1. Insert client logo here
Diversity Café
Facilitator notes:
Instructions: Proceed to the next slide once the presentation is visible to the participants.
Insert client logo here

2. Welcome What is something you do to foster inclusivity in your team?
(please chat in your response)
Facilitator notes:
Say: Good morning/afternoon. This is ________ from ________ . We’ll be starting today’s session at ____. As you come online, please take a moment to answer the question on your screen via the chat panel. We’ll give your colleagues a few more moments to join our session and then we’ll get started. Thank you.
Note: There is no need to debrief the question now—it will be discussed several slides later. However, use this time to make note of the most common and least common responses so you are prepared to debrief later.
CHAT

3. Introductions NAME NAME Title Title Facilitator notes:
[Time: 1 minute]
Instructions: Introduce yourself and any co-facilitator or web conferencing producer who might be helping with the session. Acknowledge the relative size of the audience, and consider having participants chat in their locations if this information is not readily apparent. The point is to give people a sense of who is participating in the session today.
NAME
Title
NAME
Title

4. Participation tips Limit electronic interruptions.
Take part in the discussion.
Listen carefully to what is being said.
The CHAT PANEL is enabled for the session.
Use the RAISE HAND feature to volunteer to speak.
Put your phone on mute when not speaking.
CHAT
Facilitator notes:
[Time: 1 minute]
Say: Today’s session has been designed to be an interactive experience. To get the most from the session, here are a few tips about how to participate.
Instructions: Highlight any web conferencing features to be used, such as the chat panel and raise hand feature. Note that the raise hand feature may not be necessary if the group is relatively small. With a small group, participants could volunteer by simply unmuting themselves and speaking up. If you do choose to use the raise hand feature, explain, “When I invite you to raise your hand during the session, I mean you can click on the raise hand button if you want to share your thoughts with the group.”
Say: It appears we are ready to start.
RAISE HAND

5. Leveraging diversity
What is something you do to foster inclusivity in your team?
Facilitator notes:
[Time: 5 minutes]
Say: Let’s start by taking a look at the opening question.
Instructions: Debrief the icebreaker question about what participants do to foster inclusivity in their teams. Briefly summarize participants’ responses.
Choose one or two common responses (or if they are very varied, select one or two you find most interesting) and use them to focus on in a brief discussion about approaches to fostering inclusivity in their teams. Ask for several volunteers to raise hands to say more about how they apply the approach they mentioned.
Take a few responses, then summarize what people have said. Then set context for the session, for example:
Say: It’s clear from everyone’s responses that there are some practical steps we can all take to foster inclusivity in our teams. Our whole organization benefits if diversity is welcomed and supported.
RAISE HAND

6. Today’s objectives Help you:
Address any personal diversity-related biases
Foster inclusivity of diverse employees on your team
Manage diversity-related conflict
Facilitator notes:
[Time: 1 minute]
Say: Today’s session is focused on three important capabilities needed to create a diverse and inclusive work environment. Specifically, we are going to discuss how to:
Address any personal diversity-related biases
Foster inclusivity of diverse employees on your team
Manage diversity-related conflict

7. ADDRESS BIASES DIVERSITY Facilitator notes: [Time: 1 minute]
Say: Let’s begin by discussing biases—often unconscious—that may prevent us from managing diverse team members as effectively as possible.

8. Recognize hidden biases
What unconscious biases on John’s part might have prompted Kira’s and Lynne’s reaction?
John leads a business unit that is behind schedule in preparing its biannual strategic plan. On Friday afternoon, he asks Kira and Lynne, the only team members who are single women without children, to help him complete the plan over the weekend. John notices from their expressions that they both seem unhappy about his request, though they reluctantly agree to help.
Facilitator notes:
[Time: 15 minutes]
Say: Let’s consider this short scenario. What assumptions might John have made about Kira and Lynne that led him to ask them for help, rather than other members of his team?
Instructions: Give participants one minute to review the scenario, and then ask participants to chat in their ideas about any hidden biases that might be underlying John’s request.
For example, John may believe the following about Kira and Lynne:
Because they are single, their weekend time is less valuable than that of team members who are married.
Because they don’t have children, they have fewer personal commitments or responsibilities and so are available at short notice.
Because they are women, they are more likely to agree to a helping or supporting role than men.  
Say: Let’s say that John has recognized that he calls on Kira and Lynne to work extra hours more often than anyone else on his team because they don’t have family responsibilities. What might John do to remedy the mistakes he’s made?
Instructions: Ask participants to raise their hands to offer ideas about how John can overcome his assumptions about Kira and Lynne and repair his relationships with them. Highlight the following ideas if participants do not mention them: 
John could:
Acknowledge his mistakes and apologize. Be open about assumptions he’s made that resulted in biased behavior.
Regularly evaluate his decisions from now on for bias. Make a conscious effort to recognize that he may have biases about different types of employees in the future.
Recognize that stress can affect judgment. Remind himself that when he’s in a stressful situation, such as the delayed strategic plan, he is more likely to make biased judgments.
Reach out to understand Kira and Lynne better. He could talk informally with each separately about her background and unique experiences, and strengthen the relationship by sharing details about his own life. 
Say: Now take a minute to think of a situation where you may have made a mistake related to a hidden bias or assumption, or perhaps observed another manager make such a mistake. What were the consequences; for example, in terms of employee motivation or performance ?
Instructions: Give participants a minute to reflect, then ask for two or three volunteers to raise hands to share their experience of bias-influenced mistakes and their consequences. Remind participants to keep private the identities of any people involved.

