Republic day parade.

An opportunity for India to showcase its military capabilities and cultural and social heritage to its countrymen. And many wide-eyed children and adults sit through and watch the glamorous extravaganza of cultural heritage and display of military might. 

Possibly, the time of the year when the curious amongst us all gets to witness what the other half in this country has always been about. In North, we would wait for the ‘Jhankia’ or glimpses of the state tableaux, and then judging for ourselves which of them were the most appealing, innovative or very different from the rest. In those moments, what probably many of us did not realize that what we were witnessing was a harmonious procession that celebrates our differences, and the traits that we all possess collectively as a state, but still different from rest of the country. And what an absolute cause for celebration!

But what if an organization was also like a country, and needless to say if that organization was in India, then it would also mimic the diversity of the country to a certain level. And if organizations too could also celebrate the diversity within the organization, what would that be like?

Diversity matters.

It isn’t just for the purpose of appearing good in the eyes of the employees and stakeholders, but also because diversity leads to better innovation and improved financial performance for the organization. And hence it makes a lot of sense for people to not just celebrate diversity but also promote it. And like all things which need to be expressed and communicated, organizations too need to organize events wherein they celebrate the diversity of their organization. The question that comes next is that how should they actually go about doing it?

During the Republic Day Parade, the defense capability of the country is symbolically linked to the diversity in the country. At an organizational level as well, the financial performance of the organization needs to be linked to the diversity within the organization. Research has proved that it does, it is time that organizations accept it, and also start communicating the same to its employees.

The advantage that India has over any other country is the regional and linguistic diversity that it has to offer. It is also true for organizations in India as well. There are Punjabis working with Tamilians, Biharis with Maharashtrians, and all, in the end, we are Indians, and employees of that single organization working towards a common goal. And that is what binds us.

How does diversity lead to better innovation in the organization?

Primarily, it is because diverse people have diverse perspective. That is, if a problem is brought on the table, almost everybody is going to look at it very differently. And they will also share their perspective on the same, which would further lead to collaborative learning, and consequently to developing the ability to innovate. However, the condition here is that people from different backgrounds have a fair chance of expressing their feelings and thoughts and that emotional safety needs to be provided by the organization. 

Most organizations today are striving just to do that. And though there is so much more that organizations in India need to be doing, they should also start celebrating their own efforts towards promoting diversity and freedom of thought in the organization.

So, the next time whenever there are Republic Day celebrations in the country, align those with the diversity agenda in the organization.

• Think of the latest initiative or drive that you undertook to promote diversity in your organization
  
  
• Use the platform of the Republic Day to bring people together and talk about the latest initiative and the values that you wish to communicate and express
  
  
• Celebrate cross-functional and diverse teams which have worked on projects strategically important for the growth of the organization
  
  
• Highlight occasions where people from diverse backgrounds have come together to support activities under the CSR initiative of the organization
  
  
• Build a culture of appreciation and respect. Utilise your weekly meetings to do just that.

Do let us know in the comment section below, how exactly is your organization working towards celebrating and promoting diversity within the organization.