ARTICLE
When it comes to a personal financial portfolio, likely you exercise the tried and true way to make it grow – diversify your investments. If you are a small-business owner, the same methodology likely is the key to your entrepreneurial success – you diversify the products and services you offer to appeal to a broader customer or client base. As you do that, there is something even more critical to consider, growing a diverse workforce. “I guarantee that one of the first things a small-business [owner] needs to think about is what they can do to create a welcoming environment in adding diversity,” said Ernie Post, director of Kutztown University Small Business Development Center and PASBDC Network. He acknowledges that’s not always easy. “In today’s competitive recruiting environment, all small businesses are finding challenges in this,” he said. “It’s not just adding to the quantity of the workforce, diversity is also a face of the business and sending the signal to welcoming a diversity of customers.” Changing demographics, especially in the urbanized areas of the Greater Lehigh Valley, mean there are ever-increasing numbers of diverse candidates. Small-business owners, who usually shoulder a variety of duties and who find both time and finances limited, often are confounded by the challenges of reaching out to potential hires in those communities with which they are not familiar – and sometimes not comfortable. But they can do so with an objective and consistent application and interview process, by getting involved with high school and community groups, colleges, training centers and unemployment offices and getting in front of diverse groups such as churches and Hispanic centers. They also should take advantage of Chamber of Commerce resources and connections, attend networking events and use social media and LinkedIn to share job opportunities. THE WORLD IS CHANGING Bart Bailey, a principal consultant with Cook Ross Inc., is a member of the African American Business Leadership Council of the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce. In his consulting work, just in the past two months, he has traveled to the United Kingdom, Ireland, India, the Dominican Republic and Australia, working with businesses and nonprofits as they diversify their workforces. “I can tell you firsthand how the world is changing and the mobility of the workforce,” he said. “People are moving globally for opportunities.” He provided the example of the Rockville, Md., nursing home where his father lives. Most members of the nursing staff are Nigerian immigrants. INCLUSIVE DEFINITION Closer to home in the Lehigh Valley, particularly Allentown, the state’s third largest city, the population continues to diversify. While Latino immigrants comprise the largest group in the Lehigh Valley, Bailey noted the rapidly growing Arabic-speaking community. Its numbers are requiring local hospitals to provide language/translation resources to accommodate that patient base. As more nation-based minorities offer qualified employment candidates, Bailey said workplace diversity also involves minority groups including, U.S. armed services veterans, LGBTQ, the physically challenged and second-chance individuals, including recovering addicts and those formerly incarcerated. OPEN TO THE IDEA Bailey said a business owner’s openness to hiring such individuals may first require serious self-examination. “What we do know [from Fortune 500 studies] is that any large organization that is more diverse outperforms those that are homogenous,” he said. “The same is true for small business, and we know the Lehigh Valley is growing ever more diverse.” He said business owners must consciously move out of their comfort zone of “people who look like us.” Eric Brown, general manager of the DoubleTree by Hilton Reading Hotel, which has one of the most diverse workforces in the area, agreed. “You have to start by opening your mind and being open to have a diverse workforce,” he said. BE AWARE OF BIASES Bailey emphasized the importance of objective and consistent application and interview processes. “Be mindful of your own personal triggers,” he said. “Make sure all your questions are consistent when meeting face to face. Have a heightened awareness of biases, even if you have to write a note to yourself during the interview itself.” Considering the personal responses of candidates is critical, Brown said. “My advice is to look at each individual that you hire as an opportunity to improve upon your culture,” he said. “The important thing is, how open are they to learning, taking instruction and working as a team. The more diverse that you can make a group of workers, the more diverse and open your customer base will be. They will feel more comfortable in your establishment if it is diverse.” GET INVOLVED EARLY Jobany Bedoya, small business and Latino outreach coordinator for the Greater Reading Chamber Alliance, said attracting a diverse workforce starts with interacting with the community’s youth. “Getting involved with high schools is important because for those kids who aren’t interested in college, you can recruit right from graduation,” he said. “And