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In Colorado Springs, Booz Allen Hamilton is contributing to an innovative effort to create opportunities for citizens to appreciate their community's rich diversity—and to communicate this appreciation to the rest of the country as well.

"Booz Allen is helping enable our city to shape its workforce and future," says principal Cathy Breeze.

Like all cities across America, Colorado Springs is strengthened, challenged, and formed by a variety of opinions from those who live there. In recent years, however, a perception has been building that the city is dominated by a conservative agenda in which some elements of diversity are not embraced. Negative impressions of the community have emerged and increasing concerns over impacts on economic growth have been noted.

Leaders, citizens, and businesses, including Booz Allen, wanted to balance that message by presenting the other side—representing the opinions of the entire community, not just one segment.

"Many businesses and residents want to enhance economic progress and quality of life by attracting a creative, informed, socially savvy population to Colorado Springs," says Booz Allen senior manager and diversity expert Ann Bohara. "And greater tolerance is one crucial characteristic for economic success."

That was one motive behind the creation of the Diversity Forum—a network of local government, businesses, community groups, academia, and non-profits that is building on existing diversity programs and generating ideas for new ones to attract a mix of individual talent, backgrounds, and cultures to the town. Booz Allen vice presidents Glen Bruels and Kurt Stevens positioned the Colorado Springs office as the catalyst for creating the Forum, in partnership with the Greater Colorado Springs Chamber of Commerce.

Strengthening the town's tolerance for diversity is more than just the right thing to do, says Bruels: "To be a global competitor and attract the talent necessary to win the market, Colorado Springs must offer an environment of inclusiveness. We need to expand channels for communication within our community. We want to get ahead of curve and break negative cycles before they occur—to give the town a new and wholly represented identity, not to exclude anyone or create polarity."

"The global economy is here," Stevens says, "and all cities will either progress to embrace it, or fall by the wayside. We want to foster a healthy environment for progress. Local organizations, businesses, and citizens who want to have a say in how we move forward will be able to use the Forum as the focus of their involvement."

The initiative started by Bruels and Stevens is groundbreaking, Bohara says: "If we can help Colorado Springs become more vibrant and economically sound through tolerance, we will ultimately change the entire region."

Cultural Change Takes Dedication, Planning, Focus—and Time

In January, the Pikes Peak Coalition of Chambers recognized Booz Allen's long history of community leadership by presenting the firm with the 2006 Diversity Award in its corporate category. The award recognizes companies that incorporate diversity, affirmative action, and equal opportunity in their workplaces, and the presenters acknowledged that Booz Allen's effort in initiating the Diversity Forum contributed to their decision to honor the firm: "Diversity is both a core value and a competency of Booz Allen and their staff."

For the Colorado Springs office, community activity has always come naturally. They have been deeply involved in civic activities for years and regularly contribute pro bono services to local non-profits. This leadership experience has been a critical asset in organizing and facilitating the Forum.

"We don't want to just let things happen in Colorado Springs," says Stevens. "We want to help decide the future direction this city will take."

Senior associate Robert Ray and senior consultant Jacqueline Blubaugh have also been closely involved in the long-term commitment to make the Colorado Springs environment all-inclusive—economically, ethically, and socially. But establishing a place where the norm is tolerance, appreciation, and collaboration will take time; traditions and perceptions created over generations are difficult to change.

"This effort is a slow-moving beast," says Bohara. "Everyone has a voice that must be heard and mixed interests as to what comes first."

The initiative is in the beginning stages of organization and analysis, and measurable progress is many months away. But the group has already created milestones, goals, tiered action items, and tasks. They have held numerous team meetings and are collecting data, accessing all volunteer capabilities in the city. "We'll establish leading and lagging indicators and measure success by measuring progress against the plan," says Blubaugh.

Blubaugh says the Forum is also researching projects to decide which ones to address first to make a noticeable difference in the community. They will soon start publicizing the Forum and its goals to the media and community, and plan to socialize the program first in Colorado Springs before reaching out on a national scale.

story posted March 20, 2006

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