June 20th, 2007
On February 8th and 9th of 2007, the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce, Chicano Awareness Center, Urban League of Nebraska and Alegent Health sponsored a Decision Accelerator on Community and Workplace Diversity and Inclusion. The participants were from large and small organizations, for profit and not for profit, as well as education, faith-based and civic organizations. This is a summary of that collaborative process and its outcome.
We believe that Diversity and Inclusion are critical to the continued success and evolution of organizations in the Omaha community and the community itself.
It is our belief that Omaha now has a unique opportunity to build upon its momentum and capitalize on its strengths by investing leadership and resources in the areas of Diversity and Inclusion.
We believe that Diversity and Inclusion are critical components in the success, vitality and continued evolution of a community.
- Diversity and Inclusion are drivers of innovation and creativity, and innovation and creativity have replaced productivity and efficiency as opportunities for a competitive advantage.
- Community Diversity and Inclusion enhance the visitor experience.
- Diversity makes a city more attractive to cultural events and diversity conferences.
- Diversity increases openness to, awareness of, and greater access to global markets as well as cultural niche markets.
- Diversity is an attractor for knowledge workers as well as organizations that hope to hire and retain knowledge workers.
We propose specific actions for Omaha to take on a community level to realize the benefits that Diversity and Inclusion offer.
INTRODUCTION:
Diversity and Inclusion have for many years been viewed as issues belonging primarily to the domain of social justice and human relations work. In recent years, the business community has started to view these issues as more integral to organizational success than in the past, and with the increasing impact of globalization and the growing importance of innovation, Diversity and Inclusion are now understood as key factors in establishing a competitive advantage.
“At AT&T, diversity and inclusion are essential components of a successful business strategy. We have a rich heritage of diversity that has given our company a competitive edge. By respecting and including different viewpoints, we are better able to serve our customers, employees, business partners and communities.”
-Edward E. Whitacre Jr. Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, AT&T
As Diversity and Inclusion have come to be seen as critical components of business success, there has also been an increased appreciation for the value of Diversity and Inclusion on a community level. Businesses that are increasing their focus on, and commitment to, Diversity and Inclusion, can only succeed to the extent that their community succeeds in the area of attracting, engaging and retaining a diverse and talented workforce. Firms that consider Diversity and Inclusion to be critical to their success may not be willing to locate or expand in communities that are not successful in attracting and retaining a diverse workforce. It can now be said that Diversity and Inclusion provide a potential competitive advantage for not only organizations, but also for communities, regardless of their size or geographic location.
“One of the major reasons for Silicon Valley’s success is our ability to attract people from all over the world to live and work in our area. The cultural mix and the resulting diversity of ethnic traditions, viewpoints, and value systems (both, personal and professional) have enriched all of our lives. Silicon Valley has become a model of how diversity can add strength and unity to a community.”
-The Silicon Valley Gateway, http://www.siliconvalley-usa.com/about/?f=yes
The world has, in many ways, changed and some of these changes have contributed, and are contributing, to a paradigm shift regarding the issues of Diversity and Inclusion.
1. Demographics: There are massive demographic shifts taking place in this country. Baby boomers, the largest of all generations are getting ready to begin leaving the workforce. This means that there will be a significant transition in leadership during the next decade, and a shortage of talent. Our population is also becoming more racially and ethnically diverse as minority populations (Hispanic and Latino, Asian American, Native American, African American and Multi-Racial) are all growing more rapidly than the white population. A few numbers to consider:
- Baby-Boomers are nearing retirement, and subsequent "generations" have not been nearly as large. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) estimates that there will be 10 million more open positions than available workers in 2010, and the Employment Policy Foundation (EPF) projects that this gap will grow to 35 million by 2030!
- The 500 largest U.S. companies will lose 50% of their senior managers over the next five years to retirement, according to an IBM study.
- The U.S. Department of Labor reports that by the end of 2008, 70% of new entrants into the workforce will be women and racial / ethnic minorities.
2. Mobility: Due to globalization, technology and significant changes in the nature of our economy, people, jobs and organizations are all much more mobile than ever before in history. This has made “place” much more important and has greatly impacted the role of cities.
- Today’s workforce is more mobile, better informed, more individualistic than ever before and confident in its ability to move. (Towers Perrin, 2001)
- Cities and regions no longer compete simply for foreign direct investment and tourism in the international economy. They now also compete to be the locus for new growing firms with their innovators and entrepreneurs, foreign students, a new generation of footloose and temporary workers, institutional investors, globally developing companies, university campuses, business schools, laboratories and science centers, artistic and cultural facilities and public finance. They also compete to host major events such as global summits, major sporting events and major business shows. (Greg Clark, CEO, Cities and Regions)
These are exciting times for Omaha. In recent years we have seen a significant investment in our city that has given us an entirely new riverfront, a convention center and numerous other new developments in Downtown Omaha. Ongoing efforts such as Building Bright Futures, Destination Midtown, Omaha By Design, Empower Omaha, the North Omaha Development Project show great promise for the future.
