Alright, you are now forewarned – Cinco De Mayo (the 5th of May for all of us non-Spanish speaking HR Pros) is just a few days away and inevitably someone is going to be coming to the HR Department (or if you’re lucky enough to have a Diversity Department) to ask how we are going to recognize our organization’s Mexican employees. So, I’m going to plead with you not to take the easy way out and go for the Food, Flags and Fun approach to celebrating the diversity of your workforce.
Food, Flags and Fun is when your organization, no matter what the holiday, decides that celebrating with a special lunch menu in the cafeteria would be the best way to show the importance diversity has in your organization. So, for Cinco De Mayo, the cafeteria has the taco buffet; Black History month is celebrated with red beans & rice, corn bread and greens; Chinese New Year, you get the orange chicken – you get the picture. Is it just me or is this actually the opposite of celebrating diversity? And if you think I’m kidding on the menu items, ask around – I actually worked at an organization that for years thought it was alright to celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr. Day by having fried chicken, greens, macaroni & cheese, etc. – I told the head of our cafeteria the only thing he was missing was the orange drink, banana pudding and watermelon! That’s not diversity, that’s racist.
So, what can you do about it? Start by putting some of the ownership of celebration and education back on to those specific sets of diverse employees – you might be amazed at the what, why and how they come up with to recognize their own heritage. Our last Cinco De Mayo celebration – our associates with Mexican heritage actually did have a traditional cook off and it allowed all associates to be involved. Also, start by getting away from Diversity Programs that are politically correct (you know the ones – usually has to do with first designing a rainbow poster to announce the education session) and start designing programs that show how HR can tie diversity back to the bottom line of your business. It can be as simple as taking your customer service measures and showing your operations partners how your most diverse locations get better scores or are more productive, etc.
Don’t worry if you don’t’ get this all done by May 5th – Memorial Day is right on its heals and I’m sure all the Veteran’s in your company can’t wait for the Spam sandwich and baked bean lunch.
I would to see more focus on diversity of thought and not just diversity of ethnic group.
Maybe a company could also dig a little deeper. Cinco de Mayo is celebrated more widely in the US than in Mexico, where it’s mostly a regional holiday. If you want to do something more authentically Mexican, check out Mexico’s *actual* independence celebration/national holiday on on September 15/16.
I think that it is the ignorance of most organizations that limit them in being diverse and learning about other cultures. This is 2009, and we are dealing with more racisim today than we did back in the 50′s and 60′s. The plantation has been remodeled and so it feels differently; however, it is still very much alive and companies across the world must be able stand up and not only say but demonstrated that everyone will be treated the same and anyone involved in any types of racist undertones, will be dealt with harsely; until then, Cinco de Mayo and all other minority holidays will be taken with a grain of salt.
…taken with a grain of salt? Don’t forget the lime and tequilla!
Great post, Tim! Food, Flags and Fun is exactly how most companies deal with diversity. We need to dig a little deeper and trying to understand how diversity touches the bottom line is a great start.