Diversity In The Crucible Of 2020
The last in a series of articles, by measurement guru Dr Mariheca Otto, exploring diversity in the workplace.
Shocking as it may be, diversity is still a challenge in most workplaces.
This despite the fact that it helps a business innovate and grow.
The more kinds of different you have in the workplace, the bigger the variety of ideas you can draw from.
Still, being a woman in a male-dominated space is no walk in the park.
Measurement specialist Dr Mariheca Otto shares one woman’s experience in the space sector.
As often highlighted by culture and people specialists, racial inclusion and diversity is essential for business success. Diverse teams are proven to out-perform homogenous teams 2:1 because they have a wealth of ideas and perspectives to draw from that culminate in more innovation and a better understanding of potential markets.
In advanced organisational cultures, men are more accepting and receptive to the input of women, compared to the lack of confidence levels women display around innovation, sharing their views and participating. Women often hold themselves back. They are not as confident and risk-taking as men in general - they pull back. We have to encourage women on an individual level to participate.
In some diverse teams, women end up overcompensating by using their voices. Some young dynamic women have strong opinions to the point of being overbearing. That’s because they are used to not being heard and have fought hard to get to the professional level. They have to unlearn this behaviour and start listening better as leaders.
Diverse teams have robust conversations if they are managed in a safe and mature way, resulting in the best solutions, offering creativity, energy and hope.
I spoke to Andiswa Mlisa, MD of the South African National Space Agency, about her experience as a woman in a very much male-dominated space. Mlisa believes that diversity is only achieved by design, it’s not accidental. As often the only woman in the room, and a black woman at that, Mlisa has experienced very little workplace diversity.
“In my technical field, I am often the only woman and South African men especially tend to treat women as just a ‘gal’, flirt and not take them seriously,” said Mlisa. “When I worked in Geneva there was a 50/50 gender balance in our team, an international community representing people from all over the globe. One thing that struck me was how my skin colour did not set me apart. Rather, being a foreigner, an African, did.”
Mlisa believes that two camps tend to emerge around diversity:
Those that want to keep the status quo, regardless if it’s all black, all white, all women or all men.
Those that point fingers towards others saying you must change, I don’t have to change.
There is little acceptance and buy-in of what diversity actually is. People still see diversity as “something for others to do and not for me”.
Embracing diversity in the workplace and doing activities that enable diversity are what changes this. The local space sector has very little diversity and is still very much male-dominated. We need to change the narrative that the only ones who are worthy, capable and belong are the ones who are the same as us. This perpetuates the same behaviours and notions we are trying to move away from.
“In such a male-dominated field, some men undermine and are not equipped to recognise a woman’s value and promote women into leadership. I have struggled to find mentors who don’t have ulterior motives. There are a few gems that have shown a genuine intention to mentor and acknowledge my capability,” added Mlisa.
“I remember being in a workshop in West Africa, I was assigned to chair a break-away session and the rapporteur was a male. The delegates were shocked I was the chair. ‘You’re a girl, you can’t be the chair of our session.’ I had to break the sad news to the 90% male audience, I was the chair. We had an interesting conversation about gender perceptions and biases stemming from the different cultural backgrounds in the room,” she concluded, smiling. “I recall this encounter with fondness as I believe there was a shift in behaviour, at least for some, after that discussion.”
In a male-dominated world, it’s often a lose-lose for women – when you show femininity, you’re criticised for being weak, when you take the masculine approach, you’re accused of trying to be a man. We say forget gender, just look at the capabilities.
About The Author
Dr Mariheca Otto, the measurement guru, founded Motto Business Consulting in 2005. She consults in the field of organisation development and internal marketing (creating buy-in into vision). She works in association with independent OD consultants. She completed a B.Com (Hons: Industrial Psychology and Sociology), HED, M.Com and PhD in Business Management at the North-West University (Potchefstroom University). She has delivered papers at both national and international academic and business conferences. She has almost 20 years of lecturing, training and facilitation experience and is seen as the leader in her field thanks to her groundbreaking work.
Four Reasons Why Diverse Teams Are More Effective
Measurement specialist Dr Mariheca Otto expands on why diverse teams are a no-brainer.
Diversity is important in any situation, and especially productive in teams.
Different people from different backgrounds offer a wider range of ideas and experiences to draw from.