just as important, you should get involved with local training centers, colleges and unemployment offices because they all have people who need to find work.” Post, Bailey, Brown and Bedoya stress the importance of getting in front of groups of diverse communities regarding employment opportunities. Those can include church groups, Hispanic centers, community events, sporting and scholastic events – anywhere that people congregate. HELP FROM CHAMBER, AGENCIES Chambers of Commerce also provide opportunities, said Danielle Joseph, executive vice president, Business and Diversity Councils at the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce. Her chamber partners with the Lehigh Valley Workforce Development Board, SCORE and the African American Business Leaders Council, among others. She also noted the advantages of attending networking events for less formal and more personal communication. Joseph said the integration and acceptance of LGBTQ professionals in the Lehigh Valley business community is a direct outcrop of this. “The importance of allies in the community can’t be underscored,” she said, “in making the workplace more comfortable for those coming into it and the customers patronizing it.” SOCIAL MEDIA Bedoya offered a complementary chamber perspective, points of which are shared by Brown. “Social media is key,” Bedoya said. “Facebook and LinkedIn are free platforms that can be utilized for massive networking. I am constantly sharing job opportunities on my pages that I see are good ones. “In fact, because of the networking events that I host, anyone who seeks talent comes to me directly with a job posting or they ask for recommendations. It all stems from social media and marketing with your community.” CULTURE IS KEY, TOO Post said an improving economy should naturally increase workforce diversity. “I think savvy small-business owners recognize the need to have a culturally diverse workforce,” he said. “With the jobless rate going down, you need to cast a broader net for a strong talent pool. “If you can’t offer the same money, the same benefits as a larger business, you need to prove that you have a good working environment and policies to support workers and the ability to resolve any conflicts that might arise.” Bailey adds that sustainability of a diversified workforce is critical. “That’s a whole other piece of this: ‘What’s the legacy we’re leaving behind?’ ” To read the article, click here.
When it comes to a personal financial portfolio, likely you exercise the tried and true way to make it grow – diversify your investments.
If you are a small-business owner, the same methodology likely is the key to your entrepreneurial success – you diversify the products and services you offer to appeal to a broader customer or client base.
As you do that, there is something even more critical to consider, growing a diverse workforce.
“I guarantee that one of the first things a small-business [owner] needs to think about is what they can do to create a welcoming environment in adding diversity,” said Ernie Post, director of Kutztown University Small Business Development Center and PASBDC Network.
He acknowledges that’s not always easy.
“In today’s competitive recruiting environment, all small businesses are finding challenges in this,” he said. “It’s not just adding to the quantity of the workforce, diversity is also a face of the business and sending the signal to welcoming a diversity of customers.”
Changing demographics, especially in the urbanized areas of the Greater Lehigh Valley, mean there are ever-increasing numbers of diverse candidates.
Small-business owners, who usually shoulder a variety of duties and who find both time and finances limited, often are confounded by the challenges of reaching out to potential hires in those communities with which they are not familiar – and sometimes not comfortable.
But they can do so with an objective and consistent application and interview process, by getting involved with high school and community groups, colleges, training centers and unemployment offices and getting in front of diverse groups such as churches and Hispanic centers. They also should take advantage of Chamber of Commerce resources and connections, attend networking events and use social media and LinkedIn to share job opportunities.
THE WORLD IS CHANGING
Bart Bailey, a principal consultant with Cook Ross Inc., is a member of the African American Business Leadership Council of the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce. In his consulting work, just in the past two months, he has traveled to the United Kingdom, Ireland, India, the Dominican Republic and Australia, working with businesses and nonprofits as they diversify their workforces.
“I can tell you firsthand how the world is changing and the mobility of the workforce,” he said. “People are moving globally for opportunities.”
He provided the example of the Rockville, Md., nursing home where his father lives. Most members of the nursing staff are Nigerian immigrants.
INCLUSIVE DEFINITION
Closer to home in the Lehigh Valley, particularly Allentown, the state’s third largest city, the population continues to diversify.
