Building on the Promise of Diversity: How We Can Move to the Next Level in Our Workplaces, Our Communities, and Our Society [Hardcover]

R. Roosevelt Thomas Jr. (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 24, 2005

Having increased the percentage of minorities in the workplace, we might think our work in the area of diversity is done - but we've hardly started. "Building on the Promise of Diversity" presents R. Roosevelt Thomas's Strategic Diversity Management approach, a results-focused, five-step process for applying diversity management toward the advancement of organisational and community goals. This is the first major book on the topic in years and it is a crucial milestone in a continuing journey. While some organisations congratulate themselves on their plentiful workplace initiatives, Dr. Thomas argues that we have not done enough to reap the ultimate benefits of diversity. The opportunity is upon us and "Building on the Promise of Diversity" lays the groundwork for going the next mile.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Minority MBA: ""Does the business world really need yet another book about diversity? If the book is in question is Building on the Promise of Diversity, then the answer is an emphatic ‘yes.’Frank, often controversial, always entertaining, this book is a must-read for all business leaders.""

Gulfshore Business: ""[a] must-read book...The book is a wake-up call that rings true...It [Roosevelt’s Strategic Diversity Management Process] is a critical necessity -- a necessity that can help us use diversity management to find creative solutions for achieving our organization’s mission and making its vision a reality. Like Dr. King, it makes a difference in lives."""

“[a] must-read book….The book is a wake-up call that rings true…

-Gulfshore Business

Review

"""As he has done in his past publications, Beyond Race and Gender and Building a House for Diversity, in Building on the Promise of Diversity, Dr. Roosevelt Thomas has again asked us to expand our discourse and practice on diversity beyond limited conceptual models that prevent the realization of the richness and vitality inherent in our communities, our workplaces, and the greater society. 'Making quality decisions in the midst of differences and similarities (Diversity Management)', the author informs us, has powerful implications for organizations as well as for the leaders who are courageous and skillful enough to accept the challenges of a new era."" -- Dr. Walter Fluker, PH.D., Executive Director, The Leadership Center at Morehouse College

""At last, a clearly written guide by a leading expert that tells how to jump off the conventional diversity track and move yourself and your organization to a higher level of performance."" -- John Alexander, President, Center for Creative Leadership

""If you could read only one book about diversity, this is it! Roosevelt Thomas analyzes what we have been, describes what we are, and is helping to create what we can be.""

-- Marshall Goldsmith, world-renowned executive coach and thought leader; co-editor or author of 19 books, including Coaching for Leadership and The Leader of the Future

""Frank and provocative, Building on the Promise of Diversity will enormously enhance the quality of thinking about and the effective management of diversity. Avoiding the trap of pointing fingers at who is right or wrong and disappointed expectations of the past, Dr. Thomas offers a practical, experience-based framework within which leaders in public and private institutions can ‘raise the game’ of diversity management to the level needed in our modern society.""

-- Dick Sibbernsen, VP Human Resources, BellSouth Corporation

""R. Roosevelt Thomas has provided a vital service in offering a detailed prescription for advancing the dynamic of diversity in American society. Even more important, he has reanimated the great vision of our greatest national treasure: the American Dream itself.""

-- Marc H. Morial, President and Chief Executive Officer, National Urban League

""America’s history is distinguished by its adventurous spirit, never satisfied with the status quo, always believing it can be better. Roosevelt takes us through the evolution of diversity, his personal journey, and many of the institutions that make us who we are as a nation. He challenges our contentment with being stuck in our current diversity paradigm and provides fresh thinking for using diversity management to harness the talents of all Americans, which is essential for competing effectively in a global economy.""

-- Thurmond Woodard, VP, Global Diversity, Dell

""The remarkable Dr. Roosevelt Thomas, whose name has been synonymous with diversity leadership, has done it again in this splendid new book.""

-- Sheila Wellington, Clinical Professor of Management, Stern/NYU School of Business;

former President of Catalyst

""At last, a clearly written guide by a leading expert that tells how to jump off the conventional diversity track and move yourself and your organization to a higher level of performance.""

-- John Alexander, President, Center for Creative Leadership

""“A robust and thoughtful work. Readers will gain the benefit of Roosevelt’s years of experience, his clarity, and his ability to provide a lens from the viewpoint of both the manager and the employee. This is a great book for any organizational leader stuck in ‘knowing’ but not yet able to move into ‘doing.’""

-- Beverly Kaye, Founder/CEO, Career Systems International, co-author of Love It, Don't Leave It: 26 Ways to Get What You Want at Work and Love 'Em or Lose 'Em: Getting Good People to Stay"

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 17 and up
  
• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: AMACOM (October 24, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0814408621
• ISBN-13: 978-0814408629
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #827,584 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Searching for the next level of diversity, April 24, 2006

By 

Barbara "Editor in Chief, DiversityCentral.com" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Building on the Promise of Diversity: How We Can Move to the Next Level in Our Workplaces, Our Communities, and Our Society (Hardcover)

That Dr. Roosevelt Thomas, Jr. is searching for the next level of diversity is not unusual considering his stature as a respected guru in the field. But when Dr. Thomas says diversity has become a politicized "code word for affirmative action," and we - meaning organizations and society - are going to have a hard time getting to any next level because we're stuck in muddle-headed thinking about diversity, well, that is unusual! (He defines affirmative action as "the recruitment, promotion and retention of members of 'protected classes'" in the United States.)

Thomas believes most organizational leaders, as well as society, have accepted the politicized definition of diversity, which positions it as a win/lose power struggle. We understand diversity through the lens of struggle because that's how we understand differences. The power struggle is a legacy of the Civil Rights Movement and of affirmative action, and we would argue it is also a legacy of other institutions which the United States has used to approach differences, such as Indian reservations, slavery, segregation and Jim Crow laws, Japanese internment, to name a few).

If you are looking for a book to clarify your thinking about diversity, the legacies of Civil Rights and affirmative action, and how to improve people's ability to manage diversity, this book is essential reading. If you are looking for a thorough description of what the next level of diversity is, you won't find it. If we understand Dr. Thomas correctly, we have to master the craft of diversity management in order to discover what the next level is. Care to join us?

By Kyla Meyers and Barbara Deane, editors at DiveristyCentral.com

4.0 out of 5 stars Review, August 28, 2011

By 

Karl Voigt - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Building on the Promise of Diversity: How We Can Move to the Next Level in Our Workplaces, Our Communities, and Our Society (Hardcover)

This book arrived quickly and in the condition that was advertised at the time of purchase; it was also packaged well.