How ‘Culture’ Became an Incoherent Buzzword and Set Back DEI

The term Culture has become a buzzword and lost meaning at most companies, making it entirely subjective. As a result, people have been using it (consciously or not) to perpetuate bias in the workplace. By creating clarity and common language, culture can be built to support DEI.

Session Takeaways

• The way culture has been used has had a negative impact on DEI
• The problem comes from incoherence in how people use the word leading to bias in implementation
• Creating a common language is key to limiting the biases created by this issue

Facts Related To This Presentation

• Nine out of 10 Canadian (90 per cent) and U.S. (91 per cent) managers said a candidate's fit with the organizational culture is equal to or more important than their skills and experience.
• Interviewees are judged based on their social status within seconds after they start speaking.
• People glorify the cultures of places like Google, Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Microsoft. Yet, the statistics on their diversity have barely changed since committing to do so in 2014.