#31 - Fake Diversity Sells [Part II]

The most powerful form of lie is the omission — George Orwell

[Part I here]

GOTTA SELL

Modern thinking believes that diversity is a good thing for society. I believe diversity is a good thing. Because it is good, we need to understand its true nature because too many people simplify the concept. Dangerous as it makes us see progress where there is no progress. At least, the progress I am seeking – is a fair society with high social mobility for everybody.

Smart marketers understand that the larger audience embraces concepts like sustainability, diversity, bottom-up action, and more of those lofty ideas that make the world a better place to be. The problem is of course that the products they sell are not green, sustainable, diverse, or bottom-up at all. They are painting the outside in sustainable colors to hide that on the inside nothing changes. You plant two trees and you claim to be a social business.

It is sad as it is inevitable. Shrewd marketers are killing off good concepts little by little watering down distinction (competitive advantage). If everything is green, then green means nothing anymore. And that is fine if everything is truly green. But it ain’t. It is an advanced perception that serves those people in power who resist the changes that many of us want.

The Crowd behind Trump is more diverse than 5th Avenue. It is staged. The irony is that even Trump thinks that he cannot win with only white faces behind him. It confirms how deeply diversity is ingrained in modern society. But it is fake. It is as fake as Botox plastic tits. Donny does not give a rat ass about diversity. His core followers don’t give a rat ass about diversity. Still, they understand that you need a little cosmetics nowadays.

Fake Diversity Sells. It is cosmetics that embellish the superficial outside to give the impression of change while everything inside stays the same. It is a power play. The Big Swinging Dicks consolidate their power base and they don’t care about the make-up needed.

ADVANTAGES

To distinguish the real from the fake, we need to go deeper. What does diversity actually mean? And why if it is so good for society and organizations, why don’t we see more of it? And maybe we should ask ourselves “diverse from what/from whom”?

Let’s start by calling out the advantages of diversity.

• Diverse organizations spark innovation

• Diverse leadership expands an organization’s customer base

• Diverse teams get better answers

• Diverse project teams collaborate more effectively

• Diversity improves team performance

• Diverse teams make better decisions

• Diverse leaders fuel productivity

• Diversity and inclusion cut down on turnover

• Diverse organizations attract new talent.

[Source: GlobeSmart - article here]

You get the picture. A diverse workforce makes more money and makes people happier. But what about fake diversity? Does it make money? Does it make people happier? Is fake diversity a placebo; a mental play to comfort us?

Those advocating real diversity should be highly critical to secure that we do not sit in a theatre where the play paints sparkling colors on the outside to hide that nothing changes on the inside.

To be continued.

THE END