Revisiting different pasts to create the future. Diversity as an accelerator of innovation.

I was still here thinking about some content I watched at SXSW, and I found myself thinking about all the knowledge we leave to consume later and end up not doing so. I took advantage of a little extra time and browsed through the app's videos to remember what I learned and pursue new ones, revisiting some of my notes and "Otters."

I was reminded of a session I attended presented by Ted Schilowitz, a futurist from Paramount Pictures, and Valerie Vacante, VP Solutions Innovations at Dentsu, titled "The Future of Entertainment & Immersive Experiences." The duo discussed how "immersive entertainment" and good storytelling influence creativity, culture, and human connections.

Both of them shared their recipe for innovation. "You can't build the future without looking at the past."

Do we do that as often as we should? Do we revisit our methods and processes to recreate something new, something innovative in an incremental or even disruptive way?

In a thought-provoking manner, Ted asks, "What inspired you as a child?" - Parks, music, spaces, themes.

In entertainment, it's important to understand the memories, emotions, and sensations that the past evokes and use current tools, such as new technologies, to amplify them. During the conversation, Ted and Valerie debated that sports teams, major music festivals and shows, and video games, they all evolve, they all keep up with the times and bring technological marvels, but the outcome they should strive for is as old as humanity itself: unforgettable emotions.

If in the past we gathered around a video game to have fun with friends locally, today we gather online with friends from all over the world to have fun in the same way. The technology has changed, but the emotions haven't, and the lasting memories from those moments remain the same.

Just like Nonfiction (which I mentioned in another article), Schilowitz and Vacante argue that inspiration often comes from science fiction and the worlds that don't exist yet. Knowledge about past emotions and observing the behavior of current generations can be a great way to understand the next steps for innovation, especially in entertainment.

For Ted, one of the great catalyst examples, as they mentioned, is the EPCOT Center, whose acronym stands for Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow, a park created by Walt Disney that was initially conceived as an experimental community with a vision for the future of our world. The project of being an experimental city didn't move forward, but much technology is still tested in these parks, and we know that Disney is an authority when it comes to immersive entertainment.

After listening to them talk about various technologies, one of the most relevant points that this session provoked in me is that to create something new, we can't be confined by the limits of our own history and reality. That's why diversity plays a significant role in innovation-focused construction processes. And with June, the month of LGBTQIAP+ Pride, just around the corner, I couldn't help but talk about this theme that always involves me.

Having people from different "pasts" and with different perspectives is crucial for achieving success in a project or initiative to make it truly innovative. With the same "ingredients," we don't create anything new.

Coincidentally or not, on the same day I attended this session, I was able to attend another one where the speaker was Dr. Tana M. Session. And the topic was exactly that: diversity and inclusion actions in the corporate environment and their results. With an impressive resume, Session has over 30 years of experience in human resources, holds a doctorate and specializes in cultural engineering, and works with companies facilitating organizational experiences and leadership development. As if that wasn't enough, her company is certified by WMBE (Women Minority Business Enterprise), and she has worked with various companies and organizations, from McDonald's to NASA, and has earned titles such as 100 Most Influential Blacks Today.

For her speech, Session brings numbers and is categorical: she states that it's necessary to "walk the talk" and that "diversity is a fact of the world, and inclusion is a choice a company makes."

Tana M. Session - SXSW 2023

That's something I always defend and assert whenever I can in different projects and processes: Innovation is not possible without diversity. Working with a diverse team and having an increasingly heterogeneous list of employees in a company can be one of the key factors for business success.

When I make this statement, occasionally there is questioning about how true it actually is. For those who are more conservative and focused on "financial volume," the answer we can give is right under our noses.

In 2021, the Frank Recruitment Group conducted a study that revealed companies with women in CEO positions are more profitable. According to the published study, the majority of Fortune 500 companies with a female CEO are typically more profitable than those led by a male CEO. The findings showed that 87% of last year's top 500 companies led by a female decision-maker reported above-average profits, compared to only 78% of companies led by men. And this is just focusing on the gender aspect.

When it comes to diversity in general, we are looking at better results, security, and even psychological stability, which directly impacts productivity. The Instituto Identidades do Brasil (IDBR) states that for every 10% increase in ethnic and racial diversity, there is an almost 4% increase in company productivity.

Despite having such clear data on the contribution of diversity and inclusion initiatives to even more effective results, there is still a significant barrier: prejudice. For instance, in Brazil, 33% of existing companies would not hire LGBTQIA+ individuals for a leadership position (Center for Talent Innovation, 2021).

Finally, Dr. Tana asserts that if you are responsible for driving the topic in your company, it is crucial to work with data in your favor. Organize censuses, understand employee performance. With the information collected, she argues that it is of paramount importance to establish goals and objectives for diversity in three proportions: hiring proportion, promotion proportion, and turnover proportion. This way of measuring and metricizing is the key to "inviting everyone to the party and ensuring that everyone is invited and comfortable to dance," avoiding the trap of goals based solely on hiring, which may result in insufficient development. She concludes that it is essential to ensure that the initiative is directly linked to the person in the CEO position and that the initiative should have its own resources.

As a fellow manager, do you value the diversity and inclusion initiatives happening in your workplace? If there are no initiatives, do you initiate them? You should!

When you have an open position on your team, how about considering an affirmative action vacancy and starting this movement for change? Take action and also encourage your colleagues and leaders to engage in the topic.

Diverse people will appreciate it, and your company's financial results will too!

To learn more:

Instituto Identidades Brasil - https://simaigualdaderacial.com.br/

Tana M. Session - https://www.tanamsession.com/

Frank Recruitment Group - https://www.frankgroup.com/

Coqual (formerly Center of Talent Innovation) - https://coqual.org/

Números não mentem: diversidade nas empresas aumenta a produtividade (Numbers don't lie: diversity in companies increases productivity) - https://exame.com/bussola/numeros-nao-mentem-diversidade-nas-empresas-aumenta-a-produtividade/#

Companies with female CEOs found to be more profitable on average - https://www.techrepublic.com/article/companies-with-female-ceos-found-to-be-more-profitable-on-average/