Most of us profess to like diversity. After the recent tragic terrorist attacks in Manchester, one of the things the city celebrated was its diversity. Post the murder of Jo Cox MP, many of us have come together for events in her memory, celebrating the “more in Common” mantra. Article by Stephen Frost, Founder – Frost Included.
However, what does Brexit say about our attitudes to diversity? How has the split it has caused in families, workplaces and social groups played out? To be truly inclusive, we first have to look deep inside ourselves. And we have to be honest about what we find.
Getting personal
If we reflected on our closest friends, our closest colleagues, our partner and neighbours, would we find that we liked diversity as much as we profess? What would this ‘In-group’ tell us about our real attitudes to diversity?
The world over, in varied cultures, environments and countries we tend to prefer sameness to difference. This phenomenon is called homophily and is natural and normal to human beings. If you have a relatively homogenous In-group, you are like 90 percent of the population – your In-group looks pretty much like you. Not just in terms of the demographics such as race, but in terms of political leanings, alcohol preference and sense of humour.
That’s great and should be celebrated. We need space to be ourselves, to relax, to have commonalities with people, norms and protocols that require no deep understanding or effort. But in a professional context, homogenous In-groups can be dangerous. Your professional Out-group can help you make better decisions
In business, we are generally paid to use our neo-frontal cortex, the conscious part of our brain, and make reasoned judgements and decisions in the interests of the organisation paying our wage. However, most of the time we rely on the amygdala, the more reptilian part of our brain that is prone to unconscious decision-making. The significance of this is that it allows bias free reign and doesn’t challenge our decision making sufficiently.
If we surround ourselves with different people, people from our ‘Out-group’, this will generally challenge bias and assumptions more than not. That challenge is in our own professional interest as it calibrates our thinking, covers blind spots and brings new perspectives to bear. This is generally all good stuff when it comes to making informed decisions in the interests of the organisation.
Examples of this would be consulting someone who doesn’t drink when planning a staff social event. Or asking someone with access requirements when choosing a venue. But it would also be assigning someone to the differing protagonist perspective in a board meeting. How can you consciously step into someone else’s shoes to see the decision from their perspective and so better calibrate the decision you are about to make?
Why this is more important than ever is because, as professionals, we are stressed. The amount of information we have to process is doubling every two years. We are becoming overwhelmed.. At times of stress we revert to the amygdala and retreat to what we already (think) we know, despite being paid to use the neo-frontal cortex and deploy conscious reasoning.
We therefore face a choice. Either train our own brains to make better decisions, which is possible, but hard. Or surround ourselves with as much difference as possible and let other people do it for us. Including your Out-group is in our own professional self-interest.
Your Out-group can help society stem the tide of division
Brexit is a polarizing issue, up there with Trump, immigration and opposing football teams. But if we are not conscious of our Out-groups, we ignore them at our peril. Most Londoners who voted to remain in the EU didn’t imagine that others would be so passionate about leaving. Most Democrats didn’t believe that so many ‘natural’ Democrat voters in the US rust belt would vote Trump.
So in order to avoid further social segregation, not just politically, but technologically on Facebook and Twitter, and socially in our communities, we need to become aware of who is not in our In-group and reach out to them. Examples could be as simple as talking to the neighbours, joining a different social group, celebrating a different festival. But if we don’t proactively and consciously include, we will unconsciously exclude. And ultimately, none of us want to live in such a divided society.
So surrounding ourselves with difference is not only good professionally in terms of decision making, it is also great for the common good and living in a more peaceful society. As HR professionals, we can perhaps appreciate the urgency of this endeavor and the importance of these insights. We have a greater responsibility than most to use our expertise, to use our insights for benefitting not only ourselves and our organisations but also the wider world around us.
Stephen Frost is the founder of Frost Included, a consultancy that works with HR professionals to help them embed inclusion in their decision making. His latest book, Inclusive Talent Management – How business can thrive in an age of diversity, is out now, published by Kogan Page.
