The Richness of Authentic Diversity
Variety of color adds to the beauty of a bouquet of flowers but is that all you want for your business? For it to look good?

Superficial diversity may look like something beneficial but if you are using race/ethnicity and gender as your only criteria, you may be limiting your organization’s potential for greatness.

Many organizations have taken credit for having me in their ranks. I’m African American, Native American, female and identified as lesbian due to my most recent relationships. The fact is - I was raised in middle class white neighborhoods, went to Santa Clara University and University of San Francisco. My culture was very similar to many others who were raised in the Silicon Valley at the time. Is it my color that makes me unique? I say it’s my collective experience and my cumulative responses to that experience that have shaped a character that is unique to me.

When looking for diversity, I believe we should be looking for different perspectives, wisdom, experiences, skills, framework, education, approaches, thinking.

When looking for this level of diversity, you will naturally find yourself selecting people from different cultures, races, ethnicities and genders. The key is to evaluate the whole person and invite the whole person to bring their gifts to your organization.

How do you invite the whole person to an organization? The invitation to authentic diversity needs to be pervasive and integral to your organization’s:

Hiring Philosophy
Development Philosophy
Organizational Culture
Spirited Conversations
Spirited Teams
Organizational Thinking

Contact us for a more in depth view of the ways Spirited Contribution and Authentic Diversity can work for you!

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