IIDA Perspective - Spring/Summer 2016 - 13

3 It's personal
"My view of diversity." That is a telling qualifier, and one
most Roundtable participants used to frame their opinions
about the subject. And, as moderator Cheryl Durst pointed
out, far more people prefaced their comments with the phrase
"I feel" than with "I think." Diversity is a highly personal topic
that we inevitably view through the lens of our own value
system, background, and life experiences. Accordingly,
everyone interprets the word a bit differently. "Our definitions
of diversity are all over the map-as they should be," said
Gabrielle Bullock, IIDA, FAIA, NOMA, LEED AP BD+C, Director
of Global Diversity at Perkins+Will.

50.8%

24% under 18
36.5% aged 18-44

4 Inherent versus acquired diversity
Diversity traits fall into two camps: inherent-those we were
born with (gender, race)-and acquired, referring to characteristics like work style and worldview that are shaped by our
life experience. Studies reveal that organizations are at their
best, operating at maximum creativity and critical thinking,
when they have both types of diversity in their ranks. One or
the other is not good enough.

26.4% aged 45-64
13% aged 65 and over

62.1%
17.4%

Complicating our pursuit of a varied staff makeup, inherent
attributes can be difficult to discern accurately during a
traditional interview. It may be obvious to determine a job
candidate's race or gender, but figuring out what type of
thinker they are will involve a protracted interview process.
5 For some, it's really personal
Many participants divulged that they've at times felt marginalized over the course of their design careers. "We all know
what it's like to be the 'only' in a room: designer, female, black,
disabled, etc.," said Durst. "Part of diversity," she added,
"is telling our stories, sharing our full selves."
6 Those we serve better reflect the world around us
Those who inhabit the schools, offices, hospitals, and hotels
we design are typically much more representative of the
general populace. As a service-minded profession, we need
to be as pluralistic as the communities we serve.
The users of the spaces we design are not the only ones
becoming more diverse, so are the people who hire us. "Our
clients don't look like they did 20 years ago," said Bullock.
"So if we go into an interview and we are all white men and our
client is not, then we won't get the project." Many of our target
industries are themselves models of multiculturalism. The
hotel and catering sector ranks as the most ethnically diverse
workforce, followed closely by the healthcare industry.

49.2%

13.2%

5.4%
2.5%
2%

1.2%

White
Hispanic or Latino
Black or African-American
Asian
Two or more races
American Indian and Alaska Native
Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander

Teknion's Jennifer Busch, Hon. IIDA
defined diversity as "a workplace that
reflects the racial, cultural, gender, and
age diversity of the general population."
If that is the case, then the makeup of
our staff members-and our leaders-
should look a lot more like the most
recent U.S. census data.

PERSPECTIVE

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of IIDA Perspective - Spring/Summer 2016