The Inclusion Paradox: The Obama Era and the Transformation of Global Diversity by Andrés T. Tapia
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Andres Tapia has lived diversity and inclusion, not only as a Peruvian married to an American living in Chicago, but also as a chief diversity officer for Hewitt, and eventually CEO of Diversity Best Practices. More than that, Tapia believes that the hard work of inclusion in our businesses and other organizations is worth it–that when we call out and welcome the differences that our diverse population bring, this has a multiplier effect in our organizations in terms of the performance of our people and performance in the marketplace. This is very different from the guilt or quota driven or advocacy driven approaches to diversity and inclusion.

Tapia distinguishes diversity and inclusion as follows: diversity is the mix and inclusion is making the mix work. The first part of the book focuses on the rapidly changing landscape in our country where whites will be a minority by 2040 or sooner, where we elect an African American president and operate in a global marketplace. Tapia would argue that in this landscape, the organizations that do inclusion well are those that will thrive–that we need the differences we all bring.

Part Two recognizes a simple truth–we often think of difference as evil or incompentence, rather than as just different. Part Three then goes on to “call out” the differences that exist in our cultural landscape: white and minority ethnic, women, millenials, disabled, LGBT, and artists. Each of these chapters identifies key cultural differences and the challenges of inclusion in each group. I was most struck by the fact that as groups, whites differ from African Americans on six of seven cultural dimensions (and from most of the rest of the world): universalist vs. particularist, task vs. relationship, individualist vs. communal, sequential vs. synchronous, internal vs. external control, and neutral vs. affective. Tapia’s point is that neither of these is “better” but rather that understanding that the way others engage the world, and then creating systems and working relationships that leverage these differences is key to good inclusion.

Part Four looks at organizations and their policies and systems and how inclusion can become part of the fabric of organizational life. His chapter on retention of people of color was especially striking in his emphasis on four pillars: community, recognition, mentoring, and advancement. There was a discussion of risk-taking that noted that organizations tend to advance those taking calculated risks and that whites tend to follow this approach while others either are more cautious or more risky, and the importance of working with this during mentoring and advancement processes.

There will be those that balk at the material on LGBT inclusion. Throughout, Tapia emphasizes that we do not need to give up the ways we differ to recognize and work with the differences in others–at least in businesses and other organizations in the public sector. He does not address faith communities that have moral reservations around sexuality and gender identity questions, except to infer that one’s views might change as one relates with LGBT persons. He doesn’t address the question that is peculiar to inclusion work with persons in this group of how inclusion works where one may show deep respect for the whole person and their gifts, where one can be a genuine ally in many regards, while retaining moral reservations about sexual practices and gender expression. Exploring how this might work would actually be more consistent with his approach of “calling out differences.”

Overall, however, I have to admit that I liked this book more than I thought I would. Its emphasis on calling out difference, and the opportunities for the advancement of organizational mission through inclusion, as well as the specific practical recommendations were all quite helpful. Tapia’s passionate enthusiasm for the opportunities that arise out of inclusion work is infectious and helps one move from a “have to” to a “want to” mentality.

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