9. FOSTER INCLUSIVITY Diversity Facilitator notes: [Time: 1/2 minute]
Say: Let’s turn now to discussing ways to build an inclusive team environment in which individuals feel comfortable being themselves and are motivated to contribute.

10. Help people feel welcome
A month ago, Taylor, creative director of a large media company, hired Jayden, a graphic artist. Because Jayden is wheelchair-bound, Taylor made a series of changes to Jayden’s workstation to accommodate his disability. Taylor also made a point of explaining the day-to-day details of the job and had suggested that Jayden introduce himself to his new coworkers. Jayden is doing a good job, but seems isolated from the rest of the team.
What additional steps could Taylor have taken to help Jayden feel more welcome in the team?
Facilitator notes:
[Time: 5 minutes]
Say: Let’s consider this scenario. What could Taylor have done or be doing now to help Jayden feel more a part of the team?
Instructions: Give participants one minute to review the scenario, and then ask them to chat in their ideas about steps Taylor could take to help integrate Jayden into the team. Highlight the following ideas if participants do not mention them:
Taylor should have made an extra effort to introduce Jayden to the team rather than expecting Jayden to introduce himself. Meeting each team member individually early on can help build good relationships. Once introduced, Jayden could initiate follow up conversations with individual team members.
Taylor should meet frequently with Jayden during the first month or so, to see how he is integrating into the team, and ask what help Jayden might need to be successful.
Taylor could network on Jayden’s behalf. Taylor can help Jayden form meaningful connections by introducing him to employees beyond the team who might have similar interests or who might be able to act as mentors.
Taylor could invite Jayden to socialize. Taking Jayden out to coffee or lunch will give Taylor the opportunity to get to know him better personally and professionally.
Taylor could share information about inside politics and unspoken rules. Helping Jayden understand some of the complexities of the company’s business environment would allow Jayden to do a better job both on his design work and his effectiveness in communicating his ideas to others inside and outside of his team.

11. Help people feel valued
Maria has worked for many years at a large medical center and was recently promoted to lead the Clinical Quality Assurance unit. Maria has just learned that the two youngest members of her team have complained to Human Resources that she does not listen to their ideas and shows favoritism to older team members. As a result, they feel that they are not valued as equal team members.
What steps could Maria take to help the younger team members feel respected and valued?
Facilitator notes:
[Time: 5 minutes]
Say: Let’s consider another scenario. What steps could Maria take to address the concerns of the younger team members?
Instructions: Give participants one minute to review the scenario, and then ask participants to raise hands to share their ideas about how Maria could help younger team members feel respected and valued. Call on two or three volunteers. Highlight the following ideas if participants do not mention them:
Maria could :
Seek participation from everyone. During meetings, seek input from all participants equally, not just those she knows better.
Let individuals know she appreciates their ideas. During and after meetings, acknowledge to youngers members of the team how difficult it can be to express a different perspective, but how valuable it is to the organization.
Vary the ways she solicits input. Some employees love to talk in a group—and others don’t. Occasionally, about an issue to be discussed and ask for written thoughts in advance. Or invite an employee to discuss an issue one-on-one over lunch. These varied input methods not only would accommodate differences in employees’ communication styles, but give Maria a chance to consider more carefully the ideas suggested by her younger employees.
Thank employees for their work. Look for opportunities to notice the contributions of younger team members and make a point of recognizing their efforts. Raise the profile of your younger employees by putting such positive feedback into a group .
While making efforts to demonstrate appreciation for younger team members’ contributions, Maria needs to continue to solicit and recognize contributions of all her employees.

12. Create a more inclusive environment
What is one of your biggest challenges in creating a more inclusive team environment?
For example, creating an inclusive environment that accommodates differences in:
Culture
Age
Gender
Ethnicity
Thinking style
Facilitator notes:
[Time: 8 minutes]
Say: We’ve discussed a number of ways in which managers can create a more inclusive environment for their diverse employees. Now let’s talk about some of the challenges you currently face in doing so. Team members can differ in many ways. Some are listed on this slide. Thinking about differences among your team members, what is one of your your biggest challenges in creating an inclusive team?
Instructions: Allow participants a minute to reflect, then ask participants to raise hands if they are willing to share their challenge and hear suggestions from the group about how they might address it. Call on one volunteer to describe his or her challenge. Remind participants to keep private the identities of any people involved.
If participants are not comfortable sharing a current challenge, ask for a volunteer who previously faced an inclusion challenge to share how he or she addressed it. Alternately ask a volunteer to share an inclusion challenge they observed, and solicit participants’ ideas about good ways to address such a challenge.
Say: We’ve heard about [name of volunteer]’s challenge. What suggestions do you have that could helped create a more inclusive team in that situation? Raise your hand if you’d like to share an idea.
Instructions: Call on 2-3 volunteers as time permits.
Say: Now take a minute or so to jot down ideas you can apply to your own team environment.

