurors. Although the participants knew the mock jury was a court-sponsored experiment, they did not know that the true purpose of the research was to study the impact of racial diversity on jury decision-making.

Sommers composed the six-person juries with either all white jurors or four white and two Black jurors. As you might expect, the diverse juries were better at considering case facts, made fewer errors recalling relevant information and displayed a greater openness to discussing the role of race in the case. These improvements did not necessarily happen because the Black jurors brought new information to the group—they happened because white jurors changed their behavior in the presence of the Black jurors. In the presence of diversity, they were more diligent and open-minded.

Group Exercise

Consider the following scenario: You are writing up a section of a paper for presentation at an upcoming conference. You are anticipating some disagreement and potential difficulty communicating because your collaborator is American and you are Chinese. Because of one social distinction, you may focus on other differences between yourself and that person, such as their culture, upbringing and experiences—differences that you would not expect from another Chinese collaborator. How do you prepare for the meeting? In all likelihood, you will work harder on explaining your rationale and anticipating alternatives than you would have otherwise.

This is how diversity works: by promoting hard work and creativity; by encouraging the consideration of alternatives even before any interpersonal interaction takes place. The pain associated with diversity can be thought of as the pain of exercise. You have to push yourself to grow your muscles. The pain, as the old saw goes, produces the gain. In just the same way, we need diversity—in teams, organizations and society as a whole—if we are to change, grow and innovate.

Why Diversity and Inclusion Are Important for Problem-Solving

Simone Bradley 22 March 2022

Change Management Activate Behavior Change

What happens when we bring in new perspectives? This article explores this and how to activate inclusive problem-solving.

Diversity in our backgrounds equips us with varying mental toolkits. When people with diverse perspectives work inclusively to solve problems, the results are powerful. Take the example of the million-dollar Netflix algorithm challenge :

In 2006, Netflix's CEO, Reed Hastings, announced an open competition to create an algorithm that would predict customers' movie ratings. The algorithm had to be 10% more efficient than Netflix's algorithm, Cinematch. This task was so difficult that Netflix offered a million dollars to anyone who could achieve this. Of course, this competition attracted thousands of participants from various backgrounds – from math majors at an Ivy League university in the US to Austrian computer programmers and even a British psychologist and his daughter! Dry erase markers scribbled across whiteboards, notebooks piled up, and brains were tested. It became clear to contestants that this was not going to be solved by one brilliant individual who had all the answers. Early on, teams realized that the most significant improvements came when individuals combined their results. The secret sauce for the eventual winners (a blended team called BellKor’s Pragmatic Chaos) was, in the end, the collaboration between people with diverse perspectives. Finally, in 2009, the top two teams combined forces, combined their algorithms, and surpassed the 10% threshold. What happened in this competition is what Scott E. Page refers to as the " diversity bonus ." Diversity improves problem-solving and increases innovation which leads to better performance and results for your organization. Our objective in this article is to explore the power of diversity in problem-solving and to provide three ways to improve problem-solving in your organization by activating diversity-embracing behaviors in your employees.

The Power of Activating Diversity of Thought

People tend to solve problems by first looking at their own experiences, habits, culture, and understanding. The brain does this to determine whether we have faced a similar situation before and if we know how to solve it. Psychologists refer to this as a " mental set. "

Mental sets save us time and energy in the decision-making process but can hamper our problem-solving abilities. Different perspectives lead to different kinds of solutions. For example, an obvious solution to one person may seem abstract or irrelevant to someone else. The more perspectives you have when analyzing a problem, the more likely you will consider a broader range of solutions. How can you show your employees how to embrace different perspectives in your organization? To activate diversity , you need to create an environment that embraces the different ways individuals think, feel, and act. This is achieved by taking small actions over time to make inclusive behaviors a habit. Below we'll discuss three ways to help your team encourage diversity and inclusion when problem-solving.

1. Make All Voices Count

True diversity and inclusion mean that everyone in your team gets the opportunity to be heard. Sometimes though, we aren't conscious of who doesn't have a voice in a meeting or event. So, in many situations, the opinions of the most assertive people often carry the most weight. On the opposite side, women of color and other marginalized groups often don’t feel empowered to speak up. In your organization, do you currently have a balance between who gets to talk in meetings and who doesn't?

In your next conference call or in-person meeting, take a back seat and mostly observe while still making sure that you participate when called upon.

After your call, reflect on what stood out for you. Also, consider what strategies you can create to ensure that the only time people on your team aren't heard is because they are on mute!

2. Welcome All Ideas

Organizations that embrace diversity solve problems by fostering an environment where all ideas are welcome. Embracing everyone's thoughts gives your team members the freedom to get creative without worrying about someone else's opinion. Don't miss out on your next great idea because someone was too embarrassed to share it. The next time you have a brainstorming session, encourage your team to share their thoughts, no matter how out of the box they are. Afterward, reflect on what happened in the session:

What stood out for you when you encouraged all ideas?
What can you leverage from what you have learned to enable your teams to share their ideas regularly?

3. Normalize Disagreements

A team can only be truly inclusive and allow a wide diversity of thoughts and ideas if it’s possible for members to disagree with each other in an empathetic and considerate way.

Diverse perspectives continue to flow when we normalize disagreements. If your team doesn't have a good strategy for dealing with conflict, only the most forceful personalities will be the ones who get their way.

Prepare yourself and your team for conflict with the following steps:

Don't make it personal
Avoid putting down the other person's ideas and beliefs
Instead of saying "you", use "I" statements to communicate how you feel, what you think, and what you want or need
Listen to the other point of view without interrupting
Avoid absolute statements

Final Thoughts

The Netflix algorithm challenge is a perfect illustration of the importance of diversity in problem-solving. The contestants understood that combining different ideas and perspectives was the only way to progress forward. Likewise, organizations need to take this approach too. In this article, we explored how to activate behavior change in your employees by giving them small actions that they can use to be more inclusive when problem-solving. There are many other steps that organizations can take to embrace diversity.

If you are interested in other ways to activate inclusivity, book a consultation to discuss creating a custom D&I program.

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Cognician’s founding belief is that people are capable of great things when their behavior is driven by meaningful conversations, great questions, powerful ideas, and deeply felt emotions. Our core capability is enabling large organizations to activate behavior change at scale. We achieve this by creating personalized, data-driven digital experiences that are grounded in action, follow-through, reflection, and social engagement. With our multi-day challenges, you can drive measurable change in 30 days or less.

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12.3 Diversity and Its Impact on Companies

How does diversity impact companies and the workforce?

Due to trends in globalization and increasing ethnic and gender diversity, it is imperative that employers learn how to manage cultural differences and individual work attitudes. As the labor force becomes more diverse there are both opportunities and challenges to managing employees in a diverse work climate. Opportunities include gaining a competitive edge by embracing change in the marketplace and the labor force. Challenges include effectively managing employees with different attitudes, values, and beliefs, in addition to avoiding liability when leadership handles various work situations improperly.

Reaping the Advantages of Diversity

The business case for diversity introduced by Taylor Cox and Stacy Blake outlines how companies may obtain a competitive advantage by embracing workplace diversity. 96 Six opportunities that companies may receive when pursuing a strategy that values diversity include cost advantages, improved resource acquisition, greater marketing ability, system flexibility, and enhanced creativity and better problem solving (see Exhibit 12.6 ).

Cost Advantages

Traits such as race, gender, age, and religion are protected by federal legislation against various forms of discrimination (covered later in this chapter). Organizations that have policies and procedures in place that encourage tolerance for a work climate of diversity and protect female and minority employees and applicants from discrimination may reduce their likelihood of being sued due to workplace discrimination. Cox and Blake identify this decreased liability as an opportunity for organizations to reduce potential expenses in lawsuit damages compared to other organizations that do not have such policies in place.

