Response to #1
In “The Impact of Organizational Diversity Policies on Minority Employees’ Leadership Self-Perceptions and Goals,” Seval Gundemir and her coauthors argue that organizations should consider implementing diversity policies that openly acknowledge differences as a way to foster an organizational climate where minority employees feel empowered to pursue leadership roles. Based on their research, they advocate for diversity policies that acknowledge multiculturalism and individual differences as core values over colorblind policies that de-emphasize differences.
After reviewing the different template ideas in Graff and Birkenstein, I decided to go with a more conventional opening that summarized Gundemir et al’s argument all in one sentence. This took me a long time and it ended up being a very long sentence, but I think it captures what “they say” broadly. After reading it over a few times, I felt it needed a little more detail, so I wrote a second sentence that provided more “they say” specifics about their conclusions. I can see how this framing technique will be very useful to my writing. I feel I could easily transition from this opening to the “I say” part of an essay by using a next sentence that would start with something like “While these conclusions are insightful, I believe…”
Response to #3
The Gundemir et al and Austin and Pisano articles discuss ways of increasing the diversity of organizations and ways of creating more opportunities for minorities or people with differences. Ideally this will lead to opportunities in specific organizations, as well as ripple out to society as a whole. This is important research, but Gundemir et al base their conclusions on sterile experiments using volunteers and fictional companies, while Austin and Pisano highlight real companies that are taking new ideas and putting them immediately into practice in real work environments. I would say that their ideas matter but to different audiences. The Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies is read by other researchers, while Harvard Business Review is read by managers looking for tools to use.
Gundemir et al’s research may lead to ripple effects for society, but I don’t think the impact will happen as quickly as society needs. Gundemir et al begin their article by discussing the amount of time that has passed with little progress on diversity, but then they design a research study that will require organizations to change mission statements and policies which could take years to implement. After the new policies are approved, I can’t see how employees will rapidly change their behaviors and attitudes. When it comes to business practices, I think companies are more likely to adopt what is working in another company, rather than adopt what academic researchers have concluded in a hypothetical situation.
Highlight from my week
California lifted its mask mandate June 15, and I went to the gym for the first time without wearing one. I could actually breathe on the treadmill!
Dylan, while I wish that these studies will ripple out into society, I do believe that it will either take a lot longer than we would hope, like you said, and I am not sure if there will be a time when everyone is thought of in the exact same way by everyone. It seems as though there will always be at least one or two people who refuse to see people as they should be seen, which is as people.
I do agree that more companies will most likely adapt to these practices because it is being proven to be successful from other companies. Hopefully, they will see the positive results from having a diverse group of people sooner rather than later because while it would be nice if they did that for the sake of doing it, but at least they would be doing it at all.
Hi Dylan, I agree that the method used by Gundemir et al doesn’t seem as accurate in a sense in comparison to the Austin and Pisano article where they used the statistics of several companies to make their conclusion.I also like how you made sure to include the intended audiences of these articles. I personally wouldn’t say that their ideas matter to different audiences, I would say they have the same general idea: there should be implementations so that diversity whether it be racial or neurological, can increase as well, and also include the benefits that go hand in hand with this increase. However I definitely agree that they use different methods to convey this idea to their intended audience. Also I really like how you worded everything and tied your thoughts together.
Isn’t it great that everything is slowly coming back to normal? So glad you got to enjoy your time at the gym (and were able to breathe lol). I get my second shot in a few days so I’ll be celebrating soon since the mask mandate has been lifted in NY as well 🙂
Hooray for moving toward normal! It is nice, weird, but nice to begin moving about unmasked where the circumstances permit it, though I think I’ll be sticking with a mask in the grocery store for a long time because it helps to cover all the muttering-under-my-breath that I tend to do there 😉
You’re right that the kind of scholarship Gundemir et al are engaged in does not bear immediate fruit. In fact, like you said, their recommendations might take YEARS to implement. This is precisely why their scholarship is so important–because companies do mull these things over and do a lot of research before launching into a new direction, they are looking for the kind of scholarly backup that texts like this provide. They need to be able to demonstrate to their shareholders and their employees that they’ve done their homework and have the evidence to substantiate their plans.
So, you see, these texts play some important different roles–it’s great to see practical examples, but making the decision to move in a new direction requires the theoretical grounding, too.