Success in the global marketplace requires innovation and savvy deployment of corporate social responsibility (CSR) strategies that deliver business value.  Diversity initiatives are increasingly used to reach consumer groups around the world and ultimately improve business results.  Traditionally, these initiatives are implemented by human resource teams as a core CSR strategy for a company, and rarely tracked to the bottom line.   Over the past few years, innovative companies that aim to reach ethnically diverse consumers are leveraging diversity approaches to better connect  employees groups with product development and marketing efforts.   

 

In the end, do these interesting programs really demonstrate measurable business results?  Cedric Herring’s analysis of over 500 US businesses in 1996-1997 in, “Does Diversity Pay”,  reveals that more diverse workforces actually do have higher revenues, more customers, and greater market share.    For example, diversity initiatives seem to deliver more than headcount ratios for iconic brands like PepsiCo and Google.     Stanford Social Innovation Review  highlights that PepsiCo. attributed part of its 2004 growth to its diversity programs.  In addition, products such as, Guacamole Doritos and Wasabi Funyuns were born from  the company’s diversity initiatives.    Google utilizes its diverse workforce to improve the quality of its products.  At the 2009 Business for Social Responsibility Conference, Google representatives presented Google’s 40 Language Project which makes information accessible to a diverse user base by utilizing employees, or “Googlers”, who speak different languages and represent different ethnic groups to translate terms and jargon.  The result is a robust set of Google products that are user-friendly and approachable in 40 languages. 

 

These examples bring life to Herring’s conclusion that “diversity is not just about protecting special classes of people.  It can be beneficial to the entire organization.”  Integrating many different CSR initiatives into business strategies can improve product quality, reach more consumers,  and deliver to the bottom-line. 

 

References:

Cedric Herring, “Does Diversity Pay?” Race, Gender, and the Business Case for Diversity, “ American Sociological Review, April 2009

“Diversity Brings the Dollars”,  Stanford Social Innovation Review, Fall 2009

“Diversity and Innovation”, Panel Session, Business for Social Responsibility Conference, October 2009