In his 2016 book, Driven by Difference, David Livermore makes the case that high-functioning, diverse teams outperform homogenous teams. However, he says diversity by itself doesn’t contribute to organizational success unless it supports your organization’s mission. And, he adds that unless leaders leverage diversity’s potential, it can actually erode performance and productivity.
So how can a leader leverage the potential of diverse teams? The secret is to minimize conflict while maximizing the informational diversity found in varied values and experiences. To overcome inherent frictions among diverse team members, Livermore says a leader needs to develop their workforce’s cultural intelligence or CQ.
Drawing on success stories from Google, Alibaba, Novartis, and other groundbreaking companies, Livermore identifies key leadership practices and elements of cultural intelligence that fuel innovation:
CQ drive: Build a desire to learn about other cultures and a willingness to adapt.
CQ knowledge: Cultivate appreciation and understanding of cultural differences.
CQ strategy: Be aware of the perspectives and ideas of different people and how their viewpoints affect the work of teams.
CQ action: Adjust to cultural differences and leverage diversity into results.
Leaders can increase their teams CQ by encouraging curiosity, listening, respect and “perspective-taking” among diverse team members. Drawn from real-life examples, Livermore demonstrates that innovation is fueled by cultural intelligence and the ability to see things from others’ perspectives. Encouraging employees to consider their co-workers’ points of view and to mix their colleagues’ perspectives with their own can pave the way to developing innovative solutions that borrow from many ideas and work for everyone.
What advice do you have for increasing your team’s or your own cultural intelligence? How is this complicated by more teams working remotely today?
Anita Rios
Rios Consulting 