While preparing a presentation about making the workplace more friendly to people from diverse backgrounds, I came across Max De Pree’s definition of the term “diversity:”

Diversity: “Recognizing the diversity of people’s gifts, talents, and skills.”

“Interesting,” I thought. “Though my seventh-grade english teacher taught me that one shouldn’t include the term being defined in its definition. Also, I think people’s differing experiences are important, and ideally, we’re not just “recognizing” but “benefitting from” those differences. So…:

Diversity: “Benefitting from the range of people’s gifts, talents, skills, and experiences.”

“Sounds good,” I thought, “but what’s preventing workplaces from doing this?”

“The difficulties we have communicating with, and managing conflicts across, gender, disability, race, ethnicity, class, religion, sexual orientation — those “isms” that seem to tie us all in knots.”

I next came across an article from the September 16, 2014 issue of Scientific American entitled “3 Myths Plus a Few Best Practices for Achieving Diversity.”

“Cool!” I thought. “My father, a chemistry professor for more than 40 years, enthusiastically spoke about articles about chemistry, physics, biology, and meteorology from Scientific American. And they even write about diversity!”

In the article, Victoria Plaut sets forth a key misperception that short-circuits many diversity efforts: people from varying backgrounds work best if major differences (the “isms”) are minimized. If you provide everyone with the same tools, the most competent and motivated employees will rise to the top.

Both research and common sense contradict this approach. In the Scientific American article, Ms. Plaut cited several experiments that show the value of acknowledging — rather than minimizing — differences. For example, she described a study that showed that “changing the types of objects found in a computer science classroom from the stereotypically geeky (Star Trek posters, junk food and soda cans) to more neutral objects (nature posters, coffee mugs and water bottles) was enough to raise female students’ level of interest in the subject matter to that of the males.”

And most of us some of the time adjust our behaviors in both large and small ways to meet the needs of others, known as making “reasonable accommodations” in the language of the Americans with Disabilities Act. But if differences are minimized instead of acknowledged, people will be less able to accommodate the needs of others they work with. Communication SNAFUs are more likely to take place when stress is high and deadlines loom. And, over time, the organization is likely to become less effective.

Below is a list of additional strategies for leaders to use to enhance an organization’s effectiveness at making diversity work for them based on my observations while attending Guiding Eyes for the Blind six times during the past 33 years to learn to work with a new guide dog. The process in getting dog-people partnerships started can be overwhelming. Each of us must learn to execute proper footwork while giving commands in a calm, clear voice. Each of us must learn to reward and correct our dogs based on the unique circumstances in which we find ourselves. Each of us must learn to do all this with the right blend of relaxed confidence so that our dogs won’t become too nervous. Add to that the diverse skills, experiences, and personalities of both students and instructors, and the process seems overwhelming.

Yet Guiding Eyes turns out more than its share of successful person-dog partnerships. How? Well, they:

* Develop clear goal(s).

* Build upon strengths and adapt to weaknesses.

* Model desired behaviors and support those who follow their lead.

* Focus on skillbuilding instead of just sharing information.

* Engage staff and students in identifying problems and solutions.

And remember that:

* If you reward crap, you’ll get crap.

* Play is good, but too much makes it harder to focus on work.

* We learn more if we’re having fun.

* Changing behavior can be tiring.

“But,” I can hear someone say, “these diversity best practices are just good common-sense leadership strategies.”

Precisely.