Why Diversity Matters

Photo: Easley Blessed

A diverse workplace that has a mix of people that reflects the demographics of the population isn't just a matter of ethics, it's a matter of smart business. So says Andrés Tapia, President for Diversity Best Practices, one of three divisions of Working Mother Media, owned by Bonnier Corporation. "If you have an inclusive workplace you will not only be able to attract the best talent, but be able to meet a much wider range of markets," says Tapia. "Companies that fail to reach out to diverse markets are going to lose out, and the best way to make sure you reach out to them is to have a diverse staff. Demographics are our destiny."

Diversity Best Practices is an anomaly within Bonnier Corporation - it's not a magazine but an international membership organization for businesses, non-profits and government agencies, producing research, reports, conferences and webinars as well as providing consulting services. It has nearly 140 members, including large international corporations Siemens, Sodexo, Hyatt, United Airlines and IBM, among others.

"We have long helped our members with benchmarking studies assessing the diversity within their organizations," says Tapia. "And now we've expanded by providing consulting to help them take what they learn from the benchmarking and implement real changes." The consulting was one of the first things Tapia decided needed to be offered when he joined as president in January 2011.

Tapia, who is originally from Peru, started out as a journalist, ending up in corporate communications including most recently an eight-year stint at Hewitt Associates, where he inaugurated the position of Chief Diversity Officer. One of Tapia's greatest achievements - and biggest challenges - for Diversity Best Practices is its ability to lead and shape the field of diversity. "I want us to be a trailblazer," he says.

Being a trailblazer means pushing the next generation of diversity issues, according to Tapia. And one of the biggest of these is global diversity. "People tend to have a superficial view of diversity," he says. "People are for diversity and think it's good, but that's not enough. Inclusion is not an attitude, it's a cross-cultural competence. Increasingly, companies work across borders and people need to learn to work well together with people completely outside their own country culture. It's a question of how do I get the most out of the workforce."

Which is not to say that there aren't issues specific to countries - whether it's race in the U.S. or immigrants in Europe. "But if I have to say one issue that's a hot button globally, it's women," says Tapia. "In Europe it can be getting women on boards of directors and in the Middle East it can be getting the right to drive."

As for advice to companies who are looking over their own inclusion policies and practices, Tapia says they need to set aside their more superficial assumptions about multiculturalism. "It's more than being respectful of others," he says. "It's about understanding why your company needs to reflect society. Diversity is the mix. But inclusion is about making the mix work. The thing to remember is that greater diversity will affect what you write about, who you write about and how you present it and ultimately it will help you grow your circulation."