ARTICLES

--Linda Gravett, Ph.D., SPHR

Over the past few years, I’ve encountered frustrated Human Resource practitioners and Organization Development staff who’ve attempted to provide diversity training for their companies…..with marginal or even negative results.  My observation is that there are ten primary reasons why well-intentioned diversity training fails.  I’d like to address them in this article.

 1.                  The Training is Driven by EEO or Affirmative Action.

Some companies find themselves developing an Affirmative Action Plan, perhaps in response to a desire to obtain a government contract which requires vendors to have an AAP in place.  Consequently, the company decides to provide “diversity training” to instruct its managers and staff about the technical points in the Affirmative Action Plan. 

While I believe that an Affirmative Action Plan is a key component of a diversity initiative, I do not believe that training which covers the numerical calculations employed to develop the Plan will not heighten awareness about dimensions of diversity nor help people understand their individual biases that limit personal and organizational effectiveness.    In other words, if you have an Affirmative Action Plan and want people to understand it, call the training “Affirmative Action Plan Training,” not diversity training.

2.                  The Training is Considered the Moral Thing to Do.

Perhaps the company President or the Human Resource Director believes that valuing diversity and making an effort not to pre-judge people based on their external characteristics are the “right” things to do.  That’s great, but I don’t recommend pulling together a training initiative to try to convince every participant that they should hold these same values.  Diversity training should be provided, rather, to help employees understand that certain behaviors, competencies, and skills are valued and rewarded - regardless of age, race, ethnicity, or gender - because they ensure the organization’s success. 

3.                  Training is the Only Activity.

A successful diversity initiative results from ongoing efforts of many kinds, rather than a one-time training activity.  Diversity initiatives typically start with a cultural assessment to discover what employees think about the organization’s recruiting, training, performance management, communication, and human resource development practices.  Results are compiled and broken out by characteristics such as gender, age, race, and perhaps tenure and type of position.  Following the culture audit, appropriate interventions can be designed.  These interventions may include development of a mentor program; training in areas such as conflict resolution and sexual harassment; and redesign of the performance management system.

4.                  There is Management Support, But Not Management Commitment.

I’ve had managers in my career who’ve said, “I’m behind you all the way.”  This is not what I want!  I want managers who are leaders, who are showing the way.  In order for diversity training to show long-term results, management must do more than foot the bill for the internal or external consultant who is developing and facilitating the training.  Specific objectives should be set prior to the training; that is, what does success look like after three months?  six months? a year?  Management must serve as a role model for the behaviors identified in the training and be available to address questions or concerns about the topics covered. 

5.                  Training is “Off the Shelf.”

While some concepts within the realm of managing a diverse workforce exist regardless of the type of organization, “canned” training cannot address every organization’s unique challenges and culture.  If a training program covers race and gender issues, but your company has conflict and misunderstanding related to age differences within the workforce, the training is not going to be effective or appreciated.  Target your money and your time where the need exists (which you can determine in part from the culture audit).

6.                  Only External Consultants Are Used.

An external consultant can definitely bring expertise and an objective point of view to your diversity efforts.  An external consultant does not, however, live in your culture on a day-to-day basis and can’t understand all the organizational nuances and personalities of employees.  For this reason, I’ve found that a partnership between a Diversity Council and an external consultant work best for training efforts.  This partnership can take many forms, such as “Train the Trainer” sessions that enable internal staff to facilitate future training.  Another option is joint design of ongoing training efforts.

7.                  Training is Conducted Without a Needs Assessment.

This is like using a shotgun instead of a rifle.  Instead of focusing on specific needs and concerns, several areas are covered during training in the hope that something will strike a chord.  A needs assessment, in the form of a culture audit, can help identify what kind of training and what format for training are most appropriate.  The Diversity Council and external consultant are then in a position to establish training objectives, design a program that will address participants’ real-world needs, and develop criteria for both short-term and long-term evaluation of the training.

8.                  Training is Awareness-Based Only.

There is certainly a need in many organizations to heighten awareness about the value and business necessity for engaging different perspectives.  There is a need in many organizations to demonstrate how stereotypes and biases can limit individual effectiveness and put a distance between co-workers.  Once these concepts are raised, however, people need to know what to do with them.  Follow-on training such as Teambuilding with Myers-Briggs, Resolving Conflicts and Getting to Win-Win, and Coaching for Success are concrete, specific skill building sessions that build on awareness training.  If this ongoing training doesn’t occur, people feel that their expectations have been raised and no real change happens.

9.                  There are No Internal Resources After Training.

Does your organization have a diversity library?  Is there an inclusive mentor program in place?  Is ongoing training such as Conflict Resolution offered to people who’ve attended diversity training?  Are policies in place and communicated widely dealing with sexual and racial harassment?  If these resources are not in place BEFORE the diversity training begins, I don’t have much hope for the long-term success of the endeavor.

10.             There is No Follow-Up Plan to Training.

The biggest question most participants ask at the end of diversity training (or soon afterwards) is, “what’s next?”  Participants want to understand the changes that will occur within the organization and their role in making those changes a reality.  Participants want to understand what policies and procedures are in place, or will be in place, to ensure that recruiting, performance management, and career development are inclusive.  In short, participants will want to know what to expect….and the leadership of the organization must have an answer to that question.

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