Additionally, organizations with a more visible climate of diversity experience lower turnover among women and minorities compared to companies that are perceived to not value diversity. 97 Turnover costs can be substantial for companies over time, and diverse companies may ameliorate turnover by retaining their female and minority employees. Although there is also research showing that organizations that value diversity experience a higher turnover of White employees and male employees compared to companies that are less diverse, 98 some experts believe this is due to a lack of understanding of how to effectively manage diversity. Also, some research shows that White people with a strong ethnic identity are attracted to diverse organizations similarly to non-White people. 99

Resource Acquisition

Human capital is an important resource of organizations, and it is acquired through the knowledge, skills, and abilities of employees. Organizations perceived to value diversity attract more women and minority job applicants to hire as employees. Studies show that women and minorities have greater job-pursuit intentions and higher attraction toward organizations that promote workplace diversity in their recruitment materials compared to organizations that do not. 100 When employers attract minority applicants, their labor pool increases in size compared to organizations that are not attractive to them. As organizations attract more job candidates, the chances of hiring quality employees increases, especially for jobs that demand highly skilled labor. In summary, organizations gain a competitive advantage by enlarging their labor pool by attracting women and minorities.

When organizations employ individuals from different backgrounds, they gain broad perspectives regarding consumer preferences of different cultures. Organizations can gain insightful knowledge and feedback from demographic markets about the products and services they provide. Additionally, organizations that value diversity enhance their reputation with the market they serve, thereby attracting new customers.

System Flexibility

When employees are placed in a culturally diverse work environment, they learn to interact effectively with individuals who possess different attitudes, values, and beliefs. Cox and Blake contend that the ability to effectively interact with individuals who differ from oneself builds cognitive flexibility , the ability to think about things differently and adapt one’s perspective. When employees possess cognitive flexibility, system flexibility develops at the organizational level. Employees learn from each other how to tolerate differences in opinions and ideas, which allows communication to flow more freely and group interaction to be more effective.

Creativity and Problem Solving

Teams from diverse backgrounds produce multiple points of view, which can lead to innovative ideas. Different perspectives lead to a greater number of choices to select from when addressing a problem or issue.

Life experience varies from person to person, sometimes based on race, age, or sex. Creativity has the opportunity to flourish when those experiences are shared. Diverse teams not only produce more alternatives, but generate a broader range of perspectives to address tasks and problems. One way in which diverse teams enhance problem-solving ability is by preventing groupthink , 101 a dysfunction in decision-making that occurs in homogeneous groups as a result of group pressures and group members’ desire for conformity and consensus. Diverse group membership prevents groupthink because individuals from varied backgrounds with different values, attitudes, and beliefs can test the assumptions and reasoning of group members’ ideas.

Aligning Diversity Programs with an Organization’s Mission and Strategic Goals

Diversity helps organizations perform best when it is aligned with a specific business strategy. For example, when companies use heterogeneous management teams that are directed by an entrepreneurial strategy focusing on innovation, the companies’ productivity increases.

When an entrepreneurial strategy is not present, however, team diversity has little effect on productivity. 102 An entrepreneurial strategy includes innovation that reflects a company’s commitment to being creative, supporting new ideas, and supporting experimentation as a way to gain a competitive advantage. In other words, managers may properly utilize the multiple perspectives that emerge from heterogeneous teams by integrating them as a resource for pursuing the overall strategy of the organization.

Using Human Resources Tools Strategically

To effectively align diversity with an organization’s strategy, the human resources function must be able to engage employees at dynamic levels. Using a strategic human resources management approach to an organization can successfully integrate diversity with the organization’s goals and objectives. 103 Strategic human resources management (SHRM) is a system of activities arranged to engage employees in a manner that assists the organization in achieving a sustainable competitive advantage. SHRM practices vertically integrate with the mission and strategy of the organization while horizontally integrating human resources activities across its functional areas. By doing so, a unique set of resources can be made available to specific to the needs of the organization. Furthermore, when human resources becomes a part of the strategic planning process instead of just providing ancillary services, improved communication, knowledge sharing, and greater synergy between decision makers can occur within the organization to improve organizational functioning.

The resource-based view of the firm has been used to support the argument for diversity because it demonstrates how a diverse workforce can create a sustainable competitive advantage for organizations. Based on the resource-based view of the firm, when companies possess resources that are rare, valuable, difficult to imitate, and non-substitutable, a sustained competitive advantage can be attained. 104 The SHRM approach assumes that human capital—the current and potential knowledge, skills, and abilities of employees—is instrumental to every organization’s success and sustainability and longevity.

If a diverse composition of employees within organizations is rare, employing minorities in positions of leadership is even rarer. One exception is Northern Trust, an investment management firm that was recently listed on Forbes magazine’s 2018 Best Employers for Diversity list. 105 Thirty-eight percent of Northern Trust’s top executives are women, which is impressive because it matches the average percentage of women in full-time one-year MBA programs over the past five years. 106 The average for S&P 500 companies is just 27%. In addition, African Americans make up 23% of Northern Trust’s board, which also demonstrates the commitment Northern Trust has to diversity. This rare degree of diversity helps Northern Trust become an employer of choice for minorities and women. In turn, attracting minority applicants increases the labor pool available to Northern Trust and increases its ability to find good talent.

Diverse companies may capitalize on the multiple perspectives that employees from different backgrounds contribute to problem solving and idea generation. In group settings, members from collectivist cultures from Asia and South America, for example, engage with others on tasks differently than members from North America. Similarly, Asian, Black, and Hispanic people usually act more collectively and engage more interdependently than White people, who are generally more individualistic. More harmonious working interactions benefit group cohesion and team performance, 107 and employees can grasp better ways of doing things when there is a diverse population to learn from.

For a company to attain a sustained competitive advantage, its human resource practices must be difficult to copy or imitate. As we will see later in the chapter, companies may hold one of three perspectives on workplace diversity. The integration and learning perspective results in the best outcomes for employees and the organization. However, it is not easy to become an employer that can effectively manage diversity and avoid the challenges we learned about earlier in this chapter. Historical conditions and often-complex interplay between various organizational units over time can contribute to a company’s ability to perform effectively as a diverse organization. Best practices for targeting diverse applicants or resolving conflicts based on cultural differences between employees may occur organically and later become codified into the organizational culture. Sometimes, however, the origin of diversity practices is unknown because they arose from cooperation among different functional areas (e.g., marketing and human resources working strategically with leadership to develop recruitment ideas) that occurred so long ago that not even the company itself, let alone other companies, could replicate the process.

Diversity and Organizational Performance

Research indicates that having diversity in an organization produces mixed results for its success. Some studies show a positive relationship, some show a negative relationship, and others show no relationship between diversity and performance. Some researchers believe that although findings regarding a direct relationship between diversity and success in the marketplace may be inconsistent, the relationship may be due to other variables not taken into account.

Taking the resource-based view perspective, Richard and colleagues demonstrated that racially diverse banking institutions focused on innovation experienced greater performance than did racially diverse banks with a low focus on innovation. 108 These findings suggest that for the potential of racial diversity to be fully realized, companies should properly manage the system flexibility, creativity, and problem-solving abilities used in an innovative strategy. Other studies show that when top management includes female leadership, firm performance improves when organizations are innovation driven. 109

Concept Check

What are the challenges and opportunities that diversity provides to companies?
What are the responsibilities of human resources regarding diversity?
Can diversity be a strategic advantage to organizations?

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Authors: David S. Bright, Anastasia H. Cortes
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Book title: Principles of Management
Publication date: Mar 20, 2019
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The Power of Cognitive Diversity in Team Problem-Solving

August 15, 2023
Teamwork & Collaboration

In the realm of team problem-solving, cognitive diversity holds significant potential. This concept encapsulates the presence of distinct thinking styles, perspectives, and approaches within a team. By amalgamating various skills, knowledge, and experiences, teams with cognitive diversity can effectively solve problems at a faster pace. Moreover, cognitive diversity fosters creativity, innovation, critical thinking, and a broader range of ideas and perspectives. This essay delves into the importance of cognitive diversity in team problem-solving, the benefits it brings, the challenges it poses, and strategies to cultivate it within teams.

