Diversity of Thought Matters More Than Demographic Diversity
Mike Smith
Spicy Level
The Take
A room full of Stanford MBA graduates from different demographic backgrounds thinks more alike than a room with a dropout, a tradesperson, a missionary, and a farmer. Real diversity is cognitive, not visible.
+Why I'm Right
Prediction markets prove that cognitive diversity improves forecasting accuracy
The most innovative teams have diverse experience bases, not just diverse appearances
Groupthink is a function of shared assumptions, not shared demographics
Companies that optimize for demographic diversity often still have monoculture thinking
?The Counter-Argument
“Demographic diversity and cognitive diversity aren't mutually exclusive — they often correlate. And systemic barriers mean that without intentional demographic inclusion, many perspectives never make it into the room.”
Agree? Disagree? Tell me.
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