"We're diverse - we recruit from both the East, and West, coasts"
Merideth, a project manager, is speaking to a supplier, Roderick. Roderick represents an outside law firm that Merideth’s organization uses on a very regular basis. She is happy with their work but wants to talk about the level of diversity on the team working on her issues. Roderick struggles to understand how important this is to Merideth and tends to display a "cavalier attitude" towards the issue. (08:10 minutes)
Lessons Learned:
- Setup a time - This is a new conversation for both parties. Take the time, to setup a specific time, to have this conversation. Don’t do it “on the fly” or squeezed into a tiny opening in your calendar.
- Describe the business need - When preparing for the conversation, be sure to understand the business reasons that diversity matters to you and the organization. And state them in the conversation.
- Treat this issue like any other “performance” issue - Merideth is adding a new criteria to how she will measure Roderick and his firms success. Be clear about what that criteria is and what you expect in the future.
- Acknowledge the good work - Just like with an individual employee, you may need to reassure Roderick that you appreciate his firm’s contributions and that they are doing a good job for you.
- Manage the “cavalier attitude” - Roderick wasn’t certain that Merideth was serious - “as long as this interests you.” When on the receiving end, be sure to ask a lot of questions to understand what your colleague is looking for, how you can help, and what you can do about it.
Talk to you soon, Tim
Download Lessons Learned.pdf (86.2K)
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