In light of Challenge Detroit’s Year 5 recruitment efforts, current fellows were asked to reach out to our networks to get our friends, families, and colleagues interested in applying to the program. Attracting a more diverse fellow applicant pool this year is especially important to Challenge Detroit, which I think is a great way stay current and ensure that the fellowship continues to attract innovative, resilient talent from all over the country as it has in the past.

According to a 2015 PwC article
Diversity and Inclusion is good for business: “85% of the CEOs surveyed whose companies have a formal diversity and inclusiveness strategy said it’s improved their bottom line.” And, “If organizations don’t manage diversity properly, they’ll get left behind”. PwC research also shows that “86% of female and 74% of male millennials consider employers’ policies on diversity, equality and inclusion when deciding which company to work for.” So, “companies that don’t focus on this aren’t just at risk of being out of date, they already are.” 

Incorporating diversity and inclusionary practices can also have a direct and positive impact on your life as a student, fellow, employee, and general human. Here’s why you should care too:

Diversity encourages personal growth
This is especially important to millennials because we’re striving to become well-rounded people. One of the ways that we do this is by listening to new perspectives in order to better understand the world we live in.

Diversity Increases Creativity
Bringing together people from different backgrounds enables us to tackle problems in the best ways, which yields better solutions to business problems as well as to many issues facing our communities.

Diversity also challenges us to think more independently
Although we love to collaborate, many of us cease opportunities to distinguish ourselves from the crowd, mostly through positions of leadership. I have no doubts that Challenge Detroit grooms future leaders because I see it every day; As a Fellow, positions like Project Coordination Lead or Team Lead present themselves with every new challenge project, and there has never been a shortage of fellows who are willing and eager to step into these roles.

So, I want to take this one step further, and encourage all of us to challenge ourselves and take control of our education in classrooms, fellowships, jobs, and groups you are involved in to accept nothing less than the best when it comes to how we learn and who we learn from. This includes focusing our diversity lens towards the inclusion of all backgrounds. Don’t leave your developmental years to the hands of a few people hoping that they represent the voices of all minorities. Let’s hold the programs we’re a part of accountable to providing us with the best professional development experiences possible.

“The future belongs to those who prepare it for today”. –Malcom X