It’s simple - the more colours in a crayon box, the more colourful the picture.
Measurement specialist Dr Mariheca Otto expands on why diverse teams are a no-brainer.
Smart leaders know they need diversity of backgrounds, characteristics and ideas on all levels so that they can attract, retain and make the most of people’s abilities. Diverse teams are proven to out-perform homogenic teams 2:1. That’s because diverse teams have a wealth of different ideas and perspectives that lead to innovation and understanding of potential markets.
Although women make up more than 50% of the population, in 2018, it was recorded that only 32% of them are managers. Additionally, only 31.5% of senior management positions are occupied by people of colour.
Increased Bottom Line
Time and again, evidence supports the theory that gender diversity has a positive impact on the bottom line. According to McKinsey, the most gender-diverse companies are 21% more likely to experience above-average profitability.
Studies have shown that a more gender-equal private sector correlates with better business performance and greater economic growth. On average, there is a 27% higher return on equity in women-owned and led businesses, and an 18% increase in sales.
Creativity And Solutions
Every individual brings a fresh perspective to a problem and different racial, gender, political, religious and cultural perspectives add richness to a solution. Diverse teams produce more creative results than teams in which all members are similar.
Creativity is bringing something new by combining two or more pieces of information together to form something useful to solve a problem. It makes sense that the more diverse the ideas available, the more creative the solutions will be.
A Boston Consulting Group study in 2018 found that organisations with more diverse management teams have 19% higher revenues due to innovation.
Better Place To Work
Women are generally team players and women on teams can help improve team processes and boost group collaboration. Researchers have observed that women have stronger skills reading non-verbal cues.
Women don’t generally hog the mike. Groups with more women were better at taking turns in conversation and ensuring that all voices are heard, which helps them make the most of the group’s combined knowledge and skills. Diverse teams aren’t built by themselves, they are achieved by design, not accident.
Diverse teams have robust conversations if they are managed in a safe and mature way, resulting in the best solutions, offering creativity, energy and hope.
Customer Insights
It makes sense that a workforce that best reflects an organisation’s customer base will have greater insight into customer needs and expectations. If you know your customers, you communicate with them better, enlisting customer loyalty and satisfaction.
About The Author
Dr Mariheca Otto, the measurement guru, founded Motto Business Consulting in 2005. She consults in the field of organisation development and internal marketing (creating buy-in into vision). She works in association with independent OD consultants. She completed a B.Com (Hons: Industrial Psychology and Sociology), HED, M.Com and PhD in Business Management at the North-West University (Potchefstroom University). She has delivered papers at both national and international academic and business conferences. She has almost 20 years of lecturing, training and facilitation experience and is seen as the leader in her field thanks to her groundbreaking work.
Why It's Important To Have Women In Leadership Positions
Dr Mariheca Otto nails it home - because the world still needs reminding, and quite often.
Put simply, women make awesome leaders.
They bring empathy and heart to an organisation in a way that men leaders can’t.
In fact, it’s the very attributes that supposedly make them unsuited to leading that make them great leaders.
Dr Mariheca Otto expands on exactly why women are so kickass at heading a team.
“Duh, Mama, why would you want all the same kind of people in a leadership team: women bring things that men don’t have?”
This was my 14-year old son’s response when I bounced the idea of men-only teams in business off him.
My observation and experiences are that women are generally raised to be ‘less than’. It’s not assumed we’re going to be something in life. In most cultures, girls are second grade. So when we land up in leadership positions, women are far more humble and question their decision-making.
Despite our common insecurities surrounding being in charge, we are far more engaging and participative as leaders; we include people before a decision is made. It’s very rare that you find an authoritarian female leader - they usually employ a participative leadership style. In my more than twenty years of consulting, I have never come across an authoritarian female leader.
Empathy comes easily for women. Empathetic and compassionate leadership is highly valuable in a collaborative world. Leaders drive the culture of an organisation, so when women are included in your leadership team, your culture will be inclusive.
When you include empathy and compassion in an organisation, humanity is a result. You create a space of belonging and belonging is a critical driver for most individuals. The world lacks belonging and there is a hunger for it.
I work in the measurement space, so evidence and data are my thing.
