How diversity makes teams more innovative | Rocío Lorenzo | TED

Summary

The speaker shares her journey from dismissing diversity concerns to recognizing its importance in the workplace. Through a study with the Technical University of Munich, she discovered a clear link between diversity and innovation in companies. The research showed that companies with more than 20% women in leadership were significantly more innovative. Despite progress in female education, leadership roles remain predominantly male. The speaker advocates for conscious hiring and promotion decisions to achieve gender diversity, as it drives organizational innovation.

Takeaways

• 🔍 The speaker initially believed diversity would naturally improve over time, but her experiences in management consulting showed her this was not the case.
• 🚀 The study conducted with the Technical University of Munich revealed a clear correlation between diversity and innovation in companies.
• 💡 Innovation revenue, which measures the share of revenues from new products and services, was used as a key indicator of a company's innovativeness.
• 👥 The research considered six factors to measure diversity, including country of origin, age, and gender.
• 🤔 The team was initially skeptical about finding a link between diversity and innovation, expecting it to be conditional on certain criteria like leadership style.
• 📈 The data showed that companies with more diverse leadership were more innovative, regardless of the initial skepticism.
• 🐔 The 'chicken or the egg' question was raised regarding whether diversity leads to innovation or vice versa, but the data suggests a two-way relationship.
• 📊 The study found that having more than 20% women in leadership positions is crucial for diversity to impact innovation.
• 🌐 The media's reaction to the study was varied, ranging from factual reporting to sensationalist headlines.
• 📉 Despite an increase in the number of highly educated women, their representation in leadership roles has not improved significantly.
• 💼 Companies like SAP have successfully increased female leadership by setting measurable targets and being proactive about diversity.

Q & A

What was the initial assumption about diversity and leadership in the speaker's university experience?

The speaker initially assumed that diversity and leadership decisions would happen naturally over time due to a balanced male-female ratio and women often having better grades in university.

What realization did the speaker come to while working as a management consultant?

The speaker realized that despite the presence of diversity in education, leadership roles remained homogenous and that many leaders did not see diversity as a business priority.

What was the main question the speaker wanted to explore regarding diverse teams?

The speaker wanted to explore whether diverse organizations are more innovative and if diversity can be a real competitive advantage beyond just a compliance issue.

What was the methodology of the study conducted with the Technical University of Munich?

The study surveyed 171 companies in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, asking about their innovation revenue and diversity across six factors including country of origin, age, and gender.

What was the most skeptical expectation of the study's outcome among the speaker's team?

The most skeptical expectation was that the study might find no link at all between innovation and diversity.

What was the surprising result of the study regarding the relationship between diversity and innovation?

The study found a clear positive correlation between diversity and innovation, with more diverse companies being more innovative.

What is the 'chicken or the egg' question the speaker refers to?

The 'chicken or the egg' question refers to whether companies are more innovative because they have diverse leadership, or if they have diverse leadership because they are innovative.

What is the critical percentage of women in leadership for diversity to impact innovation according to the study?

The study indicates that to have an impact on innovation, there needs to be more than 20 percent women in leadership.

What was the reaction of the media to the study's results?

The media reactions varied from factual reporting to sensationalist headlines, with some focusing on the importance of female participation in the workforce.

What is the current state of gender diversity in leadership in Germany according to the speaker?

In Germany, only 30 out of the 100 largest publicly listed companies have at least one woman on their board, and none have a female CEO.

What is the example the speaker gives of a company that has successfully increased gender diversity in leadership?

SAP, the software company, is given as an example. They set a measurable target of 25 percent women in leadership for 2017, which they achieved, and have now set a target of 30 percent for 2022.

What is the speaker's ultimate goal regarding diversity in leadership?

The speaker's goal is to change the face of leadership to make it more diverse, not for compliance or political correctness, but because diversity makes organizations more innovative and provides true opportunity for everyone.