Tag: Dylan

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!

Response to #1

“What is organizational culture and why should we care?” by Michael Watkins provided many viewpoints on the topic but did not bring anything into sharp focus for me. After reading the various definitions, I began to wonder if organizational culture was actually just another “tool” created by management to be used to influence employee behavior, motivate them to work, and improve their performance. Perhaps all the talk about belonging and core values is really a form of manipulation? In other words, perhaps organizational culture is nothing more than an algorithm that creates greater profit. Companies are always upgrading their technology, maximizing the efficiency of their supply chains, trying new marketing strategies, etc, constantly looking for a competitive edge and higher profits. Is organizational culture just another one of those things that companies are working on and finetuning to maximize their profits at a particular point in time? I am interested in knowing if anyone has studied this.

The statistics in “Why Diversity Matters” by Vivian Hunt, Dennis Layton, and Sara Prince are widely referenced. On the surface, it all makes sense. A more diverse workforce will help your company understand the needs of more customers and see more opportunities in more markets. Therefore, you will make more profit. But I’m wondering if there is another factor that could also be contributing to the financial results that is buried in the data. I say this because this statement from the article seems to work against the idea of diversity: “While certain industries perform better on gender diversity and other industries on ethnic and racial diversity, no industry or company is in the top quartile on both dimensions.” In other words, companies don’t do as well if they have both gender and ethnic and racial diversity. I am curious to know more about this. Furthermore, the McKinsey study looked at the composition of top management and boards in 2014 and financial data for the years 2010 to 2013. This seems like a short time frame for the analysis. I am curious to know if diversity matters over the long term. Do companies with diversity from the start have a better chance of surviving and thriving over the long term? Does diversity make a difference all along the lifecycle of company?

Response to #2

In the article “Why Diversity Matters,” the authors state that diversity “leads to a virtuous cycle of increasing returns.” This immediately makes me think of my experiences in my high school’s vocal jazz ensemble. I was fortunate to go to a high school with a vocal music program that became a powerhouse because of the wide range of racial and ethnic diversity in our district. When I was in high school, I did not realize that so much of our success depended on our music director’s talent for selecting just the right composition of performers. Every song had complex arrangements and harmonies requiring a range of male and female voices. We also needed vocalists who could scat, beatbox and do vocal percussion, carry a walking bassline, and perform songs from different genres ranging from chamber jazz to gospel to pop. Factoring into all of that was each individual singer’s racial, ethnic, and cultural background that shaped our sound. Year after year, our jazz vocal groups would travel to competitions throughout California, and we would regularly win the top awards. We were often invited to perform at festivals like the Monterey Jazz Festival. We were named the best high school vocal jazz program in the nation by Downbeat magazine. Now that I think back to our competitions against other schools, I can clearly see that our diversity was the element that made us better performers.