Ask any manager which candidate they select for a job opening or promotion and most will answer: the best candidate, of course! The reality is different: with every step in the application or promotion process, the chances of selecting the best candidate get slimmer, while chances of choosing the most stereotypical candidate increase.
It has long been proven: greater diversity in the top of organizations leads to better financial results and offers an important competitive advantage. Recently, the Boston Consultancy Group found that revenues from new products and services in companies with above average diverse management teams were 19% higher than those in companies with more homogeneous leadership.
Diversity leads to innovative strength. By now, most top executives are convinced of the business case for diversity, with 90% of organizations implementing plans to increase the number of women and ethnic minorities.
Why then is progress so agonizingly slow?