Book Review: Making Diversity Work

Joe Wynne is a versatile Project Manager experienced in delivering medium-scope projects in large organizations that improve workforce performance and business processes. He has a proven track record of delivering effective, technology-savvy solutions in a variety of industries and a unique combination of strengths in both process management and workforce management.

  Diversity   Organizational Culture  

It is unfortunate that so many references and training courses covering workforce diversity lack a certain amount of substance, a certain amount of business practicality. Diversity training has been the cause of a lot of jokes. If you have suffered through this type of training, you might remember embarrassing activities. At its worst, diversity training may fail to connect egalitarian leadership with improved performance.

But now there is Making Diversity Work: Seven Steps for Defeating Bias in the Workplace by Sondra Thiederman, PhD, a book that successfully links project workforce problem-solving with diversity-enlightened interaction strategies.

This is a business-savvy look at these issues, not a view from a political analyst or social worker. The guidance is practical and the expected results are attainable. The many potential consequences for organizations are described clearly, for example:

• The inability to convince or persuade workers
• Leader's intensions are suspect
• Poor hiring decisions
• Reduced retention
• Litigation

Bias, according to Thiederman, is an inflexible belief about a kinship group. And there are plenty to go around, based on race, religion, age, gender, country of origin, disability, pregnancy status and so on. Making Diversity Work takes a personal introspection approach to help …

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