While Latino immigrants comprise the largest group in the Lehigh Valley, Bailey noted the rapidly growing Arabic-speaking community. Its numbers are requiring local hospitals to provide language/translation resources to accommodate that patient base.
As more nation-based minorities offer qualified employment candidates, Bailey said workplace diversity also involves minority groups including, U.S. armed services veterans, LGBTQ, the physically challenged and second-chance individuals, including recovering addicts and those formerly incarcerated.
OPEN TO THE IDEA
Bailey said a business owner’s openness to hiring such individuals may first require serious self-examination.
“What we do know [from Fortune 500 studies] is that any large organization that is more diverse outperforms those that are homogenous,” he said. “The same is true for small business, and we know the Lehigh Valley is growing ever more diverse.”
He said business owners must consciously move out of their comfort zone of “people who look like us.”
Eric Brown, general manager of the DoubleTree by Hilton Reading Hotel, which has one of the most diverse workforces in the area, agreed.
“You have to start by opening your mind and being open to have a diverse workforce,” he said.
BE AWARE OF BIASES
Bailey emphasized the importance of objective and consistent application and interview processes.
“Be mindful of your own personal triggers,” he said. “Make sure all your questions are consistent when meeting face to face. Have a heightened awareness of biases, even if you have to write a note to yourself during the interview itself.”
Considering the personal responses of candidates is critical, Brown said.
“My advice is to look at each individual that you hire as an opportunity to improve upon your culture,” he said. “The important thing is, how open are they to learning, taking instruction and working as a team. The more diverse that you can make a group of workers, the more diverse and open your customer base will be. They will feel more comfortable in your establishment if it is diverse.”
GET INVOLVED EARLY
Jobany Bedoya, small business and Latino outreach coordinator for the Greater Reading Chamber Alliance, said attracting a diverse workforce starts with interacting with the community’s youth.
“Getting involved with high schools is important because for those kids who aren’t interested in college, you can recruit right from graduation,” he said. “And just as important, you should get involved with local training centers, colleges and unemployment offices because they all have people who need to find work.”
Post, Bailey, Brown and Bedoya stress the importance of getting in front of groups of diverse communities regarding employment opportunities. Those can include church groups, Hispanic centers, community events, sporting and scholastic events – anywhere that people congregate.
HELP FROM CHAMBER, AGENCIES
Chambers of Commerce also provide opportunities, said Danielle Joseph, executive vice president, Business and Diversity Councils at the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce. Her chamber partners with the Lehigh Valley Workforce Development Board, SCORE and the African American Business Leaders Council, among others.
She also noted the advantages of attending networking events for less formal and more personal communication. Joseph said the integration and acceptance of LGBTQ professionals in the Lehigh Valley business community is a direct outcrop of this.
“The importance of allies in the community can’t be underscored,” she said, “in making the workplace more comfortable for those coming into it and the customers patronizing it.”
SOCIAL MEDIA
Bedoya offered a complementary chamber perspective, points of which are shared by Brown.
“Social media is key,” Bedoya said. “Facebook and LinkedIn are free platforms that can be utilized for massive networking. I am constantly sharing job opportunities on my pages that I see are good ones.
“In fact, because of the networking events that I host, anyone who seeks talent comes to me directly with a job posting or they ask for recommendations. It all stems from social media and marketing with your community.”
CULTURE IS KEY, TOO
Post said an improving economy should naturally increase workforce diversity.
“I think savvy small-business owners recognize the need to have a culturally diverse workforce,” he said. “With the jobless rate going down, you need to cast a broader net for a strong talent pool.
“If you can’t offer the same money, the same benefits as a larger business, you need to prove that you have a good working environment and policies to support workers and the ability to resolve any conflicts that might arise.”
Bailey adds that sustainability of a diversified workforce is critical.
“That’s a whole other piece of this: ‘What’s the legacy we’re leaving behind?’ ” To read the article, click here.