Diversity: The Force Multiplier of Innovation

Put any 10 people into a room and our innate social need to fit in will mean we are likely to reach agreement on a great deal of things. As people, we need to conform: to an idea, an ideology or a culture. It supports our sense of identity.

What you are unlikely to get though is innovation.

One of the most powerful ingredients in generating ideas is diversity of thought. As an approach to innovation, when people are exposed to new stimulus and then encouraged to interpret it through different experiences, disciplines and perspectives, this can really accelerate the process of turning good ideas into great ones. And there is good academic support for the underlying principle.

Hong and Page (2004) demonstrated mathematically that groups of diverse problem-solvers can sometimes outperform groups made up simply of the individually highest-performing people. Why? Because highly capable people who approach a problem in similar ways can get stuck in similar places. Different perspectives give a group more routes through the problem.

Difference, in other words, expands the space in which you can think about a problem.

But diversity alone is not enough.

Van Knippenberg, De Dreu and Homan (2004) found that diversity creates value when teams actually elaborate on their different information and perspectives. If people divide into camps, dismiss unfamiliar views or defer to the loudest voice, diversity can just as easily become friction. This is where psychological safety within the team becomes a critical component.

Amy Edmondson defines psychological safety as a shared belief that a team is safe for interpersonal risk-taking (Edmondson, 1999). In practical terms, it means believing that you can challenge an assumption, disagree with a senior colleague, ask a naïve question or propose an unconventional idea without being punished or embarrassed for doing so. Without that safety, diversity of thought may exist but remains invisible.

Consequently, playing the role of Devil's Advocate is an opportunity not an act of rebellion, It is an invitation to others to look at things differently. Charlan Nemeth’s research found that exposure to minority viewpoints encourages divergent thinking: people consider more information, explore more alternatives and can become more creative—even when the dissenting view itself turns out to be wrong (Nemeth, 2010).

This creates an important challenge for leaders. If companies want innovation, it is not sufficient for team leaders to ask: “Have we assembled diverse teams?”

Instead the right question is: “Have we created a team in which difference can actually influence the conversation?”

The colleague from another function or geography or culture. The newcomer who asks the naïve question. The person who disagrees with everyone else. The customer who sees the problem differently.

Innovation accelerates when different groups of people help teams see possibilities they could not see on their own.