Do-it-yourself diversity

VisionPoint's Just Be F.A.I.R. is one of the best self-contained video programs I have seen. The first tape, Just Be F.A.I.R., is a good overview of diversity. It explains what it means to be "culturally competent" and introduces the F.A.I.R. concept (feedback, assistance, inclusion, and respect). It also defines how diversity is different from affirmative action and EEO policies. It not only covers the obvious categories that you'd expect--race, ethnicity, gender, age, religion-but also diversity created by the organization, such as titles, hierarchy, salaries, division, and so on. The video makes a good point that diversity is about relationships. A business case is made that organizations need to pay attention to the business environment, change, and diversity to achieve organizational goals. The second tape, F.A.I.R in Action, is a series of four vignettes that highlight the main points of Just Be F.A.I.R. The first situation involves the importance of communicating and not being "color blind" at the expense of recognizing individual identities. The second vignette, featuring an IT worker assisting another employee, focuses on the potential pitfalls of stereotypes. The third is an appropriate example of a person whose religious faith is overlooked at work when its holidays aren't treated with the same seriousness as mainstream holidays. The last situation involves a new team member' who isn't included in evening meetings because child care makes that difficult. The vignettes are all plausible and serve as great discussion points for the application of the principles brought up in the workshop. The real strength of this program lies in the second video introducing common workplace issues that might not be perceived as diversity issues. The excellent facilitator's guide has a series of well-thought-out participant exercises that can get trainees personally involved with the issues. The guide is clear and easy to navigate, and provides a lot of flexibility for the trainer. There are three different programs, ranging from one hour to a full day, and all are coded by numerical steps to the guide so that customization is straightforward. The PowerPoint presentation is also useful. The guide includes a full transcript of the video dialogue. Matthew Reis is manager of organizational development at Babson College in Wellesley, Massachusetts; reis@babson.edu. Product evaluations are provided by Training Media Review and do not imply endorsement by T+D or ASTD. For more information, contact TMR at 87Z532 1838; www. tmreview.com GOT TO WWW.LEARNINGCIRCUITS.ORG to access TMR's reviews of e-learning materials, including e-courses, authoring software, learning management systems, and more.