Table of Contents

Key Takeaways

Teams with cognitive diversity solve problems faster.
Cognitive diversity enhances creativity and innovation.
Cognitive diversity helps teams consider multiple viewpoints and find better solutions.
Strategies to foster cognitive diversity in teams include actively seeking out diverse perspectives, creating a culture of psychological safety, implementing inclusive hiring practices, and providing training on unconscious biases and cognitive diversity.

Importance of Cognitive Diversity in Team Problem-Solving

The importance of cognitive diversity in team problem-solving lies in its ability to stimulate critical thinking, promote a wider range of ideas and perspectives, and encourage creative solutions and out-of-the-box thinking. Teams with cognitive diversity are more adept at enhancing problem-solving speed through their varied thinking styles, approaches, and experiences. By incorporating diverse perspectives, teams can better understand the concept at hand and consider multiple viewpoints, leading to more comprehensive and effective problem-solving outcomes. Different cognitive styles complement each other, filling in knowledge gaps and avoiding groupthink and biases. This diversity of thought not only enhances problem-solving abilities but also fosters innovation and creativity. Therefore, recognizing and valuing cognitive diversity in teams is crucial for organizations seeking to optimize their problem-solving processes.

Impact of Diversity on Team Composition

Increased diversity of gender, ethnicity, and age in executive teams has been observed in efforts to achieve a more representative workforce. These efforts have shown progress in increasing the representation of diverse individuals in team compositions. The presence of diversity in executive teams and classrooms is becoming more visible, indicating a positive shift in achieving progress towards a more inclusive environment. However, it is important to note that more work needs to be done to further enhance diversity in team compositions. The benefits of increased representation include better decision-making and problem-solving, as diverse perspectives bring a wider range of ideas and viewpoints to the table. By actively seeking out diverse talent, implementing inclusive hiring practices, and fostering a culture that embraces different viewpoints, organizations can continue to make strides in achieving greater cognitive diversity in teams.

Benefits of Cognitive Diversity in Problem-Solving

An enhanced range of perspectives and ideas are fostered through the inclusion of diverse thinking styles, leading to more creative and innovative solutions. The benefits of cognitive diversity in problem-solving can be summarized as follows:

Promoting collaboration: Cognitive diversity stimulates critical thinking and analysis, encouraging individuals to work together and leverage their unique perspectives. This collaborative environment allows for the exploration of different ideas and the development of more comprehensive solutions.

Embracing different perspectives: Cognitive diversity brings together individuals with varying backgrounds, experiences, and knowledge. This diversity of perspectives helps to avoid groupthink and biases, enabling teams to consider multiple viewpoints and find more effective solutions to complex problems.

Encouraging creative solutions: Different cognitive styles complement each other and fill in knowledge gaps. This diversity of thinking encourages out-of-the-box thinking and sparks innovative ideas, leading to creative problem-solving approaches.

Challenges and Barriers to Achieving Cognitive Diversity

Challenges and barriers to achieving cognitive diversity include unconscious biases, limited access to diverse talent pools, and resistance to change. Unconscious biases in team dynamics can hinder the inclusion of diverse perspectives, as individuals may unknowingly favor those who think and behave in a similar manner. These biases can perpetuate homogeneity and make it difficult for different perspectives to be heard and valued. Limited access to diverse talent pools further exacerbates the issue, as organizations may struggle to attract and retain individuals with diverse backgrounds and ways of thinking. Additionally, resistance to change and a reluctance to embrace different viewpoints can impede efforts to foster cognitive diversity. Overcoming these challenges requires raising awareness about unconscious biases, creating inclusive hiring practices, and fostering a culture that values and embraces cognitive diversity.

Strategies to Foster Cognitive Diversity in Teams

One approach to promoting cognitive diversity within teams is to actively seek out and incorporate a wide range of perspectives and opinions. This can be achieved by creating diverse teams that bring together individuals with different backgrounds, experiences, and ways of thinking. By creating such teams, organizations can promote open dialogue and foster an environment where diverse perspectives are valued and encouraged.

Strategies to foster cognitive diversity in teams include:

Actively seeking out diverse perspectives and opinions: This involves actively recruiting individuals from diverse backgrounds and ensuring that their voices are heard and valued within the team.

Promoting open dialogue: Creating an environment where team members feel comfortable expressing their opinions and engaging in constructive discussions is crucial for promoting cognitive diversity.

Implementing inclusive hiring practices: By adopting inclusive hiring practices, organizations can attract a diverse pool of talent, ensuring that different perspectives and experiences are represented within the team.

Enhancing Problem-Solving Speed With Cognitive Diversity

Enhancing the speed of problem-solving can be achieved through the incorporation of diverse perspectives and opinions within teams. Cognitive diversity, which refers to differences in thinking styles, perspectives, and approaches, plays a crucial role in increasing efficiency and enhancing collaboration. By bringing together a variety of skills, knowledge, and experiences, cognitive diversity stimulates critical thinking and analysis, promoting a wider range of ideas and perspectives. Different cognitive styles complement each other and fill in knowledge gaps, leading to better decision-making and problem-solving. Moreover, cognitive diversity helps to avoid groupthink and biases, encouraging creative solutions and out-of-the-box thinking. To foster cognitive diversity in teams, organizations should actively seek out diverse perspectives, create a culture of psychological safety that encourages open dialogue, implement inclusive hiring practices, provide training on unconscious biases and cognitive diversity, and foster collaboration and teamwork to leverage its benefits.

Understanding the Concept of Cognitive Diversity

Different perspectives, thinking styles, and approaches contribute to cognitive diversity within teams. Cognitive diversity refers to the differences in how individuals perceive, think, and solve problems. It encompasses a range of characteristics such as educational background, professional experience, cultural upbringing, and personality traits. Here are some examples of cognitive diversity:

Analytical Thinkers: These individuals excel at breaking down complex problems into smaller, manageable components. They rely on data and evidence to make decisions and tend to be detail-oriented.

Creative Thinkers: These individuals thrive in generating new and innovative ideas. They approach problems from unconventional angles, often thinking outside the box and challenging the status quo.

Collaborative Thinkers: These individuals excel at building relationships and working in teams. They value cooperation and seek to integrate diverse perspectives to find optimal solutions.

The benefits of cognitive diversity in team problem-solving are numerous. It enhances collective intelligence by bringing together a variety of skills, knowledge, and experiences. It enables teams to consider multiple viewpoints, leading to more comprehensive and well-rounded solutions. Cognitive diversity stimulates critical thinking and analysis, promoting a wider range of ideas and perspectives. By complementing each other’s cognitive styles and filling in knowledge gaps, teams can avoid groupthink and biases. This encourages creative solutions and out-of-the-box thinking, ultimately leading to more innovative outcomes.

Leveraging Cognitive Diversity for Creativity and Innovation

By leveraging the varied perspectives and thinking styles within a team, opportunities for creativity and innovation can be maximized. Fostering collaboration and embracing different perspectives are key strategies in leveraging cognitive diversity. Collaboration allows team members to share ideas, challenge assumptions, and build on each other’s strengths. Embracing different perspectives encourages individuals to bring their unique insights and experiences to the table. This diversity of thought stimulates creativity and innovation by providing a wider range of ideas and approaches to problem-solving. When team members with different perspectives collaborate effectively, they can overcome biases and avoid groupthink, leading to more robust and innovative solutions. This approach fosters an environment that values diversity and creates space for creative thinking, ultimately enhancing the team’s ability to generate innovative ideas and solutions.

Overcoming Unconscious Biases for Inclusive Problem-Solving

Unconscious biases pose a challenge to achieving inclusion and diverse perspectives in the problem-solving process. To overcome this challenge, it is essential to raise awareness of unconscious biases and implement strategies that promote a more inclusive problem-solving environment.

