Diversity: Expanding Beyond Traditional Dimensions

My career in recruitment started right after I finished my psychology degree and at that point, I had a pretty traditional idea of what my role as a consultant would entail. We were given a target area: US FinTech. And so we went! Numerous emails, cold calls, LinkedIn posts, advertisements... You get the image.

Meetings started coming in and with this - the opportunity to speak to C-level executives of businesses making waves worldwide, people you would recognize as key players in shaping the FinTech landscape. During these meetings, I was often presented with the image of inclusivity and the mission of building a diverse teams.

Plenty of research and discussions showed that having a highly diverse team leads to varied skill sets which in turn boosts not only creativity and innovation but also performance. Diversity is also essential in fostering a supportive work culture and driving effective communication so leaders wanted to use this to better their chances of successful workplaces.

But there was one major issue:

The definition of diversity.

I kept encountering the same two areas people would look to prioritize in order to create what they deemed a "diverse" environment: race and gender.

Race is a protected characteristic that refers to an individual's race, color, nationality, and ethnic or national origins. At the same time, gender diversity means that women and men are hired at a similar and consistent rate, are paid equally, and are given the same opportunities, be that access to resources, promotions, or pay.

I want to make it clear that I do not in any way want to diminish the importance of both of these areas. The problem stems from the hyper focus they receive and the lack of acknowledgment for areas equally as important and yet often discussed a lot less.

Let's look at five areas of diversity often overlooked:

• Age Diversity: recognizing differences across age groups and allowing collaboration across all ages: is important not only for the varied perspectives and ideals that exist across generations but also for the knowledge transfer that older individuals would possess around institutional knowledge. In the FinTech market, this was particularly important, the ability to relate to a more diverse customer base helped teams to develop better products, services, and marketing strategies. Age diversity fosters a culture of innovation since younger employees often bring a forward-thinking approach and familiarity with the latest technologies, whilst older employees may contribute insights gained through their years of experience!
• LGBTQIA+ Diversity: This one is close to my heart since this is a community I represent and have been a part of all my life. I work in an industry dominated by masculinity, and toxic and outdated attitudes - sadly a lot of the tech world is still reflective of these issues in 2023. Discussing with others from the community it was clear that we were looking for one common thing - a space for us to be ourselves, discuss things, and share experiences that reflect our true lives and not just the image that is often expected within the corporate world. Fostering a culture and ensuring that your team members can be open (if they wish to) about their sexuality or identity will help team members to have a healthier mental attitude and feel a lot more supported in their workplace.
• Socioeconomic Diversity: differences in socioeconomic status, including income levels, education, and financial background. This will be an entire article in itself - I promise. World Inequality Database is a great visual guide to understanding differences across varying socioeconomic statuses in the world, give their evaluation tool a try - you may be surprised to learn which percentage of the population you represent. Encouraging diversity across this area is integral in breaking down stereotypes associated with class.

• Work Style Diversity: the way we work varies from person to person and it can include everything from how to approach tasks, solve problems, communicate, collaborate, and manage time. Without taking this into consideration employers risk lost time and productivity, workplace stress, financial costs, and employee despair and departure. I love this article from Financial Management - it highlights the importance of analysing individual styles and creating a work environment where productivity is not affected by rigid and outdated methods.
• Religious and Spiritual Diversity: this diversity encompasses a range of faith traditions, worldviews, and individual spiritual beliefs that people hold. This article from Harvard Business Review is fantastic in highlighting a few ways that business have successfully accommodated and created environments for people to be comfortable in sharing and following their deep beliefs and values which influence their work and personal lives.

I have seen articles list over thirty areas of diversity for companies to consider when building an effective workforce that is truly representative of the real world out there. Understanding the true meaning of diversity is one step in the right direction, step two is looking at how implement in this knowledge on a personal level and eventually that of a business.

As always I am keen to hear your thoughts and my door is always open to listen to your story.