We had a very rich discussion around these issues. Here are just a few key learnings:

In a Swedish context, “Gender Equality” and “Diversity” can be two very different discussions, and, in turn, two different movements within an organization.

Gender Equality looks to diminish the power difference between men and women – and create a more equitable society and business culture for all. Typically, in the Nordic region, a “diversity initiative” (as an American might reference) would start with a focus on Gender.

Diversity, on the other hand, often refers to race, ethnicity and nationality differences. These would often be addressed as a second step in Swedish corporate “diversity” initiatives.

Additional diversity dimensions, such as age, sexual orientation, etc. have been more widely addressed in the public sector (with many inclusive laws both nationally in Sweden and across the EU), but they have not been explored as deeply in the Swedish private sector.

Secondly, the concept of public recognition is often culturally bound. In a US context, calling out differences is often a celebrated act, and instrumental in career development as differentiating yourself from competitors is key to success. On the other hand, in a Swedish context, calling oneself out as different is not as culturally appropriate. Swedish culture encourages people to remain similar to others, and not “hog the spotlight” (so to speak). This is closely linked to the Swedish word “Lagom” – meaning “Just Enough” or “Just the Right Amount.” This sentiment is seen in concrete ways, such as decoration (think about the last time you were in IKEA; rooms are decorated well and with “just the right amount” of accessories); a dinner (it would traditionally be inappropriate to have an excessive amount of food – you should have just the right amount); or even the amount you work and the recognition you receive from your work (work just enough – not 24/7; and receive an appropriate amount of recognition). Excess in each of these contexts would create imbalance.

Therefore, when rolling out diversity initiatives and praising work, external rankings for diversity initiatives, internal recognition and awards can often have a US flavor. It is true that people like to be praised for a job well done, but be careful as to how public this praise might be because cultural context can affect this.

Stay tuned for more insights into European Diversity from JBC!

David Megathlin, Senior Director of Research for JBC

In order for diversity initiatives to be successful, their impact needs to be adeptly articulated, whether across the globe or in your own backyard. We have seen that diversity initiatives have greatly advanced societies, workplaces, and businesses. These impacts need to be appropriately translated both within businesses and across geographies.

JBC’s work focuses on “translation” – translating successful diversity initiatives to local markets.

Take diversity in Europe, for example. In Europe, cultures change when moving kilometers in one direction, and with that, languages, laws, customs and ways of doing business change as well. Therefore, developing national and European-wide diversity initiatives that address the needs of all employees can be a challenge, but translation to these different cultural contexts is vital for initiative success.

Additionally, much of the diversity work in US corporations has been developed from the “ground up” – fueled by an entrepreneurial spirit, looking to change the status quo and provide meritocratic opportunities for all employees. In contrast, Europe (and we speak broadly, across the continent) has not had the same type of entrepreneurial approach – although this is slowly changing. JBC works to effectively develop and implement diversity initiatives in a way that makes sense for all business communities.

David Megathlin, Senior Director of Research for JBC reports from Europe

Let me introduce myself. I am David Megathlin and I lead the research work at JBC. I also help to translate JBC’s extensive diversity and leadership expertise to other contexts and cultures.

Through recent meetings and conversations with diversity leaders in Europe, I have gleaned many insights on European approaches to diversity. Please join me as I share diversity and global business insights from a European perspective on the JBC blog. I look forward to your comments and questions!

Jennifer with mentor Carlos Dominguez from Cisco.

It was recently announced that Jennifer Brown, President and CEO of Jennifer Brown Consulting, was selected to participate in Cisco’s 2010 Executive Mentor Protégé Program.  This program indicates that Cisco has made a commitment to a small handful of woman- and minority-owned suppliers who currently do work with Cisco on a client basis, with the intent to invest in growing the relationship between each supplier and Cisco. In JBC’s case, this growth will mean a continuation and expansion of the well-known leadership development, executive coaching, and diversity and inclusion programs we’ve delivered to the Cisco community.
 
One of an elite handful of partners chosen, and the only human capital consulting company to be included, JBC has enjoyed a multi-year consulting partnership with many Cisco clients, building cutting-edge team development and leader coaching programs.  Jennifer is also considered a subject matter expert in the arena of inclusion and diversity, and her pioneering employee engagement strategies, as well as her work with Employee Resource Groups, were featured as part of last year’s Cisco Inclusion & Diversity Symposium, broadcast company-wide on Cisco TV. 
Jennifer and the JBC team are already leveraging the EMP2 program to broaden their business with Cisco, and with Cisco’s partners and customers, as well as spread the word generally about the opportunity of programs such as the EMP2.  Jennifer was quoted recently on the relationship between supplier diversity initiatives such as these, and building more inclusive organizations generally:

“We are so honored to be chosen to participate in Cisco’s program, and be invested in as one of Cisco’s minority-owned small business partners. Programs such as the EMP2 program demonstrate how companies can proactively drive diversity in all its forms, including the diversity of CEOs of Cisco’s company partners and suppliers. Leading companies are increasingly investing in incubator programs such as these, which encourage the participation of more diverse voices from the company’s existing supplier base.”

JBC has been assigned a key executive-level resource to enable the company’s exposure at Cisco, Carlos Dominguez, SVP, Office of the Chairman and CEO.  Carlos is an ideal mentor for the effort, as he shares many of the same passions as the JBC team for collaboration, new innovation strategies, and the role of technology in enabling a more engaged workforce. 

To find out more about JBC’s unique approach to developing leaders, harnessing the power of teams, and channeling the energy of diverse workforces towards real impact, please contact us, at www.jenniferbrownconsulting.com.

What if you could have a device that did all of these things?

