Managing Diversity -- The Courage to Lead

(Hardback)

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White women and people of color now constitute the majority of the U.S. workforce, yet ninety-seven percent of senior managers of Fortune 500 and Fortune 1,000 industrial companies remain white men. It's clear that leaders of American organizations are requited to play key roles in a world that has become strange to them, says Cross. To succeed in an increasingly competitive global environment, our organizational leaders must have the courage to act outside their comfort zonesto try to understand, interact with, motivate, develop, and retain a work force that is alien to them. Cross' book provides the practical assistance they need. Because racism, sexism, and other forms of oppression are not rational, help cannot be found wholly in rationalism. Such biases arise from emotional and psychological bases. Our leaders are thus forced to confront their barriers within barriers that exist at every level of their organization. Cross uses her own experiences as an African American woman and as an experienced, and recognized management consultant to demonstrate how oppression functions at the individual, group, and systems levels, but her book is not a memoir. Rather, it is a sophisticated explication of a complex and complete system of organizational change, with case studies and other useful aids, which, if fully grasped, will enable courageous leaders to succeed in understanding and dealing effectively with the urgent crosscultural and gender issues in the workplace.

Reviews

"A strong, insightful, important book from one of America's leading diversity consultants. Elsie Cross couples unflinching examination of racism and oppression with deep understanding of how people can learn and grow, and organizations can prosper from removing systemic barriers to that growth. Cross is both tough and tender--tough on injustice, compassionate about the human struggle to change."-Rosabeth Moss Kanter Harvard Business School Author of The Change Masters and Rosabeth Moss Kanter on the Frontiers of Management
"By sharing her story, fashioned by the firm belief that democracy is achievable, Elsie Cross has authored a must have work that provides practical help in leading an organization through the elimination of oppressive forces. Her comprehensive work ranges from an outstanding and complete bibliography, a lexicography and case studies set in a personal retrospective. But more importantly, in the compelling way in which she tells her story, she gives hope and a fuller appreciation of the value of and continued need for our collective work in reordering society."-Diane M. Porter President/CEO NTL Institute for Applied Behavioral Science
"Elsie Cross has written the classic on managing diversity. This book provides leaders with a clear sense of what is required to effectively lead a diverse workforce. Unlike most books on the topic, Cross does not shrink from the difficult issues of racism, sexism, and homophobia. She is clear that these oppressive dynamics are the real and pervasive forces that must be understood and eliminated if America's workplaces are to realize their true productive potential. Cross demonstrates with powerful case examples how this can happen in organizations and what is required to succeed. At the heart of her thesis is the message that leadership matters and courage is required. Every leader in America, no matter what sector of the economy or government, must read this book."-David A. Thomas Professor of Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management Harvard Business School Co-author of Breaking Through: The Making of Minority Executives in Corporate America
"Elsie Cross tells it like it is.... This is a book filled with a wealth of wisdom. A great read for anyone who is working at managing diversity."-Terry Larson Former CEO of CoreState Financial Corp
Be prepared to be challenged, to face your personal beliefs about prejudice, oppression, equity and fairness and examine your ideas about what it takes to lead a diverse organization....has significance for those serious about effectively leading diverse schools and districts. Cross offers insight into creating awareness, providing needed education, reaching understanding and taking action.-The School Administrator
This book is not a gloss-over, but a challenge to confront the harsh "reality of oppression" of people of color, White women, gays, lesbians and bisexuals, and people with disabilities....I found the book interesting, informative, and a valuable addition to a collection of diversity-relared resource.-Personel Psychology
"This book is not a gloss-over, but a challenge to confront the harsh "reality of oppression" of people of color, White women, gays, lesbians and bisexuals, and people with disabilities....I found the book interesting, informative, and a valuable addition to a collection of diversity-relared resource."-Personel Psychology
"Be prepared to be challenged, to face your personal beliefs about prejudice, oppression, equity and fairness and examine your ideas about what it takes to lead a diverse organization....has significance for those serious about effectively leading diverse schools and districts. Cross offers insight into creating awareness, providing needed education, reaching understanding and taking action."-The School Administrator

Author Bio

ELSIE Y. CROSS is founder and president of Elsie Y. Cross Associates, Philadelphia, Pa., an organization development consulting firm. A member and former chairperson of the National Training Laboratories of Applied Behavioral Science (NTL) and member of the Organization Development Network, she holds master degrees in business and in psycho-educational processes from Temple University. Ms. Cross has consulted to national, state, and local governments, governmental agencies and educational institutions, and lists among her many corporate clients a number of Fortune 500 companies in petro-chemicals, pharmaceuticals, communications, power, and manufacturing. This is her third book.