Unconscious bias awareness: Organizations should provide training and education on unconscious biases to help individuals recognize and mitigate their biases. This awareness can help create a more inclusive and equitable problem-solving process.

Diversity talent pools: To overcome unconscious biases, organizations should actively seek out diverse talent pools. By expanding recruitment efforts and implementing inclusive hiring practices, organizations can ensure a broader range of perspectives and experiences are included in the problem-solving process.

Inclusive problem-solving practices: Encouraging open dialogue and creating a culture of psychological safety can foster an environment where diverse perspectives are valued and included. By leveraging the power of cognitive diversity, teams can overcome unconscious biases and achieve more effective and innovative problem-solving outcomes.

Building a Culture of Psychological Safety for Cognitive Diversity

Creating an inclusive and supportive environment that fosters open dialogue and psychological safety is crucial for promoting a culture that values and embraces diverse perspectives and thinking styles. This environment encourages individuals to express their unique viewpoints and ideas without fear of judgement or reprisal. It allows for the exploration of different perspectives, which can lead to more innovative and effective problem-solving. By encouraging diverse perspectives, teams can tap into a wider range of knowledge, experiences, and approaches, ultimately enhancing their ability to find creative solutions. Furthermore, creating an inclusive environment not only promotes cognitive diversity but also helps to break down barriers and biases that may hinder the inclusion of diverse perspectives. Therefore, organizations should prioritize the development of a culture of psychological safety that encourages open dialogue and values diverse perspectives.

The Role of Inclusive Hiring Practices in Promoting Cognitive Diversity

Implementing inclusive hiring practices is essential for fostering cognitive diversity within teams and organizations. By actively seeking out diverse talent pools, organizations can tap into a wider range of perspectives, experiences, and thinking styles. This can lead to enhanced problem-solving abilities and increased innovation within teams. Inclusive hiring practices can be implemented by:

Broadening recruitment channels: Organizations can reach out to a diverse range of candidates by utilizing various platforms and networks, including those specifically focused on underrepresented groups.

Removing bias from the hiring process: Implementing structured interviews and blind resume reviews can help reduce unconscious biases and ensure fair evaluation of candidates based on their qualifications and capabilities.

Promoting diversity and inclusion from within: Organizations can create a culture that values and celebrates diversity, ensuring that employees from all backgrounds feel welcome and supported.

Frequently Asked Questions

How does cognitive diversity enhance problem-solving speed in teams.

Cognitive diversity enhances problem-solving speed in teams by enhancing collaboration and decision-making efficiency. It allows for a wider range of ideas and perspectives, stimulates critical thinking, and encourages creative solutions, thus avoiding groupthink and biases.

What Are Some Examples of Unconscious Biases That Can Hinder the Inclusion of Diverse Perspectives?

Unconscious biases, such as affinity biases and confirmation biases, can hinder the inclusion of diverse perspectives in teams. Overcoming resistance to cognitive diversity requires awareness, education, and creating a culture that values and embraces different viewpoints.

How Can Organizations Overcome Resistance to Change and Encourage the Embrace of Different Viewpoints?

To overcome resistance to change and encourage the embrace of different viewpoints, organizations can implement strategies such as creating a culture of openness, providing education on the value of diversity, and fostering collaboration to leverage the benefits of cognitive diversity.

What Are Some Strategies for Actively Seeking Out Diverse Perspectives and Opinions?

Strategies for seeking diverse perspectives and fostering inclusion include actively soliciting input from individuals with different backgrounds and experiences, creating a safe environment for open dialogue, implementing inclusive hiring practices, providing education on unconscious biases, and promoting collaboration.

How Can Organizations Create a Culture of Psychological Safety That Encourages Open Dialogue and Diverse Thinking?

To create a culture of psychological safety that encourages open dialogue and diverse thinking, organizations can build trust by promoting transparency, actively listening to employee perspectives, and valuing diverse contributions. Additionally, empowering individuals through training and recognition can motivate them to share their unique viewpoints openly.

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12.6: Key Diversity Theories

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Learning Objectives

What key theories help managers understand the benefits and challenges of managing the diverse workforce?

Many theories relevant to managing the diverse workforce center on an individual’s reactions (such as categorization and assessment of the characteristics of others) to people who are different from the individual. Competing viewpoints attempt to explain how diversity is either harmful or beneficial to organizational outcomes.

The cognitive diversity hypothesis suggests that multiple perspectives stemming from the cultural differences between group or organizational members result in creative problem solving and innovation.
The similarity-attraction paradigm and social identity theory hold that individuals’ preferences for interacting with others like themselves can result in diversity having a negative effect on group and organizational outcomes.
The justification-suppression model explains under what conditions individuals act on their prejudices.

Cognitive Diversity Hypothesis

Some research shows that diversity has no relationship to group performance, and some shows that there is a relationship. Of the latter research, some shows a negative relationship (greater diversity means poorer group performance, less diversity means better group performance) and some shows a positive relationship.

These various findings may be due to the difference in how diversity can affect group members. Cognitive diversity refers to differences between team members in characteristics such as expertise, experiences, and perspectives. 130 Many researchers contend that physical diversity characteristics such as race, age, or sex (also known as bio-demographic diversity) positively influence performance because team members contribute unique cognitive attributes based on their experiences stemming from their demographic background. 131

There is research that supports the relationship between group performance and task-related diversity as reflected in characteristics not readily detectable such as ability, occupational expertise, or education. However, the relationship between bio-demographic diversity and group performance has produced mixed results. 132 For example, Watson and colleagues studied the comparison of group performance between culturally homogeneous and culturally heterogeneous groups. Groups were assigned business cases to analyze, and their group performance was measured over time based on four factors: the range of perspectives generated, the number of problems identified in the case, the number of alternatives produced, and the quality of the solution. Overall performance was also calculated as the average of all the factors. The factors were measured at four intervals: Interval 1 (at 5 weeks), Interval 2 (at 9 weeks), Interval 3 (at 13 weeks), and Interval 4 (at 17 weeks).

For Intervals 1 and 2, the overall performance of homogeneous groups was higher than heterogeneous groups. However, by Intervals 3 and 4, there were no significant differences in overall performance between the groups, but the heterogeneous group outperformed the homogeneous group in generating a greater range of perspectives and producing a greater number of alternatives.

This research suggests that although homogeneous groups may initially outperform culturally diverse groups, over time diverse groups benefit from a wider range of ideas to choose from when solving a problem. Based on the cognitive diversity hypothesis, these benefits stem from the multiple perspectives generated by the cultural diversity of group members. On the other hand, it takes time for members of diverse groups to work together effectively due to their unfamiliarity with one another, which explains why homogeneous groups outperform heterogeneous groups in the early stages of group functioning. (This is related to the similarityattraction paradigm, discussed in the next section.) Other studies have shown that ethnically diverse groups cooperate better than homogeneous groups at tasks that require decision-making and are more creative and innovative. While homogeneous groups may be more efficient, heterogeneous groups sacrifice efficiency for effectiveness in other areas.

Similarity-Attraction Paradigm

The cognitive diversity hypothesis explains how diversity benefits organizational outcomes. The similarityattraction paradigm explains how diversity can have negative outcomes for an organization.

