Diversity Training in the Workplace: Unearthing Unconscious Bias

Image credit: Clay Banks

The following piece is a writing sample that was an assignment for my ‘Managing People’ course at the University of Kansas Graduate School of Business.

My best friend is black. His name is Lamar. Lamar and I met in first grade back in 1994 and we’ve been best friends ever since. He was the best man at my wedding in 2018. As a white male, this, among other aspects of my life (attending public schools, having additional minority friends, reading ‘progressive’ news outlets, etc.), made me feel good about myself and my perspective on diversity. “I’m a minority ally and I don’t have a bias when it comes to diversity. I don’t see color!” I thought. That was until one day last year when, as I was leaving the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati, Ohio, I was asked by a researcher to take an unconscious bias test. The results of that test changed the way I think about diversity in the workplace and in my life.

I think most generic diversity training programs fail. They are usually run by outside agencies that conducted online training focused on recognizing racism and becoming more accepting of other cultures. I think attempting to change employee behavior through a one-off online program is a near-impossible task. According to behavioral economist, Daniel Kahnema, diversity programs can fail when companies try to control behavior. He writes that, instead, companies should focus on helping employees become more aware of their biases so they can act upon them (Robbins & Judge, 2019). Research has also shown that diversity training works best when it focuses on not just awareness, but skill development too, and when it's conducted on an ongoing basis over time (Robbins & Judge 2019). 

If I were to implement my own diversity training program for an organization, I would focus on three things: raising the awareness of employees’ unconscious bias, implementing a bi-annual training for how to deal with this bias, and revamping the organization’s diversity hiring policy.

My diversity training program wouldn’t focus on training employees not to be racist or not to be biased. I think these are impossible targets. Instead, I would make it mandatory for all employees and future employees to take an implicit bias test. This free online test involves a series of questions about diversity, then it goes through a speed round of visual cues where you are asked to link ‘clean’ or unthreatening images to white or minority faces (McPhillips, 2020).

This is about awareness. Once employees understand their biases, they can begin to make adjustments. As a society, a lot of people have been trained through media, movies, TV shows, and advertisements to be biased towards minority groups. It’s not something to be ashamed of because it’s mostly not our fault. However, it is something we must understand so that we know how to react to our unconscious biases once we experience them in the world and at our places of work.

According to finance executive and workplace diversity advocate, Mellody Hobson, “The first step to solving any problem is awareness" (TED 2014) Once we’ve made employees aware of their unconscious bias, we’ll implement ongoing training for how to deal with that bias. Instead of just a one-off training exercise, employees will be trained bi-annually on how to recognize bias and how dealing with it can have a positive impact on our employee culture, productivity, and customer service. If successful, I think we will start to see better hiring practices, improved culture, and healthier communication amongst employees. 

Training alone will not be enough. As noted earlier, diversity programs work best alongside a diversity company policy. The organization should set a goal and challenge itself to meet a certain threshold of diverse leadership. This could start small and grow over time. An example goal would be to have at least 20% of a company’s management and/or leadership team include BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) representation. 

To measure the success of the program, we will conduct a yearly internal survey on employees’ feelings towards diversity and measure what percentage of our workforce and leadership team are BIPOC. 

“Embarrassed” was the word I used after the researcher asked me what I thought about my unconscious bias test results at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center. I scored the worst out of everyone in my group. The results made me go through some self-reflection. Do I react differently when I’m introduced to different types of people? Who do I go out of my way to provide advice to? Who do I grab lunch or coffee with more often? Who am I more likely to strike up a random conversation with? Who am I more likely to trust during interviews? The test changed how I approach and communicate with people from different backgrounds in the workplace and in my life because it made me more aware of my unconscious bias.

“Don’t be embarrassed,” the researcher replied. “Now that you know, accept it, be alert, and realize your potential bias in everything you do.” I’ve adjusted because now I know. I think everyone in the workplace should know too. It’s the only way we’ll truly start to improve diversity communication and hiring practices in corporate America.

References

Robbins, S.P., & Judge, T.A. (2019). Organizational Behavior (18th ed.). New York, NY: Thistle Hill Publishing Services.
CASE INCIDENT 1 Can Organizations Train Diversity? (p.69 - 70)

TED. (2014, May 5). Color blind or color brave? | Mellody Hobson [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKtALHe3Y9Q&feature=emb_logo

McPhillips, K. (2020, June 29). Harvard’s ‘Project Implicit’ Test Reveals Your Unconscious Bias in Just 10 Minutes. MSN/Well+Good. https://www.msn.com/en-us/lifestyle/lifestyle-buzz/harvard-s-project-implicit-test-reveals-your-unconscious-bias-in-just-10-minutes/ar-BB167jou