More in Common Than We Think

The quote on my Starbucks cup today reminded me of the Thomas and Ely chapter in our book. It said, "I wish we could all realize we have more in common than we think." To me, this quote sums up much of what we need to think about when considering issues related to diversity, especially when we think about diversity and how it relates to accomplishing goals.


First, Thomas and Ely (2007) emphasize that diversity is not about simply having members of different races or ethnicities working together, as some assume. They point out that leaders who utilize a diverse workforce effectively share a commonality:


[These] leaders realize that increasing demongraphic variation does not in itself increase organizational effectiveness. They realize that it is how a company defines diversity--and what it does with the experiences of being a diverse organization-- that delivers on the promise. (p. 271)


The authors then offer up three different approaches to defining and "doing" diversity. The first is a discrimination-and-fairness paradigm, that is most common and depends treating all employees exactly the same, thereby eliminating any rewards or punishments for difference.


The second is the access-and-legitimacy paradigm, a relatively new idea, that relies on leveraging differences for the company's (or institution's) benefit, which sounds great but potential isolates or pigeonholes the "different" members of the organization, excluding these members from opportunities others have.


And, the final and newest approach is the one that the authors label the emerging paradigm, or connection diversity to work perspectives. This concept is the synthesis of of the two concepts described above, which can be simplified as assimilation and differentiation, in that it both "promotes equal opportunity for all individuals" and "acknowledges cultural differences among people and recognizes the value in those differences" (Thomas and Ely, 2007, p. 279). The difference in this final paradigm is that the differences are not seen as either hindrances or assets (in the monetary sense), but rather just an essential part of the organization or the team.



This paradigm shift corresponds to me, with the ideas about authentic and transformative leadership since these leaders have a vision that all members of the institution believe in. The vision must be one that creates a common goal and bond for all members of the institution, so that the differences between people become just another part of what is needed to accomplish the goal.