How Cultural Diversity in SF Design Agencies Leads to Better Design Solutions

The world has become so culturally diverse and globalized that having diversity in the workforce is no longer a nice thing but a requirement to target problems and find solutions from as many perspectives as possible. San Francisco User Experience design agencies already focus on hiring for diversity, but not many are discussing fostering an inclusive workplace culture, although most do. 

Diversity brings tremendous benefits to all businesses, especially to the creative industries like design. Research has found that companies with diverse leadership perform better financially and foster better and stronger business relationships. And again, research shows that creativity seems to be one of the number one advantages of having a diverse team. 

However, it is essential to know that it is not just about hiring a diverse workforce; this alone won’t bring you all the benefits. Companies need to create an inclusive workplace. San Francisco UX agencies have an advantage in this area because they know how to work with different cultures. At the same time, they foster an inclusive environment–even remotely–that allows them to have a diverse team that knows how to work together to bring out the best of each one of them. 

Inclusive Environment Matters 

Without inclusion, diversity is pointless. Imagine having a bunch of great single ideas in your head but not connecting one with the other. That’s how variety would work without inclusion. A lot of potential would ultimately be wasted.

To achieve fitting inclusion, you need to have a diverse workforce involved and successfully integrated. This inclusive corporate culture is achieved by having respect, equity, a positive recognition of the differences, and ultimately the social and business institutions that foster all of these. 

Cultural Diversity Provides New Perspectives

Diversity, as we said previously, is a shortcut to a plurality of perspectives. These perspectives are precious, especially when it comes to creative industries and problem-solving. That is why SF design agencies hire people from diverse backgrounds, nationalities, and cultures. These agencies understand that each new hire is a unique array of perspectives, and that’s why they focus on making it as varied as possible.

However, adding new perspectives to the table is not always easy, and many hiring managers feel intimidated about this task. This is because some people fear that new perspectives also bring in unpopular opinions and can clash with one another. In reality, though, research has shown that a culturally diverse team sees a 60% improvement in decision-making abilities. Despite some initial getting used to new people (that would happen regardless of their background or diversity status), it is all done very smoothly. 

Cultural Diversity Provides Access to a Wider Talent Pool 

Thanks to the latest advancements in the world, and the newest crisis like the world pandemic, employees are no longer seeking a comfortable job that pays them well. They are looking for a place that can feel like home for them, where they can grow, feel accepted, challenged, and feel like there is improvement in their lives thanks to this job. That is why agencies, like SF UX agencies, that embrace diversity have access to a broader range of candidates, all looking for a place where they can progress and advance. This results in these types of companies attracting the very best talent around the globe.

Of course, companies shouldn’t hire only based on diversity. But being able to oversee variety and focus on their qualities and skills broadens the talent pool that they can reach. That’s why embracing diversity in all aspects like background, thought, ethnicity, crafts, and more are essential to getting great talents, and this is exactly what San Francisco agencies do. 

Cultural Diversity Drives Innovation 

As we’ve said before, diversity brings different perspectives to the table, and these perspectives are the ones that lead to innovation. This is something that doesn’t just sound good but makes sense. When you have a group of people with the same background, culture, ethnicity, and age, could you give them a problem to solve? They will all look at it from the same perspective. That’s why most Nobel prize winners in the world are not just one thing; they have an integral background that allows them to look at problems from as many angles as possible until they find the answer they were looking for. This plurality of perspectives is so significant that even Google tries to bring new perspectives just by changing the surroundings of their office, by letting people bike inside their office or sit in a kayak-looking office or a swing chair during a meeting. New environments, circumstances, and people are known to spark fresh ideas, and these will always lead to more innovation, as research has shown. 

Cultural Diversity Improves Employee Performance 

Diversity is good for business in many ways. One of them is creativity, as we’ve seen, but the other is productivity and employee performance. Because if employers see diversity and feel included, they will feel more comfortable at their workplace. This leads to happier, more productive employees who feel the company is more like a place to be themselves and share with other great individuals, instead of going in and leaving because they are afraid of being themselves. 

Additionally, diversity and inclusion are the best way of fostering initiative and motivation and the best way to fight conformity. Research has shown that when there is a strong, homogeneous culture, people are pressured to conform to the ideas of the majority. So, when companies allow them and make them feel comfortable exploring new ideas, they are less prone to just coordinating and producing their best work. 

The Bottom Line: Cultural Diversity Leads to Higher Quality of Work 

Designers with different perspectives in San Francisco UX agencies save them from making substantial tone-deaf, offensive mistakes often popping up in the large corporate environments. The uproar and anger sparked from such designs always serve as a reminder of the crucial importance of diversity in design teams and creative agencies. A phenomenon attributed to lousy decision-making in creative teams is groupthink, which occurs when you have too many people with too similar perspectives in a group. Whether you think groupthink is real or not, you must admit that if someone with a different view had seen offensive designs before their launch, they would have been appalled and would have stopped their development from the very beginning. It shouldn’t be difficult to avoid making offensive mistakes, and SF design agencies do this well due to having culturally diverse teams. 

There is still a lot of work left to do in this area of the design community. Minority representation in all the design areas is a must if the design wants to cater to everyone. But, the lack of minorities in the field is an excellent reason to hire more minority representatives. So, if you’re looking for a UX design service provider that can develop unique, innovative, and even ground-breaking design solutions, there’s barely anyone better than UX agencies from San Francisco due to their nature and corporate culture.

Michael Dunlop is the Chief Operating Officer of Paradigm Digital Ltd and has extensive experience in business consultancy services.