Window Dressing? Anti-Bueno

Yesterday a reporter for the Chicago Tribune called to ask for my reaction to a job fair she will be attending soon. This recruiting event will target Latinos who have recently completed MBA’s. She wanted to know whether I thought these companies truly had a commitment to diversity or whether they were trying to make themselves look as though they did.

I told her probably both kinds of companies would be represented. Some companies want to improve their image in the community or industry by adding diverse groups to their payrolls. Others see into the future and realize that a well-developed talent strategy probably includes adding Latino MBA’s.

Research tells us that the number of Latinos in the US will grow significantly in the next 10-15 years. My client companies are already expanding into Mexico and Latin America. Is it any mystery why these educated people will command our attention?

As the population changes, so will the need to have decision makers who match the demographics. In other words, some of your decision makers need to look like your clients and customers. To ignore this fact is to doom your talent strategy to eventual failure.

As I pointed out to the reporter, the goal should not be to recruit Latinos; it should be to find bi-cultural, bi-lingual business people who understand finance who can assume leadership positions in ten years. Being able to order a beer in another language does not mean a person is bi-lingual. Being articulate in the language and being able to do business in it do.

Bi-culturalism adds another dimension. To understand a culture and its buying decisions, people need not only to know the language,  they must also understand the nonverbal nuances that contribute to the communication exchange.

I don’t necessarily advocate a commitment to diversity for its own sake. I do, however, promote a dedication to excellence. If you develop a talent strategy that looks ten years into the future, you will realize excellent people will come in all kinds of packages. Many of them very bueno.