Some research has shown that members who belong to diverse work units may become less attached, are absent from work more often, and are more likely to quit. 133 There is also evidence that diversity may produce conflict and higher employee turnover. Similarity-attraction theory is one of the foundational theories that attempts to explain why this occurs; it posits that individuals are attracted to others with whom they share attitude similarity. 134

Attitudes and beliefs are common antecedents to interpersonal attraction. However, other traits such as race, age, sex, and socioeconomic status can serve as signals to reveal deep-level traits about ourselves. For example, numerous studies investigating job-seeker behaviors have shown that individuals are more attracted to companies whose recruitment literature includes statements and images that reflect their own identity group. One study showed that companies perceived to value diversity based on their recruitment literature are more attractive to racial minorities and women compared to Whites. 135 Another study showed that when organizations use recruitment materials that target sexual minorities, the attraction of study participants weakened among heterosexuals. 136 Even foreign-born potential job candidates are more attracted to organizations that depict international employees in their job ads. 137

Social Cognitive Theory

Social cognitive theory is another theory that seeks to explain how diversity can result in negative outcomes in a group or organization. Social cognitive theory suggests that people use categorization to simplify and cope with large amounts of information. These categories allow us to quickly and easily compartmentalize data, and people are often categorized by their visible characteristics, such as race, sex, and age. Thus, when someone sees a person of a particular race, automatic processing occurs and beliefs about this particular race are activated. Even when the person is not visible, he or she can be subject to this automatic categorization. For example, when sorting through resumes a hiring manager might engage in sex categorization because the person’s name provides information about the person’s sex or racial categorization because the person’s name provides information about their race. 138 Stereotypes are related to this categorization, and refer to the overgeneralization of characteristics about large groups. Stereotypes are the basis for prejudice and discrimination. In a job-related context, using categorization and stereotyping in employment decision-making is often illegal. Whether illegal or not, this approach is inconsistent with a valuing-diversity approach.

Social Identity Theory

Social identity theory is another explanation of why diversity may have a negative outcome. Social identity theory suggests that when we first come into contact with others, we categorize them as belonging to an ingroup (i.e., the same group as us) or an out-group (not belonging to our group). 139 We tend to see members of our in-group as heterogeneous but out-group members as homogeneous. That is, we perceive out-group members as having similar attitudes, behaviors, and characteristics (i.e., fitting stereotypes).

Researchers posit that this perspective may occur because of the breadth of interactions we have with people from our in-group as opposed to out-groups. There is often strong in-group favoritism and, sometimes, derogation of out-group members. In some cases, however, minority group members do not favor members of their own group. 140 This may happen because of being continually exposed to widespread beliefs about the positive attributes of Whites or men and to common negative beliefs about some minorities and women. When in-group favoritism does occur, majority-group members will be hired, promoted, and rewarded at the expense of minority-group members, often in violation of various laws.

Schema Theory

Schema theory explains how individuals encode information about others based on their demographic characteristics. 141 Units of information and knowledge experienced by individuals are stored as having patterns and interrelationships, thus creating schemas that can be used to evaluate one’s self or others. As a result of the prior perceived knowledge or beliefs embodied in such schemas, individuals categorize people, events, and objects. They then use these categories to evaluate newly encountered people and make decisions regarding their interaction with them.

Based on schema theory, employees develop schemas about coworkers based on race, gender, and other diversity traits. They also form schemas about organizational policies, leadership, and work climates. Schemas formed can be positive or negative and will affect the attitudes and behaviors employees have toward one another.

Justification-Suppression Model

The justification-suppression model explains the circumstances in which prejudiced people might act on their prejudices. The process by which people experience their prejudice is characterized as a “two-step” process in which people are prejudiced against a certain group or individual but experience conflicting emotions in regard to that prejudice and are motivated to suppress their prejudice rather than act upon it. 142 Theory about prejudice suggests that all people have prejudices of some sort, that they learn their prejudices from an early age, and that they have a hard time departing from them as they grow older. Prejudices are often reinforced by intimate others, and individuals use different methods to justify those prejudices.

Most people will attempt to suppress any outward manifestations of their prejudices. This suppression can come from internal factors like empathy, compassion, or personal beliefs regarding proper treatment of others. Suppression can also come from societal pressures; overt displays of prejudice are no longer socially acceptable, and in some cases are illegal.

At times, however, prejudiced individuals will look for reasons to justify acting on their prejudiced beliefs. Research has shown people are more likely to act in prejudiced ways when they are physically or emotionally tired, when they can do so and remain anonymous, or when social norms are weak enough that their prejudiced behavior will not be received negatively.

Concept Check

What are the theories that can help managers understand diversity?

130. Miller, C. C., Burke, L. M., & Glick,W. H. 1998. Cognitive diversity among upper-echelon executives: Implications for strategic decision processes. Strategic Management Journal, 19: 39-58.

131. Horwitz, S.K., & Horwitz, I.B. (2007). The effects of team diversity on team outcomes: A meta-analytic review of team demography. Journal of Management, 33 (6): 987-1015.

132. Watson, W.E., Kumar, K., & Michaelsen, L.K. (1993). Cultural diversity's impact on interaction process and performance: Comparing homogeneous and diverse task groups. Academy of Management Journal, 36(3): 590-602.

133. Tsui, A.S., Egan, T. D., & O’Reilly, C.A. 1992. Being different: relational demography and organizational attachment. Administrative Science Quarterly, 37: 549-579.

134. Byrne, D. (1971). The attraction paradigm. New York: Academic Press.

135. Perkins, L. A., Thomas, K. M., & Taylor, G. A. 2000. Advertising and recruitment: Marketing to minorities. Psychology and Marketing, 17: 235-255.; Thomas, K.M., & Wise, P.G. 1999. Organizational attractiveness and individual differences: Are diverse applicants attracted by different factors? Journal of Business and Psychology, 13: 375-390.

136. Lambert, J. R. (2015). The impact of gay-friendly recruitment statements and due process employment on a firm’s attractiveness as an employer. Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal, 34, 510–526.

137. Lambert, J.R., Basuil, D.A., Bell, M.P., & Marquardt, D. J. (2017). Coming to America: Work visas, international diversity, and organizational attractiveness among highly skilled Asian immigrants. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 0, 1-27.

138. Bertrand, Marianne, and Sendhil Mullainathan. "Are Emily and Greg more employable than Lakisha and Jamal? A field experiment on labor market discrimination."The American Economic Review94, no. 4 (2004): 991-1013.

139. Tajfel, H. 1974. Social identity and intergroup behavior. Social Science Information, 15: 1010-118.; Tajfel H, Turner JC. (1985). The social identity theory of intergroup behavior. In S. Worchel, and W.G. Austin (Eds.), Psychology of Intergroup Relations (2nd ed., pp. 7–24). Chicago:Nelson-Hall.

140. Goldberg, Caren B. "Relational demography and similarity-attraction in interview assessments and subsequent offer decisions: are we missing something?."Group & Organization Management30, no. 6 (2005): 597-624.

141. Fiske ST, Taylor SE. (1991). Social cognition (2nd ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill.

142. Crandall, Christian S., and Amy Eshleman. "A justification-suppression model of the expression and experience of prejudice." Psychological bulletin 129.3 (2003): 414.

Why diversity is the secret to solving complex problems

U-m professor scott page explains why diverse groups consistently outperform teams of like-minded experts..

The effort to make our workplaces and institutions more diverse is typically framed as a moral issue or an opportunity to make society more just. Given the many aspects of our society that advantage certain groups of people and disadvantage others, this is a worthwhile pursuit — and a fair way of framing the challenge. But what if it wasn’t the only way of establishing a value proposition for diversity and inclusion? For years, Scott Page, the John Seely Brown distinguished university professor of complexity, social science and management at UM-Ann Arbor, has been making a numbers case for diversity. His basic thesis: If you want innovation, or to solve complex 21st-century problems like income inequality or climate change, then groups of experts, at least as we’re accustomed to thinking about them, are going to have a hard time competing with talented teams of people with relevant diverse perspectives.

Page recently laid out his argument in an entertaining lecture in UM-Dearborn’s Thought Leaders series, which brings experts to campus to talk about big ideas relating to our strategic plan priorities. A key point in Page’s case is distinguishing between simple and complex tasks. For example, he says if you’re looking to maximize output for your logging business in northern Michigan in the 1820s, then a straightforward measure of how many trees a person can cut down in a day may be a good hiring metric. By assembling a team of the most productive loggers and aggregating their effort, you reap the most profit — simple as that. But Page says group dynamics work differently for more complex tasks. For example, say you want to make forecasts about the economy, and you ask 40 really good economists to make predictions and then average them. (This, by the way, is a common method for producing economic forecasts in the U.S. and European Union.) Page says when you crunch the numbers, a couple interesting phenomena emerge. One, the group’s average prediction is better than any of the predictions of the individual economists. Even more interesting, the group’s prediction actually has less error than the average error of the individual members, and the size of the extra benefit from this group average actually corresponds to how different their predictions were. In other words, diversity yields a “bonus.”

