Reasons to Value Differences

Reasons to Value Differences

Modern culture seeks to define diversity in terms of profiles in which demographics quantify the level of intra-group difference. Our diversity metrics include the percentage of women, the ethnic makeup, and the numbers. For a more complete picture, I propose including not just people with a wide range of demographic characteristics but also those with different levels of wealth, education, social status, and political leanings. Having a flexible mindset is crucial.

Every person has an overarching philosophy to explain everything. Some hypotheses are still in their early stages of development, while others have been around forever. One narrow perspective on the cosmos is not a healthy thing. Sufficient variety is required in order to explore all of the possibilities. With his suggestion, Alfred P. Sloan, the visionary who assembled General Motors, provides a model for effective top-level management.

This was a meeting of his staff. All parties agreed with the current proposal. It has been suggested that Sloan said, "Worryingly, this plan has received 100% support, which is a first." Put this problem on the table for discussion at the next gathering. "In the meantime, investigate and assess this proposition." The following meeting saw the same unanimous vote against the motion as the prior one. The lesson to be drawn from this is that having a single viewpoint, whether it be universal approval or universal disapproval, is undesirable.

Dissonance is the crucible in which progress is born. We would not have Albert Einstein's Relativity Theories if he had been submissive.It was Einstein's efforts to incorporate empirical evidence into preexisting theories that led to his broader, more comprehensive restatement of Newton's laws of motion. However, there are a million quacks for every Einstein. It's not necessarily an epiphany just because a new idea has been born. Two professors who thought they had discovered cold fusion provide a good example. The two were so wedded to their unwavering theory of everything that they failed to see its glaring shortcomings. In the face of critical analysis of their work, their reputations as fools quickly spread. Because of their insular thinking, they were unable to see their own ignorance.

There is value in hearing from people on all sides of the political spectrum, as well as from those with advanced degrees and those who have learned through experience. The liberals' enthusiasm will be tempered by the conservatives. The Conservatives will be lured out of their strongholds by the Liberals. The progressive movement will push the limits of technology. 

Conservatives stick closer to the middle and are reluctant to deviate from what they already know. The educated will use a wide variety of convergent and divergent thinking, while the experienced will keep the ship from going down in the details. There is no need to see conflict between two seemingly opposing beliefs.Fighting until one point of view triumphs over all others is not the objective. The inclusion is meant to promote synergy, which will lead to a solution that any one component alone could not produce.

The goal of Lean Six Sigma is to "amplify the noise," so to speak. Many different methods have been developed with the goal of improving the status quo. All of these tools can be used to create positive change by disrupting the status quo. Each offers an organized, helpful method for discovering and fixing problems. They are, in a word, discordant. None of these will flourish in a society with only one dominant culture. Six Sigma relies on having a diverse workforce. Using Lean Six Sigma procedures, the best outcomes can be achieved with a high degree of variety across all aspects.

Recognizing that diversity is not a contest or a competition is the first step. Diversity continues even after a winner has been determined. All of these parts are essential in order to articulate and deliver a well-considered viewpoint. Acceptance and comprehension are the goals of diversity. Having an appreciation for something does not imply consent. Understanding does not imply dominance.Comprehending does not imply giving up. Each part is still there, with only a deeper comprehension and a reevaluation of its "theory of everything" left to account for. Each aspect of a system has to hear that its contribution is valued in order to function properly and advance the system as a whole. Assuring the safety of each individual part is essential.

Step two is to add variety. The emergence of diversity is not automatic. There are a lot of things working against acceptance. Perhaps the main factor working against diversity is the practice of affirmation. As a natural response to the stress caused by conflicting data and viewpoints, people hunt for safe havens. It is simple to reach an agreement among members of a group who all hold the same, similar beliefs.How to build diversity can be best illustrated by President Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln consciously tried to establish a cabinet of distinct personalities in a moment of maximum instability in our country. He admired those who had opposing viewpoints. Intense debates were a common occurrence in cabinet discussions. After hearing both sides of the argument, a vote was taken. In Lincoln's own words: "There were nine no votes and one affirmative vote." "The vote is now carried by the ayes." Lincoln was a master at assembling a team of rivals.

As the French would say, the third step is to celebrate and encourage differences. See the bigger picture and the forces at play. It's likely that each subgroup will do everything it can to outrank the others. Every component is going to be covered. An intense competitive mood prevails. To counteract the aforementioned factors, every strategy must be employed to prove the worth of the disparity. Each component must have its own goal to ensure the survival and success of the others. The business must become more like a mental health organization in which each worker is responsible for fostering relationships that boost the worth of their coworkers. There must be a measurable benefit to being included and a measurable cost to being left out.

Even if Lean Six Sigma is implemented in a predominantly one-culture setting, its performance will be subpar. Intentional discord is an intended byproduct of Lean Six Sigma. Lean Six Sigma's improvement process is based on working with that dissonance. In order for Lean Six Sigma to work its magic, a foundation of carefully cultivated diversity must first be established.

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