We are blessed with business leadership in Omaha that is very community-minded and public-private partnerships abound. Omaha has a healthy non-profit sector that contributes to our educational, cultural and service efforts. We also benefit from a proactive and visionary Chamber of Commerce that not only sits at many important “intersections” in our community, but also acts as a catalyst in bringing people together and moving projects forward.
It is our belief
that Omaha now has a unique opportunity to build upon its momentum and capitalize on its strengths by investing leadership and resources in the areas of Diversity and Inclusion. We believe that Diversity and Inclusion are critical components in the success, vitality and continued evolution of a community.
- Diversity and Inclusion are drivers of innovation and creativity, and innovation and creativity have replaced productivity and efficiency as opportunities for a competitive advantage.
- Community Diversity and Inclusion enhance the visitor experience.
- Diversity makes a city more attractive to cultural events and diversity conferences.
- Diversity increases openness to, awareness of, and greater access to global markets as well as cultural niche markets.
- Diversity is an attractor for knowledge workers as well as organizations that hope to hire and retain knowledge workers.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
On February 8th and 9th, Alegent Health, the Urban League of Nebraska, Chicano Awareness Center and the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce co-sponsored a Decision Accelerator.
Accelerated Decision Making is an innovative and proven process used by organizations such as Apple, Intel, Hewlett Packard and IDEO to drive innovation, breakthroughs in technology, consumer products, services and business design. With experienced facilitators guiding the process, Accelerated Decision Making brings together groups of people who have a stake in the issue and provides them all the resources and background information they need to dialogue, build consensus, establish a shared vision and make decisions about recommendations for pursuing their vision. The process produces sound decisions, rapidly, through facilitated dialogue and collaboration, immediate access to research, real-time knowledge capture, action planning and consensus building.
The Community and Workplace Diversity and Inclusion Decision Accelerator was structured, planned and facilitated by Stu Winby, founder and managing partner of The Sapience Group. Stu Winby’s practice area focus is in strategy innovation, organization strategy and execution, and individual and executive team development. Stu managed Hewlett Packard’s Strategy, Organization, and Change Organization for over ten years. Prior to this position he managed HP’s Factory of the Future organization and program. His work has been documented in numerous books, articles and professional journals. Several Harvard Business School case studies have been written on projects he has consulted to, as well as best practice case studies documented by the Conference Board and others. Stu has been an active member in numerous initiatives such the White House Initiative on Productivity and the California Governor work-place forums. He has been a frequent guest lecturer at various universities such as Stanford, Harvard, MIT, UCLA and USC business schools. He received degrees from San Jose State University with additional graduate studies from Stanford University. He is a graduate of the Advanced Program in Organization Development and Human Resources Management at Columbia University, and Harvard University’s program on Professional Services Management.
60 stakeholders came together to use this process to examine what Omaha could do in order to benefit from Diversity and Inclusion as competitive advantage. The recommendations resulting from this effort fall in to six different domains:
1.) Leadership
2.) Education and Workforce Development
3.) Employer Initiatives
4.) Services for Newcomers
5.) Connectivity and Interaction
6.) Perception of Omaha
A few comments regarding these recommendations:
- We believe strongly in a collaborative and participatory approach. All initiatives should begin from a point of assessing need and existing resources to avoid unnecessary duplication of efforts taking place, and all efforts should allow for as much input and participation from all parts of our community as possible.
- This list of recommendations is simply a starting point, a model. As progress is made, as needs and opportunities materialize, changes may have to be made.
- These recommendations stemmed from a facilitated process involving large-group and small-group work over two days, it is by no means comprehensive or representative of every perspective. It is a point of beginning.
- The most important aspect of our message is that Omaha, as a community, must make these issues a priority.
LEADERSHIP:
We recommend the development of a Community Level Diversity and Inclusion Council that is made up of key business and community leaders with access to resources and influence. The primary role of this Council is to champion the issues of Diversity and Inclusion as an opportunity for competitive advantage for the Omaha community and for the organizations within Omaha. A few potential efforts or areas of focus for the members of this council:
Primary Efforts:
- Examine the potential of implementing a vital measurement device similar to the City Vitals tool used in Silicon Valley.
- Champion employment practices and policies that allow Omaha to attract and retain the diverse and talented workforce it needs.
- Promote increased diversity on Boards of Directors through the promotion of programs such as Heartland Blueprint and Leadership Omaha which help prepare people to serve as community leaders.
- Make the business case for Diversity and Inclusion loudly and repeatedly.
- Support and promote conferences that focus on Diversity and Inclusion.
- Support and promote comprehensive employer diversity initiatives and recognize employers that do it well.
EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT:
Education and Workforce Development are large and complex aspects of our community that involve many different stakeholders. Our goal is to simply increase the caretaker and community participation in our educational system.
Primary Efforts:
- Develop a project team consisting of representatives from multiple school districts and community members.
- Conduct a needs assessment and identify potential pilot opportunity.
- Research existing programs.
- Develop a caretaker participation program.
- Develop a community participation program.
