DiversityInc - May 2006

However, while it’s good to have procedures for your managers in place “if you’re not effectively communicating them, and they are just sitting on a shelf in a policy manual gathering dust, they are not going to be helpful, ” explains EEOC’s Grinberg. “They have to be effectively communicated and revised and updated and [your company’s] officials must be reminded that they’re there and what they are.”

In addition, state and local laws are pushing companies toward training and other proactive measures to help promote inclusive workplaces and to eliminate workplace discrimination. California, Connecticut and Maine now require sexual-harassment training. For example, AB-1825 (a bill signed by California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and which became effective on Sept. 30, 2004) requires employers with 50 or more employees to provide two hours of sexual-harassment prevention training to supervisory employees every two years. Furthermore, the training must include strategies for preventing sexu-

al harassment in the workplace.

The increased popularity of diversity-related practice areas also comes from the desire of upper management to make corporations more competitive.

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“Discrimination results in lower productivity, higher absenteeism, lowered morale—all things that hurt a company’s bottom line and ability to compete, ” says EEOC spokesperson Grinberg. On the other hand, he says, a diverse work force combined with inclusive practices such as affirmative planning just “makes good business sense.”

“Any good employment “It has become less and less about _lawyer _is _not _strictlycompliance with equal-opportunity _law _and _more _about _what _is _in _thefocused on litigation best interest of companies, ” explains ^but ^also ^looks ^at ^how^Pamela ^Wolf, ^the ^editor ^of ^EEO^Compliance Manual and a contribut- to prevent problems ing editor of Employment Practices

Guide (CCH Publishing). “To survive

before they arise.” in the global market and to provide —Hope Eastman, for the needs of and communicate _{College of Labor and}well with your customers, companies need a diverse work force and Employment Lawyers _workplace.”

Océ Business Services: A Portrait of Diversity

color and other members of diverse groups represented 64 percent of OBS’ managers and 79 percent of OBS’ entire work force.

“OBS has committed to targeting executive roles for women and minorities, ensuring that its work force is diverse and representative of the clients and the communities that we serve”, Marciano says. OBS uses such resources as the National Society of Hispanic MBAs, DiversityInc and the Na-

Joseph R. Marciano tional Black MBA Association Inc. to find the best talent available.

The company has also forged partnerships with nonprofit organizations—such as Goodwill, Salvation Army and the Pacific Asian Consortium in Employment—to help foster workplace diversity.

For example, OBS has partnered with Jobs for Youth, which assists unemployed teens in Chicago. For 12 years, OBS has provided Jobs for Youth clients with transportation and interview attire. It also has hired more than 100 Jobs for Youth clients. Currently, four graduates of the program are OBS onsite managers, and one is a national account manager and services a large financial-services firm.

Diversity is second nature to Océ Business Services (OBS) Inc., since it is a division of a global corporation, serves a diverse client base and trains and develops its employees to embrace and support an inclusive workplace.

“Being part of a global organization, we are always dealing with people from different countries and backgrounds, ” says Joseph R. Marciano, president and CEO. “It is ingrained in our culture.”

New York City-based OBS provides onsite management, including overseeing mailrooms, corporate copy centers and records. “We provide the people, the equipment and the software in document management,” Marciano says. A significant portion of OBS’ clients are involved with the legal profession. It services 19 percent of the AmLaw-rated top 200 law firms in the United States.

To succeed, OBS always has sought and attracted people with diverse talents and from different backgrounds. Recognizing the uniqueness of individuals has helped OBS rise to the forefront of document-process management.