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It’s no secret that in
today’s global marketplace competition is keen, and the skills, knowledge
and abilities required to keep up with, let alone lead the competition,
are becoming increasingly sophisticated. Supplier relationships are often
spread across the globe and can become very complex, given language and
cultural barriers. The demographics of the existing or potential customer
base of many organizations is a moving target. In the meantime,
shareholders in private sector companies and stakeholders in public sector
organizations have high expectations for profit or results as a return on
their investment in time, money, or both. Additionally, the U.S. has
become a litigious society with a marked increase in the past few years in
costly sexual harassment, racial harassment, and other diversity related
lawsuits. These factors all support the necessity for strategic planning
with a diversity initiative as an integral component of that planning
process.
Organizations today spend a great deal of time, effort and money on
sending their leaders to off-site retreats for an annual strategic
planning session. Typically, a major portion of the time is devoted to
establishing a Mission Statement (which addresses the question, “why are
we here”?) and a Vision Statement (which addresses another question –
“where do we see ourselves headed for the future”?). Unfortunately, these
plans often don’t focus on implementation tactics for achieving the
Mission and Vision or take into consideration environmental barriers and
support mechanisms that will help or deter positive efforts. Some
companies develop tactics to carry out their objectives and goals but
don’t establish a series of process checkpoints and measures to assess how
well those tactics are being carried out.
I
believe in order to achieve its Mission and Vision, every organization
requires specific competencies to ensure survival and success. For
example, you most certainly need expertise to locate potential customers
for your product or service. Do you have staff who knows how to craft a
message that will appeal to these potential customers? For example, if
you wish to expand your marketplace into South America, you’ll want to
understand the language, culture, and currency in target countries. As
part of a diversity initiative, you would need Human Resources staff or
consultants who are conversant with labor laws (if there are labor laws)
in those target countries.
Perhaps your organization has established the objective of enhancing its
image within the community as part of its strategic plan. The concept of
“responsible corporate citizen” is different in other countries. In
Swedish companies, for example, parents are often allowed to take
paternity or maternity leave at their discretion. The desire for
balancing work and family life has been a mainstay of the Swedish society
and is an expected work benefit. Swedes frequently surprise their
international clients when they leave at 5:00 p.m. with the announced
intention of spending time with their families. U.S. business people
might judge this behavior as a lack of commitment to work, when in fact
Swedes may be demonstrating a strong commitment to quality of life. This
type of cultural difference must be explored before engaging in business
with international companies and is therefore an important part of any
diversity initiative.
Years ago, I was carrying out a segment of my organization’s strategic
plan which was to develop and deliver training for new accounting
procedures. Sounds pretty straightforward, right? The organization where
I was employed was in the Far East, and my trainees were all Japanese.
Since I could speak the language, I was under the (mistaken) impression
that conducting the training myself would not be a problem. During the
workshops, my students were smiling and nodding – and had no questions
when I asked if anyone needed clarification. Following the training, I
was totally frustrated when all my students (who were also my direct
reports) continued to use exactly the same procedures that they were using
before the training!
I
called upon a Japanese colleague for some advice, and he reminded me of
Japanese cultural norms. The “boss” is revered, as are teachers. In this
case, I was both. If the students had asked me questions during the
training, it would have caused me to “lose face” (they thought) because I
couldn’t teach effectively. I obviously had to find another way to
educate my students to ensure they had the knowledge required to do their
jobs. During a follow-up workshop, I designed small mini-quizzes and
provided individual feedback to clarify points that weren’t being
grasped. This time, the training was successful. However, I had wasted
training days and energy for myself and my staff because my planning
didn’t incorporate cultural norms!
A
critical component of strategic planning is implementation. Successful
implementation depends on inclusion of the unique skills, talents, and
knowledge of individual employees. Therefore, I believe no organization
today can afford to omit tactics that address the diversity of its
customers, suppliers, shareholders, and employees – if it wants to
successfully achieve it’s Mission and Vision.
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