Shrek is famous for his “Ogres are like onions” quote, but the famous comparison can apply to humans as well. We’re all made up of layers, though more akin to the cake Donkey also claimed has layers.
These layers, or dimensions, are the diversity within everyone. The complex intersectionality of traits that make each one of us who we are. These traits extend well beyond the skin-deep differences of demographics and gender.
We can look at these dimensions as three components of the diversity wheel: primary, secondary, and tertiary diversity.
Primary dimensions – Diversity we’re born with, like sex, ethnicity, and mental and physical ability.
Secondary dimensions – Experiences, affinities, hobbies, and religious beliefs.
Tertiary diversity – How we interpret the world and confront challenges.
These layers of diversity contribute to who we are as individuals. Understanding, recognizing, and celebrating these differences is essential for success in modern organizations. Through these dimensions, let’s explore what diversity truly means and learn how to elevate diversity in your workplace environment.
Defining Diversity Dimensions
Diversity is more than ethnicity and gender. While these two dimensions certainly make up what it means to be diverse, a host of other characteristics can contribute to our backgrounds and experiences, like parental status, union affiliation, communication style, management status, national origin, and marital status.
Look for these other traits that make a diverse team:
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- Age – Generational drama aside, working with people of all ages allows an organization to get a range of experiences. For instance, younger workers will bring youthful exuberance and insight into what’s “in,” while older workers can contribute with years of work experience.
- Ethnicity – Social groups with similar racial characteristics driven by geographical, biological, and evolutionary adaptations. Ethnicity also includes experiences, behaviors, and values passed from generation to generation.
- Religion – Spiritual beliefs are a powerful motivator and help individuals form a sense of identity. Traditions, holidays, and practices may involve alternative schedules or time and space to practice daily prayer rituals.
- Socioeconomic status – An individual’s socioeconomic background is more than just money. It’s neighborhoods, educational background, restaurants, hang-out spots, and social status. Many who experience a lower economic status don’t have the same opportunities as someone with a more comfortable lifestyle.
- Sexual orientation and gender identity – Those identifying as LGBTQ+ face constant discrimination. Likewise, gender identity is coming under attack from nefarious parties, but supporting identity signals that your employees are more than cogs in the machine. The recognition that relationship status doesn’t impact performance creates a sense of belonging, improving morale and productivity.
- Physical and mental abilities – Acknowledging and supporting accommodations for those with different physical and cognitive abilities helps open doors. Although businesses have made significant progress, only 22.5% of persons with disabilities held employment in 2023.
- Veteran status—Serving in the military forms bonds for life. That loyalty can transition to civilian work, as can leadership skills. However, veterans aren’t likely to put up with office politics. Many have experienced false promises in the military, and they don’t deserve that after serving.
- Geographic location – Remote and WFH arrangements allow organizations to recruit from virtually anywhere. When removing geographic limits, you can expand talent pools and find your next all-star.
Many individuals come from diverse backgrounds. Each member of these unique groups brings something that enriches and positively benefits the team and organization. Celebrating these backgrounds is a sure way to get everyone involved and eliminate inequities.
Cultural Diversity: Examples from Asia and Africa
Diversity is a collection of traits, external dimensions, and internal dimensions, and where someone lives and works contributes to that diversity. In a broader sense, we call this culture or collective identity of common attributes and behaviors specific to a geographic location.
Of course, individual identity within these different cultures can step outside the norm, but aspects like language, food, and media play pivotal roles in how others perceive one’s diversity.
For instance, Africa is massive. The Saharan desert region alone is the same size as the continental US—and that’s only the upper third of the continent. Businesses rely heavily on traditional family values, emphasizing relationship-building, respect, and hospitality. Greetings are often formal, as are dress codes, and it’s not uncommon to experience negotiations that require patience.
Asian countries value relationship-building, respect, and traditional values in similar ways to African countries. Despite the similarities, prompt decision-making and a high degree of punctuality contribute to success in Asian businesses.
The Impact of Diversity Dimensions on Business Strategy
The internet powers an economy tied to global markets. Thanks to e-commerce, work-from-home, and large high-speed internet infrastructures, even small and medium-sized businesses can operate worldwide.
Leveraging and celebrating various dimensions of diversity can enhance your global strategy. For instance, if you plan to expand operations to new markets, hiring local representatives and partnering with local vendors improves customer relations, market penetration, and brand awareness.
