What does diversity and inclusion really mean in practice? I've argued in past articles published in this column that:
"...diversity and inclusion is really about disagreement. Indeed, it is about promoting the notion that it's acceptable to disagree as long as everyone (diversity) has an opportunity to contribute their ideas and thoughts, and that those contributions are recognized and considered equally, regardless of the contributor (inclusion)...?"
But, diversity and inclusion (as it's currently being practiced in corporate America) could simply be an attempt by firms to be politically correct. What do you think?
The answer may not be a simple one!
Take the James Damore situation, for example. He is the Google engineer that was fired last year because he posted a memo to an internal Google message board, arguing that women may not be equally represented in technology fields because they are biologically less capable of engineering.
The situation begs the questions: Was Google being diverse and inclusive when firing Damore for expressing his opinion about why women are underrepresented in tech jobs?
Regardless of what you think about Damore's position on the subject (I happen to think that Damore's position is ridiculous and fully unfounded in any science that I'm aware of), Google is clearly not being inclusive by firing someone for expressing his belief on its internal message board. The move makes you wonder, will they be firing the "flat-earth" crowd next?
Now, of course, some may argue that Damore was fired for expressing a personal belief that could be seen as offensive, which was not related to the business and therefore Google was right to fire him. But, let's test that.
Apparently, Damore was offering his opinion on the state of women in tech jobs. It would seem that the topic was a legit one to weigh in on at Google. The hiring of women engineers is certainly an issue at Google. Just last year, three female former Google employees filed a lawsuit against the company, which stated, in part, that Google provides women with less opportunity for upward mobility than men.
All of this makes you wonder had Damore shared a different (say, more Politically Correct) opinion on that internal message board, would he have still been relieved of his duties.
Businesses, like Google, can't have it both ways. They can't preach the need and promote the power of diversity and inclusion and punish those that share opinions that aren't popular. Either, they're about finding the best answers for their organization by soliciting opinions from their workforce (regardless of whom they are and what they believe) or they're not. To play the game of deciding which opinions we want to hear and celebrate, and those we want to call out and punish, is just a more sophisticated way of remaining exclusive.
To close, Damore filed a reverse discrimination lawsuit against Google last week, claiming that his former employer unfairly discriminates against white men whose political views are unpopular with its executives. Another former, Google staffer joined him in the lawsuit.
If the case fully plays out in the courts, we may be able to see how the judicial system handles the question about diversity and inclusion in the workplace. Until then, please reach out to me to discuss how we can help you to manage this important issue optimally in your enterprise.