Diversity counts.

Changing U.S. demographics have affected all industries, but perhaps none more so than the apartment industry. Understanding and appreciating differences, whether those differences are cultural, age or lifestyle related, or one of the many other factors that makes each person unique, are critical to both attracting and retaining top talent and residents.

Building a diverse workforce benefits employees, residents, the community and the bottom line. Equity Residential and Southern Management have embarked on finding a way to develop diversity within their staffs, each taking its own approach.

When discussing diversity in the workplace, often race, ethnicity and gender are emphasized. Equity Residential has adopted the Four Layers of Diversity from "Diverse Teams at Work," Lee Gardenswartz & Anita Rowe (Irwin, 1994) as its model of diversity. This model goes beyond physical characteristics to include diversity in organizational dimensions, external and internal dimensions and personality (See illustration).

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The challenge for companies is ensuring that employees don't let assumptions and preconceived notions affect the decisions they make in the workplace. The goal is creating an inclusive workplace where differences are embraced and valued, and for the apartment industry, this means having a workforce that reflects the diversity of its residents.

"No applicant should be rejected based on assumptions," said Cory Cancila, Vice President of Human Resources, Equity Residential. Cancila said that making assumptions about applicants (either potential employees or residents) because, for example, they have a regional accent or dress differently than what might be considered "the norm" can adversely affect decisions and the bottom line in an industry where employee and resident retention can be challenging.

During the hiring process, first impressions are a key. This applies not only to the applicant, but also to the employer. Southern Management Recruiting Manager Olivia Hunter, whose Washington, D.C.-area apartment management company employs a richly diverse workforce, said it is not a good sign for a receptionist to react awkwardly, or even with fear, when first greeting someone who might be considered a "foreign" applicant.

As an example, she said the receptionist might call human resources to announce that an applicant of ethnic origin has arrived for an interview in a less-than-warm welcoming tone, which makes all parties uncomfortable.

Hunter said these applicants--whether applying for a maintenance job or to become a leasing professional--are the same people apartment communities welcome as residents.

"Let's face it, we welcome all types of people to live with us in our communities, and we like it when their rent checks clear," Hunter said. "Why aren't we welcoming them to our workforce?"

The Many Layers of Diversity

Cancila said valuing diversity changes a company's culture, not just its "numbers." "Companies should create a workplace of inclusion from top to bottom," she said. "Diversity builds respect by swing everybody counts."

For example, people have different communication styles. "Just because someone doesn't speak up right away during a meeting doesn't mean they don't have valuable ideas to share," Cancila said. "Maybe they didn't grow up in a family where jumping into an argument is treated like a sport. Not everyone is an extrovert. Recognizing different styles and encouraging those who may be reluctant to contribute will result in more ideas being heard and perhaps a more creative outcome.

"Employees must feel both accepted and valued for who they are; their success at work should not be affected whether or not they play golf with senior management, go to work-sponsored happy hour events, or sometimes leave the office early to see their child perform in a school function; or if a father takes a leave of absence when his child is born."

At Equity Residential, creating a more diverse workforce includes hiring from outside the apartment industry. Cancila said two recent additions to senior management--Chief Financial Officer Donna Brandin and Chief Revenue Officer Patricia Mash--bring valuable experience from other industries; Brandin most recently from the health care industry and Mash from the airline industry.

"Each brings a different perspective to our industry and a fresh way of looking at issues," Cancila said. "This, too, is part of what we mean by 'diversity.'"

Equity's Top-Down Buy-In

An industry panel that spoke at NAA's Assembly of Delegates meeting in Dallas emphasized that gaining support from senior management is critical. Cancila said, "Diversity in the workplace is like clean air: Everybody is for it, but it takes a lot of work and isn't easy to accomplish." She said embracing diversity in the workplace is more than just tolerating differences. "Those in senior management--and every employee at every level--must show that they value diversity."

Julie Blaikie, Assistant Vice President, Lexford & Equity Corporate Housing, echoed Cancila. "The senior-level executives must drive this or it won't happen," she said. "It's not an HR function or initiative; it's something that comes from the top." She said an important first step for a company is to reflect the importance the company places on diversity in its marketing and recruiting materials. Education and training are also important elements in any diversity initiative.