People recognize and resonate with brands that are active in their communities. Valuing local customs and traditions applies to marketing, packaging, and sales interactions because what works in one market may be offensive in another. And who better to help you design locally-optimized products and services than the people you’re trying to reach?
Global financial and legal service provider CSC Global is an excellent example of diversity impacting global strategy. CSC Global has offices in over 140 locations, including Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. Its global workforce is 52% women, and the company boasts a net promoter score (NPS) that ranks in the top 25% of all organizations. Plus, CSC Global has been around since 1899—125 years of worldwide influence.
Strategies to Recognize and Utilize Diversity Dimensions
CSC Global is only one example of the thousands of organizations that recognize and utilize diversity dimensions to power their global operations. Even organizations operating on local scales can benefit from these dimensions, and implementing a few strategies improves conditions without huge time commitments.
- Understand primary diversity dimensions – A cultural competency or diversity awareness course is an excellent starting point for understanding the fundamentals of diversity. Encourage and enroll your teams so everyone receives a comprehensive foundation, which helps eliminate unconscious biases, microaggressions, and discrimination.
- Dive into secondary and tertiary dimensions – Ask questions and seek understanding from diverse employees. Learn about how their experiences and cultural background impact their lives and behaviors.
- Consult with professionals – We all have blind spots and areas where we fall victim to unconscious biases. Consulting with professionals can illuminate these within ourselves, giving us room to reflect and improve. Diversity coaches can be valuable team members, and you can enroll in a course to obtain your own certification through Coach Diversity Institute.
- Celebrate diversity and intersectionality – Respecting and celebrating what makes us different connects us in profound ways. Encourage your workplace to celebrate different holidays, cultures, foods, lifestyles, and languages through events like potlucks, language exchanges, and office parties.
- Collect surveys and conduct audits – Employee satisfaction surveys and diversity audits are data-driven methods of analyzing where you stand on diversity dimensions. Follow the data and make changes to processes, such as hiring, coaching, mentoring, developing, and promoting.
Understanding and appreciating diversity dimensions is an ongoing effort. Constant education, feedback, and engagement are the best ways to stay up-to-date. Coach Diversity Institute helps organizations with these efforts by providing courses and resources every inclusive leader needs. Reach out today to get started supporting the diversity dimensions in your organization.
Challenges and Solutions in Managing Diversity Dimensions
In a perfect world, deploying the strategies necessary to support diversity would be easy, and everyone would put genuine effort into making lasting changes. Unfortunately, we don’t live in that perfect world, and you will face challenges and pushback when implementing new ideas.
One of the biggest roadblocks will be biases—both implicit and conscious. These biases stem from misconceptions, stereotypes, background experiences, and upbringing. Most of these biases find misunderstanding as a root cause, meaning individuals can unlearn harmful worldviews.
The worst offenders will be resistant to change altogether. These individuals are aware of their biases and actively work to protect them. They will reject training and education, refuse to participate in activities, and have terrible attitudes when the subject comes up in meetings and huddles.
A more direct motivator, like corrective action or progressive discipline, may be appropriate in these cases. As they say, “Skills are learnable, attitude isn’t.” A bad apple can spoil the bunch, and cutting ties can be the final step in preserving an inclusive culture.
Another less dramatic hurdle is communication barriers. While English serves as the lingua franca for many global businesses, it’s far from the only language used. Businesses across Africa use French and Arabic. Mandarin is popular across Asian countries, and in Europe, German and French are essential.
Providing English learning opportunities for team members can improve communication, as can encouraging your staff to learn another language. Learning a new language improves relations in those countries where you do business and enriches the lives of your traveling employees.
Partner with Coach Diversity Institute to Expand Your Diversity Strategy
Diversity is a complex fabric that creates a beautiful quilt of culture and identity. Understanding the primary, secondary, and tertiary dimensions of diversity allows you to cultivate a work environment that celebrates those with diverse backgrounds and leverages the life experiences they can add to your organization.
Need help expanding your diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) strategy? Partner with Coach Diversity Institute to engage with a robust catalog of training and resources to elevate your diversity position. Our courses support individuals, leaders, and whole teams in creating lasting change in their organizations. Connect with us today to get started making a difference!