One recent article espoused the same philosophy that our company seemed to use when they hired employees. The article states "marketer are hiring more talent and spending more money than ever to chase multicultural consumers, yet they are divided on how to reach them- and unsure they're getting good returns on their investments" (Bulik, 2008, p.1). The company that I worked for fit that mold. The culture remained the same because the company did not know how to diversify. Oftentimes, it seemed as if management did not wish to fix what was not broken.

This company culture led to the fact that when a spec ad was completed for this one particular client, she took offense to it. To most of the employees, the ad was not offensive, in fact, many of the employees thought it was a pretty good ad that portrayed the key message in an effective manner. The employees were what they were, and did not totally understand why anyone would think any differently. Perhaps the situation could have been better handled if the employees had a deeper understanding not only of themselves but of other individuals as well. One article states "the key to change is first understanding what we are, and then taking steps toward what we are capable of becoming" (Rover, 2008, p. 390).

In retrospect,...

This led to a company viewpoint that allowed for little or no diversification, and it led to lost advertising revenue that could have helped the company become more profitable. On a personal note, if the culture of the company had been more diverse it would have likely led to an workforce that was more enlightened, therefore providing more opportunities to make sales and generate revenue. With greater revenue would have likely come greater profits, and all the employees (as well as the general society) would have benefited as well.
Any time a company can become more diverse, offer more opportunities to more people, and provide greater overall benefits to its employees, then everyone wins, including the clients who expect a good return on their investments.

References

Bulik, B.S.; (2008) Marketers: We don't get how to do diversity, Advertising Age, Vol. 79, No. 8, p. 1, 25

Martinez, L.; (2007) Take a glance under the big tent: Latino's hot and bothered about the wrong image, Advertising Age, Vol. 78, No. 36, pp. 18-19

Rover, D.T.; (2008) Engineering identity, Journal of Engineering Education (Washington, D.C.), Vol. 97, No. 3, pp.…