Beware the IN Crowd — Diverse Groups are Wiser, Kinder, and Higher-Performing

You're here tonight because of what you've done, not because of who you know. And that relates to what I'd like to talk about tonight — how diverse groups accomplish great things. Diversity makes us wiser, kinder, and higher-performing. By contrast, cookie-cutter cliques that think and act alike have proven time and again — to be less than bright, less than nice, and less than productive.

Let's take a minute to rewind our memories to high school days. Remember the IN Crowd? Well actually, how could we forget. In school days, we conferred a certain status and respect (well, if not respect, perhaps a bit of "awe") to the IN Crowd — to those who were cool, confident, and conforming to a certain narrow set of standards or style.

Some of you may have been members of the IN Crowd (and if so, I hope you were the nice ones). But — by definition and statistics — most of us were not. My father was a Navy Chief and we moved a lot when I was growing up. So, even if I had been cool enough (which I wasn't), I didn't stay in one place long enough to become a member of the IN Crowd. In fact, the only thing that may have saved me from being really "out" was that I was good at sports. So, I could count on making some friends and fitting into a team by virtue of playing baseball and football.

At any age, it's natural to spend time with people with whom we find connections and common ground — that's fine and good and provides a source of fun and ease. But when common ground becomes a closed clique, it gives rise to a culture of exclusion. IN Crowds foster a culture of exclusion — but in the best case, this limits thoughtful debate and positive action — and in the worst case, it leads to aggressive bullying and mob behavior.

OK, enough about high school. Let's talk about today. Interestingly, and somewhat unfortunately, organizations have IN Crowds too. In companies, non-profits, and even social organizations, the IN Crowd persists. Its members tend to share what I call the "th" factors — wealth, health, and youth — and they typically conform to other norms such as dominant ethnicity or language.

The reason I said it's unfortunate that adult organizations have IN Crowds is that, at best, IN Crowds under-perform relative to diverse groups. They are not as smart, effective, or kind to others. At worse, IN Crowds are critical, discriminatory, and even hostile to outsiders.

I'd like to think — and I do sincerely believe — that Booz Allen and other organizations that embrace a code of values and conduct do not have bad IN Crowds. But, we still have them — and while belonging may be fun in a social sense — IN Crowds are not high-performing. Larger, diverse, less-conforming groups are inherently wiser, kinder, and more accomplished.

There's an exceptional book out called, "The Wisdom of Crowds" by New Yorker columnist James Suroweicki. I recommend it highly. The book is not specifically about diversity — it's about economics, innovation, and culture. But, in one compelling example after another, Suroweicki shows how large diverse groups of people are "smarter than an elite few, no matter how brilliant the few. "The diverse group is better at solving problems, fostering innovation, coming to wise decisions, even predicting the future."

His examples span science — including the Challenger and Columbia accidents; economics and finance — including the dot-com bubble, short-selling of stocks, and venture capital failures; and pop culture — like beauty contests and country fairs. And, in every case, he shows that a small group of like-minded people from similar backgrounds under-performs — sometimes tragically so — relative to a larger, diverse group tackling a similar problem.

Suroweicki cites diversity, independence, and decentralization as the characteristics of wise crowds. In addition to being smarter, diverse groups are inherently kinder. Kindness is not generally thought of as a business quality, but I sincerely believe that it must be for a values-based company.

One of the things that makes me most proud about Booz Allen is how our people reach out to help others — not to advance their own careers but because it makes things better for others.

The survey that our Community Relations team recently conducted showed that over 60% of Booz Allen people are actively and continuously involved in doing things that serve others. These activities range from participating in fund-raising events, to re-habbing houses for the poor, to serving meals to the homeless.

Earlier this year, you and your Booz Allen colleagues donated over $300,000 dollars to victims of the South Asia tsunami — none of whom you knew. Interestingly, less than half of our people who are performing community service wanted to be recognized by name — everyone is doing it out of sincere kindness and the spirit of service, not out of a desire to be noticed. And, Booz Allen people are kind to those close at home and in the office as well. When a co-worker becomes ill or suffers a loss, you pitch in to pick up tasks, raise money for medical research, or care for his or her children.

Today, Booz Allen is a global corporation with over 16,000 people, but in many cases, we still care and connect with each other like a diverse, extended family. That sense of kindness is something we need to be sure we never lose. Not only are diverse groups wiser and kinder, they are also higher-performing.

You don't have to take my word for it. Take the word of the winning-est coach in the history of college basketball, Pat Summitt, head coach of the University of Tennessee Lady Vols. I had the pleasure to meet and share the podium with Pat Summitt several years ago when we both spoke at a leadership conference at CIA Headquarters. She had not broken the record at that point, but she was clearly at the top of her game as a coach and leader.

In her book, "Reach for the Summitt," she writes:

"When I talk about team building, I don't mean that everyone has to agree, or play exactly alike, or be alike. The aim is to build a team, not clone yourself. You have to value people for different qualities and abilities. The ultimate argument for diversity is not that it is politically correct, but that it is healthier, more interesting, and more conducive to success."

That point of view has won over 880 NCAA basketball games. I would propose that the winners of the 2005 Booz Allen Diversity Awards exemplify the wisdom, kindness, and high-performance associated with diverse groups.

Whether leaders or team members, offices or forums, you embrace people who are different and seek ideas that are out of the mainstream. And, in doing so, you have made our firm a better place. A better place from Colorado Springs, to Mexico City, to Southern Maryland, to here in the Greater Washington area. So, if we buy into the premise that diverse groups are wiser, kinder, and better performing, then how do we create, grow, and nurture diverse groups?

I believe we fundamentally need to do two things: The first is to recognize and counter IN Crowd behavior, and not be fooled by the trappings of conformity and coolness. Second, we need to proactively build inclusive and diverse groups. We need to seek out and give "air time" to different voices, be sure we populate teams with different skills and perspectives, and encourage divergent opinions.

There's no question that it's easier to connect with those who think and act and even look like us. It's harder to relate to and bring into the fold those who are different.

In closing, let me reiterate my firm belief that our efforts to build diverse teams and foster diverse ideas, will be rewarded and will make us, our colleagues, and our firm more successful. The power of diverse groups was best captured by the philosopher, author, and longshoreman, Eric Hoffer.

Hoffer is most famous for his book, "The True Believer," which chronicled the rise of the ultimate perversion of crowds and groupthink — in the form of the Nazis, Stalinists, and other extremists. But he didn't just see the Dark Side (I couldn't resist the Stars Wars analogy) — he saw the force and magic of wise, diverse groups, when he said:

"It is the stretched soul that makes music, and souls are stretched by the pull of opposites — opposite bents, tastes, yearnings, loyalties. Where there is no polarity — where energies flow smoothly in one direction — there will be much doing, but no music."

 Thank you for making such beautiful music. And, again, Congratulations!