Leadership Institute

Valuing Differences

Learning Format: Classroom, Web-Based

Order No. WD72

Everyone looks at things in a unique way. Today, the companies with the greatest competitive advantage are those that can make the most of their people’s diverse abilities.

Valuing Differences gives people effective tools for appreciating others’ unique perspectives, understanding people’s inherent differences, and collaborating in a mutually beneficial way.

Do You Face Any of These Issues?

  • Do employees value the unique qualities that everyone brings to the workplace?
  • Do teams know how to make the most of different styles, abilities, and motivations?
  • Do employees know what their styles are and what motivates them?

Performance Objectives

Helps associates:

  • Contribute their unique styles, abilities, and motivations to ensure the success of their groups and organization.
  • Show respect for the unique qualities that make others different.
  • Work more collaboratively and productively with people who have a variety of styles, abilities, and motivations.
  • Draw upon everyone’s differences to achieve better results.

Primary Competency Developed

  • Valuing Diversity

Secondary Competencies Developed

  • Adaptability
  • Building Strategic Working Relationships
  • Building Trust

Course Overview

  • Learn About Yourself: Learners complete a Styles, Abilities, and Motivations (SAMs) profile. A video parodies a team with SAMs and ideas that are all the same, and an activity contrasts how it feels to be valued or devalued. The facilitator introduces a Value of Differences model and “LENS,” a process for valuing differences.
  • Explore Differences: Learners begin a team-based activity to design a poster illustrating the value of differences, develop a SAM profile of team members, and prepare a presentation. They use the profile to decide which of four roles each should take on for the activity—artist, writer, presenter, and coordinator/observer.
  • Nurture Differences: Video and workbook activities show how Key Principles help nurture and support differences.
  • Putting Differences to Work: As teams complete the poster activity, the coordinator/observer notes the use of Key Principles. The team receives feedback on how well they capitalized on each member’s talents and how well they used the Key Principles.
  • Stop, Start, Continue: A video illustrates the principles and skills learned and their positive impact on people and performance. Learners identify things they’ll do to value differences on the job.

Video Segment Summaries

  • Parody shows team members who have similar thinking and ideas.
  • Nurturing differences by using the esteem Key Principle is shown with an associate who has an unworkable idea and a team member who feels unappreciated.
  • Team members use empathy and share Key Principles to overcome a difference of opinion with a more analytical, cautious coworker.
  • Team members nurture and capitalize on one another’s differences to encourage everyone to contribute their unique talents.

Course Details

  • Target audience: All employees up to mid-level leaders.
  • Course length: 3 hours, 25 minutes, or 2 hours, 10 minutes Fast Track.
  • Facilitator certification: DDI-certified facilitator required.
  • Prerequisites: Interaction Skills for Success or Essentials of Leadership.
  • Series: Suitable for all environments.
  • Group size: 10 to 20 people.
  • Prework: No.

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