How Diversity Affects the Bottom Line
Posted November 14th, 2016
Business experts constantly tout the benefits of having a diverse workplace. People from different backgrounds infuse a business with a variety of viewpoints and perspectives, as well as better representing the customers the company serves.
Now research is showing that diversity improves business decisions in much more fundamental ways than previously realized. It also produces bottom line results. Businesses that are more diverse outperform the industry average for financial returns.
But diverse teams just work smarter than more homogenous ones. A diverse environment forces people out of routine ways of thinking and planning.
1. Diverse groups pay more attention to facts.
Studies of juries with diverse members and those with more similar members showed that the juries with greater diversity brought out more facts of the cases and did not have as many errors of fact while deliberating the cases.
The studies show that more diverse groups are more apt to constantly reevaluate facts and to remain more objective. Members of diverse groups are also more likely to closely examine the arguments of other members, which keeps all of the members more alert and sharp.
Being in diverse teams has the effect of making team members examine their own biases and tunnel vision in their thinking.
2. Diverse groups also examine and evaluate the facts more carefully.
Researchers believe that diverse groups work through information more carefully than those that are more homogenous, enabling them to make better decisions.
3. Diverse teams also show more innovation
One study showed that companies who had more women were more likely to develop big innovations. Another survey showed that companies led by more diverse executives had a higher probability of developing new products than companies whose leadership was more uniform.
People may feel more comfortable working with people who look, talk, and think in a similar way, but this offers no spur to creative thinking. It is when people are forced out of their comfort zone that they become more innovative, and one of the things that does that is working in a diverse setting.
If your company is looking for a diverse workforce, Bayside Solutions can help you. We specialize in matching qualified workers in technology-related fields to companies where they can make an impact. Give Bayside Solutions a call today.
