Diversity & Inclusion

Innovation thrives in teams where diverse thinking is not only encouraged but proactively encouraged. Gender diverse teams are shown to have improved performance. Despite the evidence demonstrating the impact of diversity, we still witness mixed reactions to gender diverse teams with the situation exacerbated following the pandemic. As organizations are rebuilding after the initial waves of the pandemic, we focus on why gender diversity needs to be at the heart of this transformation.

Matteo Winkler is a law professor at HEC Paris, focusing an important part of his research on international human rights and on teaching Diversity and Inclusion. Professor Winkler also chairs the HEC Paris Diversity Committee. Eloïc Peyrache is a professor of economics. He began his research career with a study of gender diversity in admissions to French Grandes Ecoles. He was nominated Dean of HEC Paris in January 2021. Both professors share their insights on the stakes in Diversity and Inclusion, ways to address discrimination and proposals to include diversity through research. These, they say, are just some of a panoply of initiatives being explored at HEC Paris.

In this interview with Knowledge@HEC, a dozen of professors and Ph.D. students from HEC Paris share the key findings of their latest research on diversity and inclusion. They also share insights for managing one’s career in challenging contexts and give analysis on how education and the new generations can change the workplace culture.

The year 2015 marked a cesura in Europe’s recent history to “the largest migration movement of people that Europe has seen since 1945” (Financial Times, 2015). Private citizens quickly and efficiently organized to assist the settling of 20,000 of refugees crossing borders every day in Germany, compensating for the state’s initial inability to handle the situation (The Economist, 2015). Researchers have investigated the early organization that led to the quick response of those citizens to manage a crisis. In this interview, David Twardowski Crvelin, Assistant Professor of Accounting and Management Control at HEC Paris, discusses the conditions that help the inclusion of migrants in business and society.

At the senior level, men outnumber women by a 10 to 1 ratio in the private equity sector. Considerations about gender equality notwithstanding, such a testosterone-only environment is not good for... the bottom line. A large-scale study of investment deals by HEC Paris professor of strategy and business policy proves that teams with at least one female member dramatically outperform male-only teams. An interview with Oliver Gottschalg.