There is change and progression, and while some organizations are correctly prioritizing diversity of ethnicity, age, and gender, studies show that this alone it not a guarantee to increase creativity and productivity.
One area of diversity continues to be ignored and overlooked, and it is one that will without contention provide organizations with immediate and significant improvement. That is cognitive diversity: the differences in perspective and information processing. If cognitive diversity is effective, why is it overlooked? Two reasons stand out – it is hard to visibly see and cultural barriers.
We tend to surround ourselves and hire for people in our own image, and are at ease with others who look, sound, behave and even think as we do. We know how we think, how does having more of us help creativity? Adopting an open mindset to the people we surround ourselves with and testing for cognition readily enables an organization to solve for new, complex, and diverse challenges by deploying different modes of thinking.
Culturally, organizations often inhibit creative thinking. An individual has different cognitive abilities that can be adopted and adapted. Encouraging individuals to share openly, make themselves vulnerable, and challenge broader unbiased thinking will inspire more creative and productive outcomes.
Challenge yourself and your organization with open unbiased thinking, and it may bring innovative solutions to traditional challenges.