13. MANAGE DIVERSITY- RELATED CONFLICT DIVERSITY Facilitator notes
[Time: 1 minute]
Say: In the last section, we focused on the challenges of developing an inclusive team environment. Let’s turn to a related issue—how to manage conflict related to employee differences. Workplace diversity brings great advantages, but it can sometimes lead to tension and misunderstandings. Let’s now focus on ways of dealing constructively with such potential conflict.

14. Address diversity-related conflict
Luis was a star performer in the South American division of a German clean energy firm. Since he joined a product development team in Germany three months ago, he has been consistently late for project meetings. Luis has ignored the team’s remarks about his lateness, so his colleagues are now responding by attacking his ideas during meetings. After the latest episode, Luis lost his temper and abruptly left the room.
How could the team leader address this situation?
Facilitator notes:
[Time: 5 minutes]
Say: Let’s consider this scenario. If you were managing this project team, what actions could help resolve this conflict?
Instructions: Give participants one minute to review the scenario, and then ask participants to chat in their ideas about how they could resolve conflict between Luis and other team members. Highlight the following ideas if participants do not mention them:
The project leader could explain to Luis the importance of punctuality in this organization’s culture.
The project leader could remind the team to assume everyone has good intentions. Luis is probably not being deliberately late to aggravate the team, but it’s possible because of his cultural norms he may not recognize the impact of his lateness on others.
The project leader could remind the team to be open to new ideas, regardless of their feelings about who is presenting them.
The project leaders could encourage all team members to address their frustrations with one another openly and directly.

15. Tailor your conflict-resolution approach
A team member persists in treating a colleague in a biased way despite repeated coaching.
Two team members have tried unsuccessfully to resolve a mutual misunderstanding.
A diverse team with generally strong communication skills is having a disagreement.
A diverse team can’t work effectively despite extensive mediation about their conflicts.
Approaches
Adaptation
Mediation
Structural Intervention
Removal
Facilitator notes:
[Time: 8 minutes]
Say: Let’s review some suggested approaches from the Harvard ManageMentor topic for managing diversity-related conflicts. Consider the four situations on the left and match them to a conflict resolution approach that you think is best for each. Chat in your choices such as 1-A if you think situation #1 would best be handled using approach A. Feel free to refer to the handout “Approaches for Addressing Diversity-Related Conflict” from the Harvard ManageMentor Diversity topic for definitions of the four approaches.
Instructions: Allow participants two minutes to review the handout and chat in their responses. Mention the matches that are theoretically correct: 1-D, 2-B, 3-A, 4-C. Note any responses that are different from the theoretically correct responses, and point out that there may be instances in which the recommended conflict resolution approach is not the best in practice. Then ask participants who chose “non-standard” matches to raise hands if they are willing to share their rationale for choosing a different approach. Support their thought process, for example:
Say: That’s an understandable response to dealing with that diversity-related situation. As we all know, there is no infallible way to manage diversity-related conflict. The specifics of a situation can make all the difference. What’s important is that all of us do our best to think through how to resolve a particular diversity-related conflict.
Say: Now raise your hands if you’re willing to share a situation in which you successfully used any of the four approaches we’ve been discussing. Briefly tell us the situation and how your use of the approach helped resolve the conflict. Please keep private the identities of any people involved.
Instructions: Call on one or two participants as time permits.

16. APPLY WHAT YOU’VE LEARNED
DIVERSITY
APPLY WHAT YOU’VE LEARNED
Facilitator notes:
[Time: 1/2 minute]
Say: We’re coming to the end of our session today.

17. Today’s objectives Help you:
Address any personal diversity-related biases
Foster inclusivity of diverse employees on your team
Manage diversity-related conflict
Facilitator notes:
[Time: 1 minute]
Say: Today’s session focused on three important elements of diversity. Specifically, we discussed how to:
Address any personal diversity-related biases
Foster inclusivity of diverse employees on your team
Manage diversity-related conflict

18. Apply what you’ve learned
Your next step is to complete the On-the-Job section of the Harvard ManageMentor Diversity topic.
Facilitator notes:
[Time 1 minute]
The On-the-Job section in the Harvard ManageMentor Diversity topic provides an opportunity for you to pick a skill to work on, and come up with specific ways to apply and develop that skill in your workplace. For instance, you can pick the skill: “Create a more inclusive team culture.” Then you’ll identify specific action items that you can do to apply and develop this skill. For example, you could develop an action item of: “I will meet with my team to develop guidelines for team behavior that help all members feel welcome, respected, and valued.
Say: In order to complete this learning experience, proceed to the On-the-Job section in the Harvard ManageMentor topic. Remember, the only way to develop a skill is to apply and experiment with the use of that skill in your workplace.

19. Thank you Facilitator notes: [Time: 1/2 minute]
Instructions: Thank participants for their time and active participation.