• Pre-load the device with the best books of 2010.
• Share an executive reading list.
• Provide links to your favorite online resources.
• Build a product that is web-based where your team could tap into a network of diversity champions.
• Build a web-based company-wide platform to share ideas.
• Hook up each reading device with a blog reader that accesses expertise feeds.
• Develop a network vetted and determined by our team via the Jennifer Brown Network.
• Highlight different diverse populations within your organization: Ask a Chief Diversity Officer, Ask a Gen Y!
• Highlight what are people doing in their Employee Resource Groups in a news feed or calendar function.
• Share info on where the best conferences are.

In a dream world, these are JBC’s top five uses for a Kindle or iSlate of the future. Read on…

Later this month Apple Inc. is set to announce the release of a “secret” project, the Apple Tablet (likely called the iSlate). Its going to be portable, hand-held, but with a larger screen and ability to read books, surf the web, and potentially run iPhone apps (we’re crossing our fingers the price point is reasonable). The fun thing about Apple’s device is that its going to be in color, like a glossy magazine. JBC thinks that the release of technology like this (which we are expecting from Apple around March 2010), is fit for discussion. In an age when eBook sales are skyrocketing, even outselling old-fashioned books, and But, what do you think?

We love the puzzle that technology presents to us: How are we using new technology in our business strategy, alignment with our diversity goals, and outreach to our clients? What do you think about technology like Amazon’s Kindle, Blackberry and iPhone applications, and Apple’s pending announcement for their tablet? Is there any room here for the development and implementations of a diversity-aligned business strategy? We think there is!

Think about the possibility of sharing books, links, blog feeds, tweets, collections of tweets, video, images, and events directly with your customer base, employees, prospects, and team leaders. We think there is a lot of potential here.

Want to learn more about this topic?
Email us, and tell us what you think!
eBook Software and Apps Guide from the Huffington Post
Mashable.com’s Apple Tablet news items.
Amazon’s Kindle Page.
Newsweek Article: “The Future of Reading”.

You can, and should, know a lot of best practices. Competitors are rich with these (or maybe your own company is even richer), but how do you find them?
Organizations don’t do a good job of sharing the best practices going on right in their own backyards, either with themselves internally, or certainly externally.  People, however, are the best mechanism for best practices.  If you are hunting for them, all it takes is putting your radar up, putting yourself in the right place, and with the right company (I mean people), and following the principles of change management to draw the best practices out of your own organization, or bring a new one in.

Two main things you need to know:  what’s normal/average vs. “best” (synonym for “innovative”), and the importance of asking the right questions when you suspect that you’ve found a best practices.  Your goal is to harvest the information you need to take back to your organization and (hopefully) implement, as well as gain a “coach” or supporter in the  original best practice team or company whom you can tap as you try to implement and avoid land mines.  Finally, you want to “pay it forward” by sharing your successful implementation to others, through sharing internally, offering to assist, serving on external panels, writing articles, blogs, reports, and generally marketing your success and learning opportunities.  It will make your company, and you, look good, as you’ll be the originator, or at least implementer, of a new best practice yourself!

Here is an elaboration on these principles:

1.     Best practices are exactly that – you are looking for the “best”, the most innovative, the most unusual or leading-edge.  In order to find these, you need to know what the “usual” is – i.e. the norm – so you can compare.  This means staying current  and doing your research on the internet, publications, webinars, etc.  You have to know what you’re looking for, and need to have your finger on the pulse of your market or specialty enough that you can make a case for the practice.  See questions in #3 that can help you ferret out the good stuff.

2.     Go to conferences that are specific to your industry, trade, or professional title, and seek to attend panels that feature companies (like or different industries) speaking about their internal practices.  Connect with them afterwards, introduce yourself and ask if they wouldn’t mind serving as a resource, and set up a follow-up meeting to delve deeper into their experience.  Suggest that they bring anyone to the meeting from their side who can elaborate/fill in the blanks or provide texture, and think about who you might include from your organization, so that you have a second pair of ears, or a second interpretation of what you learn.

3. These are some questions to ask your contacts to discover these unique stories and drill down into why they’ve been so successful:

• What original problem were you trying to solve?
• What made your approach unique?  What’s so impressive about it, in the marketplace?
• What results have you created, and how?
• Where did you start?  With what actions?  What was the order you tackled things in?
• What were challenges, and how did you overcome them?
• How would you suggest adopting this best practice in my organization?

4.     Application:  as with any change, you’ll need to ensure that whatever “best practice” you introduce to your organization is set up for success.  Consider the following change management best practices:

• Start small and announce “quick wins”
• Ensure management support; share the potential impact (cost savings, greater efficiency, more marketplace visibility – whatever is meaningful to them)
• Outline the vision of what you are trying to achieve, and keep repeating it so it gets ingrained with key stakeholders

Remember that executives are very competitive, peer to peer, about their companies and their companies’ practices.   If you can put your company “on the map” with a best practice (even if you got it from somewhere else!), you’re not only ensuring your company’s success, but your own.

To share a best practice with us, click here.

LinkedIn Co-founder Reid Hoffman and Twitter Co-founder Biz Stone discuss the great potential of the integration between their companies. “The business use case of Twitter is turning out to be very important, and more and more people are finding that the persona that they create for themselves on the web is part of their resume…”

LinkedIn and Twitter have had a major impact on the business world over the last year. These days it seems like running a successful business includes have a successful social marketing strategy. As a consulting company, we know these sites allow you to be everywhere your potential clients are. We’ve been working on our own strategy and talking with our own clients about theirs in order to learn the best ways to use these tools at no cost other than time.

Exciting webinars and programs are in the wings for Jennifer Brown Consulting, so stay tuned!

Here is one more video featuring Reid Hoffman we think you will find helpful: