City of Akron to Host Training on Intercultural Competency for Areas Employers, Agencies, and Community Leaders
City of Akron Press Release
From the desk of Ellen Lander Nischt
Published: 09-09-2019
Akron, Ohio, September 9, 2019 – Mayor Dan Horrigan and the City of Akron will host Qualified Administrator training for the Intercultural Development Inventory® (IDI®), October 9th through 11th. The training, designed to help employers and leaders build intercultural competency among their teams, will take place at Bounce Innovation Hub (526 S. Main Street, Akron, Ohio 44311).
By identifying hidden biases and providing guidance to deal with them effectively, the IDI tool helps leaders manage their employees and stakeholders fairly and without unconscious discrimination.
Bias on the basis of race, gender and other identities, has been woven into the fabric of our laws, policies, and social norms for centuries. These structural biases create barriers to equality and inclusion in the workplace, the classroom, and beyond. While numerous programs have been implemented by local institutions to address and or remove these barriers, many of these programs only address the tip of the iceberg around poverty, race relations and cultural competency.
The Intercultural Development Inventory® (IDI®), on the other hand, is the premier cross-cultural assessment of intercultural competency, used by thousands of individuals and organizations to achieve real outcomes around diversity and inclusion. IDI® research in organizations and educational institutions confirms that training and leadership development efforts are more successful when they are based on IDI® assessment of that individual or group’s underlying cultural proficiency and developmental orientation.
“The IDI is proven to increase team performance, create more inclusive workplaces, and develop managers into more effective mentors and leaders,” Akron Mayor Dan Horrigan said. “We are in the process of training key members of our City staff as Qualified Administrators of the IDI so that we can identify structural biases and barriers within our organization, and help our employees move toward greater intercultural competency. Other groups have as well, including Akron Public Schools, United Way of Summit County, Cleveland Clinic Akron General, and Akron Community Foundation. I encourage organizations across the Akron community to join us.”
Only Qualified Administrators can administer the IDI® with their employees, volunteers, or other stakeholders. Therefore, the City invites organizations to have a representative trained as a Qualified Intercultural Development Inventory Administrator. Seats for the October 9-11, 2019 training are very limited; registration is available at https://leadershipakron.org/news-events/idi-conference/. The cost for this training is $2,200.00 per attendee. Please register with Leadership Akron by September 30, 2019.
This training will allow participating organizations to practically measure their team’s ability to adapt in the area of inclusion and diversity, and will provide a sustainable approach to building greater capacity and competency.
For further information, contact:
Ellen Lander Nischt
Press Secretary
Phone: 330-375-2325
E-mail: [email protected]