So why is this the case? “Once you have something that’s really high-dimensional, by definition, people are going to go about it in different ways, and when they go about it in different ways, you get this benefit,” Page said. Stated a little differently, when something is very complex, it’s hard to figure out, which means no one is going to get it exactly right. So “you want people getting it wrong in different ways” so you’re accounting for a greater degree of the complexity. Needless to say, this is a different approach than many institutions take to solving problems. Typically, Page says, our inclination is to assemble a team of the best experts on a particular topic, as measured by an accepted set of credentials. But in doing so, we’re missing an opportunity to reap a diversity bonus. “For example, when I go to the New York Fed, they’ll have 60 people with PhDs in economics and no sociologists and no psychologists,” Page said. “They’re all trained to see the world in the same way, through the exact same categories, the exact same models.” Page is quick to point out, however, that diversity doesn’t mean random difference. If you’re trying to solve a complex physics problem, the solution isn’t to “bring Tony Hawk in to CERN.” The people on your team have to have knowledge or skills that are germane to the task. But if you’re trying to come up with policy solutions to, say, income inequality or inflation, it’s going to help to have economists working alongside sociologists or psychologists, because they’ll all approach the problem a little differently and the group’s solution will capture more complexity.

In addition, Page says we shouldn’t assume that traditional metrics, like what academic discipline a person got their doctorate in, are the only ways to measure or predict this advantageous “cognitive diversity” of the group. The amalgam of someone's life experiences is also very important in what they bring to the table, which is why diversity of identity can also matter. People of different races, genders, social classes, national origins, etc. will inherently have had different life experiences, which inform how they see the world and thus their approach to problems. When this kind of identity diversity contributes to more cognitive diversity, Page says it can boost diversity bonuses.

Page also notes that environmental conditions must be favorable to maximize this benefit you get from diverse teams. Most importantly, institutions have to create environments where people feel trusted and validated, so there’s no holding back when they’re working as a group. Under these conditions, Page says you can often reap even more benefits through “synergy” — moments when ideas combine in unexpected ways to create especially great solutions. Viewed this way, creating an inclusive environment where everyone has a seat at the table becomes an “amazing opportunity” to create solutions for today’s complex problems — in addition to being the right thing to do.

Want to learn more about Scott Page’s work on diversity and innovation? Check out his book " The Diversity Bonus: How Great Teams Pay Off in the Knowledge Economy ." Also, look out for the next installment in our Thought Leaders series on Nov 10 : “How Technology Developers and Social Scientists Can Work Together to Combat Bias in the Metaverse” with the University of Pennsylvania’s Desmond Patton. Register for the event .

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'Diversity means better problem solving, more creativity and innovation'

What can wealth managers learn from their clients when it comes to diversity? Rather a lot, as it turns out.

As anyone who is familiar with corporate life will know, ‘diversity’, along with terms like ‘integrity’ and ‘trust’ are reoccurring words in the game of corporate bingo.

But there is a major difference between living your values and just listing them on your website.

One only has to look at a bank’s marketing efforts to see how they wish to be perceived: soft-focused photos of beautiful people staring out onto a bright future with a gender, race and generational balance that would be the envy of many financial services management teams.

Because diversity at the top of the house isn’t just important from an equal opportunities perspective, it is a strong predictor and driver of business success.

In their 2023 report "Diversity Matters Even More", McKinsey found that companies with greater gender and ethnic diversity on their boards were statistically more likely to outperform financially.

And this is largely down to the power of cognitive diversity – the inclusion within a team of people with a wide range of experiences and backgrounds, who think, process knowledge, and learn differently from one another, resulting in higher levels of team collective intelligence.

Cognitive diversity within a team situation leads to better problem solving, increased creativity and greater innovation.

We only had to look to our clients past and present, who know a thing or two about building successful companies, to see how they, their business partners and their management teams had disrupted markets by thinking differently to one another – and their competitors.

And outside of the business realm, we see enormous diversity even within clients’ families.

Neurodiversity, disability, gender, age difference, cultural diversity, sexual orientation and, yes, cognitive diversity, can all be present not just within a single family, but sometimes even just within a couple.

This diversity amongst our clients also means that the family unit, the couple or close family member is as important to the wealth conversation as the wealth creator themselves; wealth creation is often borne out of this ecosystem: usually, but not always, a supportive family situation, involving elements of sacrifice on all sides.

Understanding this ecosystem is integral to understanding the wealth’s purpose.

Focusing only on the wealth creator can lead to a cognitively homogenous and one-dimensional wealth conversation, resulting in a strategy simply not fit for purpose.

It is important to us to build our business with this dynamic in mind.

Hiring people who think differently, approach problems differently and are open to challenge (and challenging others), is not always comfortable, but we know Six Degrees is stronger for it. After all, seeking discomfort is the key to growth.

Embedded now in Six Degrees’ DNA sits a related cognitively diverse approach to the wealth conversation, something that we call ‘right brain thinking’: Six Degrees' shorthand for thinking differently, creatively, and acknowledging the importance of our emotional worlds in the wealth journey.

It is this approach that enables us to put purpose at the centre of the conversation.

Six Degrees has so far grown to a team of four. It is largely incidental that we are a 75 per cent female, and 25 per cent neurodiverse business.

It is through cognitive diversity – the power of our brains thinking in different ways – where the collective becomes more effective than the individual.

We’re aware that this is easier to do at the start of the journey. The real challenge as we grow will be to retain this diversity of thought within a larger team, and how we evolve once purpose and right brain thinking are happily no longer a differentiator, but business as usual within the UK wealth conversation.

Oliver Saiman is co-founder of advice firm Six Degrees

More From Forbes

The power of intercultural communication and dialogue.

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Daniel Pascoe Aguilar, Ph.D., MDiv, Founding Director, Center for Social Justice & CDO, Excelsior University .

In honor of this year’s World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development, observed on May 21, it's important we celebrate the richness of world cultures and underscore the importance of intercultural dialogue and communication for peace and sustainable development. Nearly 90% of global conflicts take place in countries with low intercultural dialogue. To increase collaboration and peace, we must reinforce intercultural dialogue and make it a priority.

UNESCO defines intercultural dialogue as a respectful cultural encounter, mutual understanding and constructive exchange of perspectives, whether "verbal or non-verbal, in-person or virtual, between two or more people, [or] between groups." UNESCO also recommends general intercultural dialogue approaches and expected outcomes including:

• Creating positive social relationships.

• Facilitating programs that benefit the well-being of all members of the community.

• Creating a sense of belonging and trust in the community.

• Fighting exclusion, marginalization and inequalities.

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• Involving and engaging all audiences, “leaving no one behind.”

• Building social cohesion and trust among diverse groups.

• Contributing to conflict prevention and resolution.

• Upholding human rights.

• Helping to find creative solutions to critical issues.

More generally, intercultural communication is defined by the Encyclopedia of Critical Psychology as a field of study that examines communication across different cultures, experiences and perspectives, and how diverse backgrounds and beliefs affect communication.

Seminal theorists argue that intercultural communication has the capacity to enhance personal and community growth, cultural competence, effective communication, mutual empathy and understanding, improved relationships, global citizenship and increased adaptability through the promotion and facilitation of intercultural dialogue.

