The Minority Experience
Navigating Emotional and Organizational Realities (IVP, 2018)
WHO: Adrian Pei, an organizational development consultant and leadership trainer.
HE SAYS: “Leaders identify a benchmark for how many ethnic minority leaders they want to fill ‘X’ positions, or they just want to see some improvement in demographic numbers from the previous year. These approaches fall short of truly improving the organization, because they don’t connect with the meaning of why diversity is important.”
THE BIG IDEA: Ethnic minorities face challenges that those in majority culture don’t. In this book, the author unpacks how historical forces shape modern culture and what we need to know to work together.
THE PROGRESSION:
Part 1, “Understanding the Minority Experience,” contains chapters that each describe a particular aspect of pain, power and the past in depth. It also includes a high-level view of these categories.
Part 2, “Redeeming the Minority Experience,” outlines some specific applications and principles for organizations as they diversify. This section also includes advice on how minorities can use pain, power and the past to build compassion, advocacy and wisdom.
“When we build the minority leadership community by advocating for one another instead of looking to secure our own safety and significance, we address a root cause of the problem. When together we create more opportunities for minorities, there is more room for everyone, and less need to complete.”
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