| | SEPTEMBER- 2022MANAGEHRMAGAZINE.COM8In MyOpinion Eric WayBy Eric Way, Global Head of Inclusion, Diversity and CSR, Schindler GroupIn a coaching relationship, it's essential for the coach to understand what the client is actually requesting. One of the most tricky requests is the "paradoxical request, " or in other words, "Help me fix this, but I don't want to change anything."During my 10 years working in the field of Diversity and Inclusion, I have often observed organizations and leaders who implicitly or explicitly formulate a paradoxical request or mission for their D&I managers as concerns their companies' D&I ambitions.The D&I manager often ends up trying to push a string, facing a stream of passive resistance as they try to "fix the numbers." They desperately seek out a "Holy Grail" D&I business case (to use a Christian metaphor) to finally convince the by-standers to move into action.But will the perfect business case actually spur stragglers to action?Let's look where passivity often comes from:1. "I don't have the mandate to take action."Many years ago, I can remember an executive level D&I session where a case study exercise implied we would risk losing a customer relationship if we supported a transgender salesperson. One of the executives said, "What would the shareholders say?" The participant clearly saw what the inclusive path forward was, but even as a top executive, they were not certain they had the mandate to devote resources or take perceived business risks for inclusion. 2. "I don't see the problem"I've hardly ever met a leader who was proud of or enjoyed being part of an unfair organization. So often leaders simply don't have visibility on the challenges or inequities experienced by specific groups or individuals.3. "There's nothing I can do about it"Many times the issue is seen as an insurmountable societal problem, which it certainly is. Leaders instinctively devote time and effort to problems where they feel they have some chance of success. If they do see their efforts having an impact, they will naturally focus on a different problem.Looking at these three challenges, it's not clear a detailed business case will be the game changer. Item 1 shows us why it's so essential that leaders clarify D&I ambitions for their organization. Yes, HR and I&D experts have a role to play in coaching and advising the organization, but the DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION: IS IT ALL ABOUT THE BUSINESS CASE?
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