Could we turn the extreme polarization of interests, positions and attempts to control the differences around us we are currently witnessing or experiencing into a call for our promotion and facilitation of multi-perspective sharing, learning, communication and dialogue? Constructive intercultural communication and dialogue are powerful tools through which people with different backgrounds, values, beliefs and perspectives seek to build environments intended to promote and facilitate interacting with and learning from each other safely, openly and developmentally. More importantly, through intercultural communication and dialogue, we could intentionally leverage the diversity of views, knowledge and ideas around us in order to harness our collective intelligence and thus pursue a more sustainable and brighter future. Given the systemic challenges and conflicts we are facing, intercultural dialogue could be one of our most important societal endeavors, individually and as communities.

Through his Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity , Milton J. Bennett of the Intercultural Development Research Institute refers to intercultural communication as a critical tool to help individuals progress toward a deeper awareness and appreciation of cultural differences and a greater social capacity to interact across perspectives and experiences. His work emphasizes the importance of recognizing and accepting differences to interact effectively and productively across cultural boundaries. More concretely, his model and recommendations encourage us as individuals, organizations, communities and nations to assume the same level of complexity in others’ experiences and perspectives, regardless of our capacity to understand backgrounds or views we have not experienced, thus calling all of us to approach others with deliberate respect, curiosity, inquiry and the intent to learn.

Parallelly, through his Third-Culture Building approach to Intercultural Communication, Dr. Fred L. Casmir—an author, teacher and organizer instrumental in establishing intercultural communication as a focused area of study—recommends the following strategies to enhance personal growth, effective communication, trust and relationship-building, cultural competence and conflict resolution:

• Creating an environment that integrates elements from different cultures.

• Facilitating open communication and joint problem-solving.

• Developing a better understanding of our cultural assumptions and biases.

• Practicing perspective exploration and attentive listening.

• Developing the willingness to adjust to new cultural contexts.

Based on these recommendations as well as on the work of the Excelsior University Center for Social Justice, where I serve as founding director, we suggest enhancing organizational and social intercultural communication and dialogue by promoting and modeling environments that:

• Assume the same level of complexity in others’ perspectives, experiences and ideas as the complexity we assume in our own.

• Approach others with deliberate and authentic respect, curiosity and inquiry.

• Apply the LARA method by listening to affirm rather than to judge, debate or convince—before responding or adding information.

• Seek to learn from the different perspectives, experiences and ideas present.

• Assess and elicit missing but key perspectives that need to be included in the conversation.

• Apply a Universal Design for Learning approach that diversifies the means through which participants may engage in dialogue and collaboration and in which the content being discussed and all participants are represented and may act and express themselves and their insight.

• Ask participants, including anonymously and asynchronously, what they need from the group and its leadership to feel safe to be authentic and to share their voice and insight.

• Apply a design thinking approach that starts interactions and collaboration by empathizing with those present, those served and those impacted and that elicits the collective definition of the problem or opportunity at hand and facilitates the collective ideation of the solution or innovation to pursue.

• Introduce and facilitate regular applications of a framework (e.g., JEDI Framework ) under which community members share an intercultural dialogue vision, models and approaches to intercultural communication and dialogue.

• Develop representation/support communities to enable the intercultural communication and dialogue of your clients/students and community members.

Constructive intercultural communication and dialogue are powerful strategies through which people with different backgrounds, values and perspectives seek to build environments intended to promote and facilitate interaction with and learning from each other safely, openly and developmentally. Through intercultural communication and dialogue, we have the opportunity to lead sharing, learning and dialogue, intentionally leveraging the diversity of views, knowledge and ideas around us in order to harness our collective intelligence and thus develop the solutions we direly need for the critical challenges we face.

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MacArthur Foundation 100&Change

Below is a summary assembled by the Research & Innovation Office (RIO). Please see the full solicitation for complete information about the funding opportunity.

While the MacArthur Foundation doesn't limit the number of applications per institution, the internal process aims to identify the project team(s) that will receive full endorsement and support from campus-level resources.

All prospective applicants should first complete MacArthur’s  organizational readiness tool to ensure your project is a fit.

Program Summary

Solving society’s biggest problems is not easy, but it can be done. 100&Change is a MacArthur Foundation competition for a $100 million grant to fund a single proposal that will make measurable progress toward solving a significant problem. 100&Change will select a bold proposal that promises real progress toward solving a critical problem of our time. And it will award a $100 million grant to help make that solution a reality. Proposals focused on any critical issue are welcome.

No single field or problem area is designated – proposals from any sector are encouraged.
Proposals should articulate both the problem and the proposed solution and must have a charitable purpose .
Competitive proposals will be impactful, evidence-based, feasible, durable, and just.

For the third round of the 100&Change competition, we revisited the application criteria to align with MacArthur’s Just Imperative rooted in the value of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. As a result, we have added “just” as a criterion. In doing so, we sought to frame the five criteria as a whole so that any applicant can see their project reflected. We ask applicants to demonstrate a commitment to equity, inclusion, and accessibility and provide a solution that benefits different populations equitably. We believe there is no topic that is exempt or excluded from these commitments, and so this criterion is not a barrier to entry.

Based on information from the Industry & Foundation Relations (IFR) team, the MacArthur Foundation encourages applicants to explore leveraging global technologies, employing case-based learning methods and incorporating program evaluations to establish models applicable for other contexts. Topics of interest for 2024 include but are not limited to:

AI for social change
Human trafficking
Gulf Coast resilience

The program is not intended to fund basic or clinical research.

Award recipients from previous 100&Change calls can be found here .

CU Internal Deadline: 11:59pm MST July 1, 2024

Sponsor Application Deadline: 4:00pm MST September 5, 2024

Internal Application Requirements (all in PDF format)

Organization Readiness Tool Certification: All prospective applicants should first complete MacArthur’s organizational readiness tool to ensure your project is a fit.
Project Overview (4 pages maximum) including: 1) Executive Summary (250 words): summarize the problem you're addressing, your solution, and the intended outcomes, particularly for marginalized populations; 2) Challenge Statement (300 words): describe the challenges faced, who is impacted, why they exist, influential ways to bring about change, and potential for broad-scale impact; 3) Solution Overview (500 words): explain how your solution addresses the challenges, its impact over five years, target communities, benefits, and outcomes, along with your progress monitoring approach; 4) Team Overview: provide details about your team, including lead and partner organizations, leadership, members, and their relevant experience and skills.
Budget Overview (1 page maximum): A basic budget outlining project costs is sufficient; detailed OCG budgets are not required. The budget should be divided into three phases spanning five years. For example, phase 1 could cover one year, while phases 2 and 3 each span two years, totaling five years.

To access the online application, visit: https://cuboulderovcr.secure-platform.com/a/solicitations/6987/home

Eligibility

There are no special eligibility requirements.

Award Information

$100M over 5 years

Review Process and Criteria

The internal process will follow the same evaluation criteria as reflected below.

MacArthur will review each 100&Change submission to ensure it meets the requirements and rules before advancing to the next stage. During the participatory review process, applicants will score and provide feedback on each other’s proposals using our established criteria outlined in the scoring rubric. A Wise Head Panel of external judges will then review and score submissions using the same criteria and trait scoring rubric (see below).

MacArthur's Board of Directors will then select up to five finalists. Over the next several months, the finalists will work with an expert team to strengthen their proposals, present a preliminary plan for monitoring, evaluation, and learning, and show authentic engagement with communities of interest before submitting revised project plans.

The selection of the final award recipient rests with MacArthur’s Board .