EMPLOYER INITIATIVES:
As their ability to attract and retain a talented workforce will to a great extent determine their potential to succeed, issues of Diversity and Inclusion are of critical importance for employers in the Greater Omaha community. There were a couple of statements from our shared vision statement that spoke to Employer Initiatives:
“Full employment, where every worker is highly engaged and every employer has the human resources to compete effectively in the global marketplace.”
“A vibrant, diversified economy, where entrepreneurs flourish and established companies lead the world in innovation.”
Primary Efforts:
- Develop and implement a diversity scorecard for the Omaha business community to identify “Employers of Choice.”
- Host a summit / conference on Diversity and Inclusion best practices.
- Develop an organizational toolkit that is accessible by Omaha businesses of all sizes that provides basic information such as:
- The Business Case for Di
versity - Guidelines and Tools for:
- Vendor Diversity
- Diversity Recruiting
- Metrics
SERVICES FOR NEWCOMERS:
As we began to put our plan to paper, one phrase from our shared vision statement resonated:
“A highly-coordinated, well-supported network of community and faith based organizations collaborating with a public system to ensure all Omahans have access to the opportunities needed for the highest quality of life possible.”
Our plan will give newcomers an opportunity. They are looking for a safe place to call home, religious freedom, and the opportunity to use their skills and education to find employment, start a business, and contribute to the community – financially, culturally and civically – and as new citizens of the United States of America.
The Immigration Services plan we envision is already becoming reality by the efforts of The International Center of the Heartland, which is a United Way of the Midlands Community Impact Initiative. Through its expertise and long-standing relationships with human services agencies, academia, and the corporate community, the United Way seeks to create a collaboration which will assist “newcomers” to become successful and, in turn, strengthen the Omaha/Council Bluffs community.
Primary Efforts:
- Reach out to the Heartland International Center for an update on their efforts and status. We will work to support their efforts as applicable.
- Examine opportunities to support the One Omaha campaign.
- Work to establish a higher degree of connection among organizations and efforts focused on Newcomers in order to identify gaps and promote collaboration. This effort will also allow us to identify potential “resource clearinghouse” opportunities.
- Implement public educational efforts in immigrants’ native languages.
- Develop an awareness task force with representation from as many racial, ethnic, cultural, nationality groups as possible.
CONNECTIVITY:
We as a group believe very strongly in the power of connections and networks, and that it is in everyone’s best interest for Omaha to be more connected and its professional networks more accessible. This, in itself, is of great value to the future of Omaha as networks and connections have a large impact upon how information moves, as well as who has access to information, opportunity and influence.
Primary Efforts:
- Increased Diversity on Boards of Directors: We will engage the Heartland Blueprint and Leadership Omaha staff regarding this issue and will then work to engage community leaders.
- Bring diverse young professionals together: Starting with the young professional’s council, we will reach out to other young professionals groups to explore options. We will also work to promote and support workshops / resources / websites that promote networking in Omaha.
PERCEPTION OF OMAHA:
While most of our recommendations and action plans are focused on the reality of Omaha, it is also important to consider the perception of Omaha to those from elsewhere. Our ability to attract employees and employers is greatly influenced by their perception of our culture. We must make sure to take the issues of Diversity and Inclusion into consideration with all outreach efforts that are made.
Primary Efforts:
- Engage the Chamber of Commerce, Convention and Visitors Bureau, Broadcasting Association and others in a dialogue about current promotional efforts and whether Diversity is a consideration
- Conduct survey regarding the marketing of Omaha
- Include as much Diversity as possible in discussions and planning
- Work with corporate recruiters to promote Omaha and the Diversity in Omaha
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Vision Statement
Omaha leads the nation and the world by leveraging our diversity, talent, hospitality and immense creativity.
Working in partnership, we achieve:
- Full employment, where every worker is highly engaged and every employer has the human resources to compete effectively in the global marketplace.
- An exceptional mix of cultural and entertainment opportunities that engage the passions of everyone.
- An educational system with the highest standards and no achievement gap.
- A proactive healthcare system that provides responsive, patient-focused, culturally competent care resulting in the highest life expectancy and lowest levels of disease ever recorded.
- A vibrant, diversified economy where entrepreneurs flourish and established companies lead the world in innovation.
- A highly coordinated, well-supported network of community and faith-based organizations collaborating with a public system to ensure all Omahans have access to the opportunities needed for the highest quality of life possible.
- A spirit of generosity and ownership where every member of our community cares deeply for and willingly invests their time, talents and treasures to realize this vision.
Omaha is a thriving and inclusive community where all people are welcomed and their contributions honored.
-February 9, 2007
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Recommended reading:
The Rise of the Creative Class, Richard Florida
Leveraging the New Human Capital, Burud & Tumolo
Workforce Crisis, Dychtwald, Erickson, Morison
The Medici Effect, Frans Johansson
The Business Case for Diversity 5th Edition, DiversityInc.
The Middle of Everywhere, Mary Pipher
The Living Company, Arie DeGeus
Achieving Success Through Social Capital, Wayne Baker