If you look at data on staff satisfaction and engagement, there is plus-minus a 17% increase in productivity when people engage. If you move from engagement to inspiration, there is a further 50% improvement in productivity. Organisations that have an environment where there is belonging and inspiration outperform those that don’t almost 2:1.
Female leaders are naturally more inclusive. Teams in an inclusive environment outperform homogenous teams 2:1. Data shows that organisations that include women in leadership, creating a diverse team, out-perform those that don’t. This doesn’t take success related to innovation into consideration. Women tend to be innovative and open-minded in their problem-solving styles. A lack of arrogance means they are open to group contributions. In general, women are able to hold vulnerability far more easily than men.
I am involved in change projects and they are often painful. If organisations don’t change, they die. In this time of COVID-19, that is happening right now. Organisations have to be agile and nimble and sometimes take a 180 degree to survive. When you drive change, one of the keys to success is communication. Speak to your people often, telling the same message simply and emotionally. These are very female characteristics. We talk a lot, we repeat ourselves and we’re emotional. We understand and have empathy for people who are struggling. Women are able to drive change messages because they are generally more emotional. They can feel their own struggles. This gives an organisation the opportunity to reinvent their cultures and to be more agile for the future.
I have always worked independently, but always formed part of my clients’ leadership teams. True leadership is influence, and not power and authority. A shop steward that is strong is so because of influence, not authority and power. I have always used my influence when being part of a leadership team. I use my influence to ask questions. I ask questions to drive change and shift mindsets. People move forward when they discover the answers themselves. I could come in and tell people what to do, but that’s arrogant, and full of the assumption that I know the answers. When you understand people’s mindsets, when they share their perceptions, feelings and thinking, you can predict their behaviour. If you’re clear on the organisation’s strategy, you can influence their stories with other information and knowledge, leading to change. If we help people to understand the stories they tell themselves, we can change perceptions, we can change their minds, we can change behaviour.
If you want a sustainable organisation, then you need women on your leadership team to ensure innovation, adaptability, influence, belonging and engagement. Data proves this.
About The Author
Dr Mariheca Otto, the measurement guru, founded Motto Business Consulting in 2005. She consults in the field of organisation development and internal marketing (creating buy-in into vision). She works in association with independent OD consultants. She completed a B.Com (Hons: Industrial Psychology and Sociology), HED, M.Com and PhD in Business Management at the North-West University (Potchefstroom University). She has delivered papers at both national and international academic and business conferences. She has almost 20 years of lecturing, training and facilitation experience and is seen as the leader in her field thanks to her groundbreaking work.
Power Couple Danielle Withers LeChat And Tim Withers Talk Candidly About Female Empowerment
In this interview, we host the power couple, Tim Withers and Danielle Withers LeChat to talk about what companies can do better to protect the rights of women and mothers in the workplace. Tim and Danielle share their Individual experiences of the challenges they faced in the workplace when Danielle fell ill with serious hyperemesis gravidarum, the infamous and potentially deadly morning sickness-ailment related to pregnancy.
This Heavy Chef interview is the first in a series of tough conversations about tough topics anchored by Ondela Mlandu as she talks about what companies can do better to protect the rights of women and mothers in the workplace.
In this exclusive interview, Ondela chats to Tim Withers, Head Of Digital at 2U and Danielle Withers LeChat, Founder of Calico Ceramics as they share their individual experiences of the challenges they faced in the workplace when Danielle fell ill with hyperemesis gravidarum during her pregnancy.
It's not all doom and gloom, as both were able to channel their experience into new opportunities that ultimately led to the founding of Danielle's business, Calico Ceramics while Tim began advocating for the rights of women in his company.
After a nasty physical battle with hyperemesis during pregnancy and an emotional struggle with her company, Danielle gave birth to a healthy baby girl and established Calico Ceramics, which has seen great success. Through founding her own business, Danielle was able to nurture her body and her child with the necessary time to heal after her illness. Self-employment, through her company, afforded Danielle the privilege of staying at home to care for her child during the early development stages, while still earning an income doing something that she loves.
Tim was shocked by the injustice that his wife experienced as a woman in the corporate environment, and was appalled to learn what little legal protection is available to women. Since then, he has taken it in his stride to be active in the inclusion and diversity committee, giving a voice to marginalized groups in the workplace. Tim is a loud and proud feminist who believes in creating a platform for everyone to succeed in a fair and equal working environment.
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