After
Wall Street firms repeatedly had to shell out millions to settle discrimination
lawsuits, businesses started to get serious about their efforts to increase
diversity. But unfortunately, they don’t seem to be getting results: Women and
minorities have not gained much ground in management over the past 20 years.
The problem is, organizations are trying to reduce bias with the same kinds of
programs they’ve been using since the 1960s. And the usual tools—diversity
training, hiring tests, performance ratings, grievance systems—tend to make
things worse, not better. The authors’ analysis of data from 829 firms over
three decades shows that these tools actually decrease the proportion of women
and minorities in management. They’re designed to preempt lawsuits by policing
managers’ decisions and actions. But as lab studies show, this kind of
force-feeding can activate bias and encourage rebellion. However, in their
analysis the authors uncovered numerous diversity tactics that do move the
needle, such as recruiting initiatives, mentoring programs, and diversity task
forces. They engage managers in solving the problem, increase contact with
women and minority workers, and promote social accountability. In this article,
the authors dig into the data, executive interviews, and several examples to
shed light on what doesn’t work and what does. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]