Diversity: Performative | Backlash | Too many letters, not enough action

There are several tiers to this concept.

The first tier is about how we speak about diversity not being common or universal, even within the same industry. You’ll see DEI, DEIB, DEIBA, D&I, and more.

That tier is not necessarily surprising: acronyms allow us to easily form in-groups and out-groups around what we know and have access to. As we find our tribe within work, we become more comfortable. It also allows for easy recall. We can chunk information and reduce brain strain.

The problem there, though: Every time we introduce a new word or concept, we need a relatively-accepted definition of that term, and we need to figure out how it fits into the model and interacts with the other terms in the model. There is virtually universal acceptance on what “CAGR” means as an acronym: a compound annual growth rate. An executive may not look at “DEIBA” and see the same clarity.

A second tier: diversity and inclusion discussions are deeply tied to cultural norms, but cultural norms obviously vary in Chile and Beijing and New York City. You cannot “one-size-fits-all” diversity discussions because the concept is experienced at the intersection of generations of culture, belief, and assumption.