Blaikie said diversity modules have been incorporated into several of Equity's existing training courses, and a new one-day course, "No-Vacancy--Diversity's Impact on the Bottom Line," is required for Equity managers and open to all employees, who are encouraged to attend. The interactive course is designed to help employees broaden diversity awareness--the four layers of diversity are explored--and includes activities to help employees develop skills to effectively interact with and manage diverse employees and customers. Self-awareness exercises help employees explore their own biases and learn how those biases can affect their behavior in the workplace.

Equity's diversity initiative was formally launched in February 2003 at its annual leadership conference. (See the January 2004 issue of UNITS for a profile on the program.) A 10-member Diversity Council, sponsored by President and CEO Bruce Duncan and currently chaired by Blaike, was created to develop a strategic plan and monitor the company's progress.

The Council is a cross functional, multi-level, diverse employee group committed to change. Equity is proud of the diversity logo and mission statement created by the Council to heighten employee awareness of the initiative. Among the long-term goals for Equity's diversity focus is the development of diversity accountability standards for recruiters and hiring managers and others in management. The company regularly includes diversity updates in its employee communications--its monthly newsletter and quarterly employee magazine--and has a diversity site on its intranet where employees new to the company can learn about the Diversity Council and other important information about diversity.

Taking Care of Customers

Hunter said one simple rhetorical question will go a long way in convincing senior management of the value of hiring a diverse workforce. "They know that the labor market is shrinking," she said. "Ask them, 'Who is going to take care of your customers?' "

Southern Management is a privately held company that was established in 1965. It owns and manages a 70-community portfolio that includes 25,000 conventional-market-rate apartments, making it the 10th largest private owner in the country.

By listening to its staff, looking to promote from within and hiring persons from the surrounding locale, without regard to the diversity profile--hiring for experience, talent, attitude and desire to work in the open positions, then training new team members with the goal of helping them succeed in their new positions--Southern Management can boast a phenomenal average annual turnover rate of just 27 percent over the past 10 years, never exceeding 33 percent in a given year. (The national average turnover rate in the apartment industry is 40 percent to 60 percent.)

The motto at Southern is "regular people serving regular people." Southern's approach to promoting from within is found in examples of staff who went from front desk employee to property manager in eight years and from credit counselor to property manager in six years.

"Remember that it will cost you 33 percent to 100 percent of the employee's first year annual salary to replace them," Hunter said. Hunter said the goal at Southern is to create a workforce that is appropriately multicultural. "You can start this by knowing your workforce demographics," Hunter said. "Your workforce is appropriately multicultural if it resembles your state or county area census, taking into account household income and the educational level of working-age adults."

Southern, which wanted to ensure its employees are well served, took a different approach than Equity toward building its diverse workforce. It hired WorldReach Consulting to conduct a focus group forum to ask employees if they felt valued. Digging into why they did or did not led to new understanding about its staff and the resident profile as well.

Kelly Burrello, M.S., President, WorldReach Consulting and Training, said the first step when conducting a focus group is to do a community assessment by speaking with the managers about diversity. "Ask them, 'Do you feel valued as an employee?'" she said.

She said this will trigger more thoughts, often resulting in greater details that are more revealing about the employees' overall feelings about their jobs. Employees, she said, will then tell stories about what happened to them while onsite.

"Ask them about a situation where culture might have contributed to a problem with a resident--or how it helped develop a strong relationship with a resident," she said.

This top-down approach can help alleviate some communication conflicts due to racial tensions. Sometimes, an apartment staff member does not realize that tension exists or why it exists. For example, Burrello spoke of a female Middle Eastern resident who wouldn't open the door when a maintenance technician arrived mid-day to make a repair.

"The apartment company was not aware of the Middle Eastern custom that a married woman not be seen by another man without the presence of the husband," Burrello said. "So right away, a bad relationship was created between maintenance and a resident."

Understanding different cultures allows management to pinpoint communication or service situations that can be improved. Hunter said Southern Management has found great value in "looking at who is living in the community and trying to have a workforce that reflects that," she said.

The Panel

A panel of four industry professionals spoke at NAA's 2004 Assembly of Delegates in Dallas in November. The panel offered solutions to building a diverse workforce and watching with diverse resident populations, sharing real-life examples and an expanded definition of diversity, to include more that race, ethnicity and gender. Many of their thoughts are shared here.

Equity's Diversity 'Mission'

To promote and maintain a work environment where all people are treated with dignity and respect, offered opportunities for professional development and valued for their unique contributions to Equity's success.

Paul R. Bergeron III is NAA's Director of Communications. He can be reached at 703/518-6141 ext. 137.