Impactful: Does the proposal describe an urgent problem worth solving, and will the solution have a transformative impact? Is the proposal sufficiently ambitious either in its progress toward a solution; the size and number of communities served; the size of the geography served; or intensity of impact on a small but vulnerable population or geography?
Evidence-Based: Does the proposal present evidence that the solution or its critical components have previously yielded practical and concrete results? Does the evidence suggest that the solution can be adapted to other contexts, such as expanding to new populations or geographies or to reach a greater number of people over time, and still retain its effectiveness?
Feasible: Does the team have the skills, capacity, relationships, and experience to deliver its proposal? Do the budget and plans represent a realistic understanding for successful implementation? Does the mitigation plan address changes in key personnel and political, market, or social environments? Is community input incorporated throughout the design, implementation, and evaluation?
Durable: Will the solution have a sustained impact? Does the solution either expect to solve a problem in five years or create a pathway to solving the problem over time? Will the project elicit support from other sources–private, philanthropic, or public? Has the team advanced a clear, cogent, and compelling vision for the future?
Just: Has the team demonstrated a commitment to equity, inclusion, and accessibility in the ideation and design of the solution and in its staffing and operations? Will the solution benefit different populations equitably – particularly historically marginalized people or populations with the greatest needs, both human and nonhuman?

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COMMENTS

12.5 Key Diversity Theories
Social Identity Theory. Social identity theory is another explanation of why diversity may be perceived as a negative outcome. Social identity theory suggests that when we first come into contact with others, we categorize them as belonging to an in-group (i.e., the same group as us) or an out-group (not belonging to our group). 137 We tend to ...
Teams Solve Problems Faster When They're More Cognitively Diverse
Looking at the executive teams we work with as consultants and those we teach in the classroom, increased diversity of gender, ethnicity, and age is apparent. Over recent decades the rightful ...
Why Diverse Teams Are Smarter
Why Diverse Teams Are Smarter. by. David Rock. and. Heidi Grant. November 04, 2016. Striving to increase workplace diversity is not an empty slogan — it is a good business decision. A 2015 ...
How Diversity Makes Us Smarter
Diversity enhances creativity. It encourages the search for novel information and perspectives, leading to better decision making and problem solving. Diversity can improve the bottom line of companies and lead to unfettered discoveries and breakthrough innovations. Even simply being exposed to diversity can change the way you think.
Working in Diverse Teams
22. Working in Diverse Teams. Decision-making and problem-solving can be much more dynamic and successful when performed in a diverse team environment. The multiple diverse perspectives can enhance both the understanding of the problem and the quality of the solution. Yet, working in diverse teams can be challenging given different identities ...
PDF Value Differences
• Create a culture that recognizes the strength in diversity and encourages cross-group and cross-cultural understanding • Actively seek out varied perspectives and points of view, bringing rigor and creative thinking to problem solving and decision making By fostering awareness of differences and encouraging interaction
5.5: Key Diversity Theories
Competing viewpoints attempt to explain how diversity is either harmful or beneficial to organizational outcomes. The cognitive diversity hypothesis suggests that multiple perspectives stemming from the cultural differences between group or organizational members result in creative problem solving and innovation.
Better Decisions Through Diversity
Heterogeneity can boost group performance. Expanding diversity in the workplace is often seen as a good way to inject fresh ideas into an otherwise stagnant environment, and incorporating new perspectives can help members tackle problems from a number of different angles. But only a few have looked into exactly why or how this is so.
Synergy from diversity: Managing team diversity to enhance performance
abstract 1. The business case for diversity holds that diversity leads to synergy; that is, having multiple perspectives results in performance benefits, such as improvements in decisionmaking, problem-solving, creativity, and innovation. Research on diversity in teams has documented conditions under which it leads to improved performance.
How Diversity Makes Us Smarter
Diversity enhances creativity. It encourages the search for novel information and perspectives, leading to better decision-making and problem-solving. Diversity can improve the bottom line of ...
Why Diversity and Inclusion Are Important for Problem-Solving
To activate diversity, you need to create an environment that embraces the different ways individuals think, feel, and act. This is achieved by taking small actions over time to make inclusive behaviors a habit. Below we'll discuss three ways to help your team encourage diversity and inclusion when problem-solving. 1. Make All Voices Count.
PDF The Science and Value of Diversity: Closing the Gaps in Our
evidence suggests that teams that include different kinds of thinkers outperform homogeneous groups on complex tasks, including improved problem solving, increased innovation, and more-accurate predictions—all of which lead to better perfor-mance and results when a diverse team is tasked to approach a given problem [1-3].
Diversity and Problem-Solving
A structured, repeatable yet iterative approach to problem-solving enhances mission outcomes while promoting diversity. Part of this approach involves breaking the problem into component parts and identifying resources to provoke diverse thoughts, recommendations, and solutions - from a wide variety of people - not just the experts.
12.3 Diversity and Its Impact on Companies
Diversity helps organizations perform best when it is aligned with a specific business strategy. For example, when companies use heterogeneous management teams that are directed by an entrepreneurial strategy focusing on innovation, the companies' productivity increases. When an entrepreneurial strategy is not present, however, team diversity ...
The Power of Cognitive Diversity in Team Problem-Solving
The importance of cognitive diversity in team problem-solving lies in its ability to stimulate critical thinking, promote a wider range of ideas and perspectives, and encourage creative solutions and out-of-the-box thinking. Teams with cognitive diversity are more adept at enhancing problem-solving speed through their varied thinking styles ...
BUS 341 Exam 1 Flashcards
BUS 341 Exam 1. According to the value in diversity problem-solving approach: Click the card to flip 👆. C. diversity in teams is beneficial because it provides for a larger pool of knowledge and information from which a team can draw as it carries out its work. Click the card to flip 👆.
12.6: Key Diversity Theories
Competing viewpoints attempt to explain how diversity is either harmful or beneficial to organizational outcomes. The cognitive diversity hypothesis suggests that multiple perspectives stemming from the cultural differences between group or organizational members result in creative problem solving and innovation.
How Diverse Teams Produce Better Outcomes
Groups with women happen to be more socially sensitive. They are better at reading others' social cues and more likely to make room for and consider interjections of varying opinions. This type ...
Why diversity is the secret to solving complex problems
For years, Scott Page, the John Seely Brown distinguished university professor of complexity, social science and management at UM-Ann Arbor, has been making a numbers case for diversity. His basic thesis: If you want innovation, or to solve complex 21st-century problems like income inequality or climate change, then groups of experts, at least ...
Organizational Behavior: Ch. 11-12 Flashcards
Study with Quizlet and memorize flashcards containing terms like 3 critical traits of personality, team diversity, Value in diversity problem-solving approach (to team diversity) and more.
The Power Of Diversity And Inclusion: Driving Innovation And ...
getty. Diversity and inclusion is a strategic advantage that promotes innovation in organizations, better decision making and stronger workplace cultures. See the strategies for building a diverse ...
'Diversity means better problem solving, more creativity and innovation'
Seeking discomfort is the key to growth. Cognitive diversity within a team situation leads to better problem solving, increased creativity and greater innovation. We only had to look to our ...
According to the value in diversity problem-solving approach:
Social Science. Business. Question. According to the value in diversity problem-solving approach: A. diversity in teams is beneficial because it provides for a larger pool of knowledge from which a team can draw as it carries out its work. B. diversity in teams is not beneficial if the problems to be solved are unfamiliar to the team members.
The Power Of Intercultural Communication And Dialogue
Constructive intercultural communication and dialogue are powerful strategies through which people with different backgrounds, values and perspectives seek to build environments intended to ...
MacArthur Foundation 100&Change
Program Summary. Solving society's biggest problems is not easy, but it can be done. 100&Change is a MacArthur Foundation competition for a $100 million grant to fund a single proposal that will make measurable progress toward solving a significant problem. 100&Change will select a bold proposal that promises real progress toward solving a ...

Why Diverse Teams Are Smarter

Partner Center

How Diversity Makes Us Smarter

Informational diversity fuels innovation

How diversity provokes new thinking

Active Listening

What we believe makes a difference

About the Author

Katherine W. Phillips

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Frequently Asked Questions

What Are Some Examples of Unconscious Biases That Can Hinder the Inclusion of Diverse Perspectives?

How Can Organizations Overcome Resistance to Change and Encourage the Embrace of Different Viewpoints?

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Margin Size

12.6: Key Diversity Theories

Learning Objectives

Cognitive Diversity Hypothesis