Diversity and Teamwork - A Message from Deputy Principal - Students

At this week’s Assembly, the Executive team focused on diversity and inclusion.

An interesting and perhaps little known fact is that within organisations, diversity can lead to increased productivity and financial returns.

The Harvard Business Review website discusses a 2015 McKinsey report on 366 public companies which found that “…those in the top quartile for ethnic and racial diversity in management were 35% more likely to have financial returns above their industry mean, and those in the top quartile for gender diversity were 15% more likely to have returns above the industry mean.”

They go on to say that research indicates a team comprised of individuals from diverse backgrounds may actually alter the behaviour of the group’s social majority in a way that leads to improved and more accurate group thinking.

Some of the reasons for this include:

• diverse teams are more likely to constantly examine facts and remain objective

• they may encourage greater scrutiny of each other’s actions

• they are more likely to become aware of their own habitual way of thinking and potential biases that can lead them to ignore key information or incur errors when making decisions

Transferring this information to the school context, our girls might be more comfortable working with others who share the same background but the consequence can be a lack of innovative thinking and growth. Strength lies in the diversity of communities and teams.

Within a diverse community, it is also imperative to create a culture where everyone is welcomed, accepted and feels included.

Recently, we added two new members to our Girls Grammar team. Tamara Wickham is a provisionally registered psychologist and has taken up the position as School Counsellor while Sarah Williams joined us this week in the role of Indigenous Liaison Officer. Both individuals bring a set of valuable skills and knowledge to our school community and will assist us with achieving our strategic goal - Maintain a supportive, inclusive environment where diversity, individuality and connections are valued, where students feel a sense of belonging and where wellbeing is promoted and prioritised.

Nadine Kelly

Deputy Principal - Students