Sondra Thiederman

Biography

Sondra Thiederman is one of the nation`s leading experts on workplace diversity, cross-cultural business, and bias reduction. As President of Cross-Cultural Communications, a San Diego-based training firm, Sondra has 25 years experience as a speaker, trainer, and author helping professionals in Fortune 500 companies, public sector organizations, and dozens of associations find ways to successfully navigate our increasingly diverse workplaces.

Since receiving her doctorate with an emphasis on cross-cultural studies from UCLA, Sondra has helped hundreds of groups develop solutions to their cross-cultural and diversity leadership challenges. Among her clients are such leading organizations as General Motors, Xerox Corporation, Pfizer Pharmaceuticals, Marriott Corporation, the Mayo Clinic, Century 21 Real Estate, American Express, The Federal Reserve Bank, Motorola, and AT&T. She has also addressed notable associations including the Arthritis Foundation, the Mortgage Bankers Association, the American Society of Association Executives, and the American Immigration Lawyers Association. In addition, she has served as consultant to the University of California and the American Cancer Society and has been appointed by Elizabeth Dole to serve on the Diversity Cabinet of the American Red Cross.

Sondra has extensive media experience including mention in such national publications as The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, and U.S.A Today. She is published in professional journals ranging from T&D to Real Estate Today to Association Management, and has written on diversity for the web site Monster.com. She is the author of four books including the award-winning Profiting in America`s Multicultural Marketplace and, most recently, Making Diversity Work: Seven Steps for Defeating Bias in the Workplace.

Publications

Making Diversity Work: Seven Steps for Defeating Bias in the Workplace

Unconscious Bias, Subconscious Bias, Implicit Bias, Subtle Bias. Whatever term you use, we all know that bias in the workplace costs organizations dearly in lost business, expensive turnover, litigation, and stifled creativity. Fortunately, there is a lot we can do to reduce workplace bias and Making Diversity Work is here to show us how.

Based on the indisputable fact that behavior change, rational thinking, and productive dialogue have the power to defeat all but the most subconscious of biases, the revised and updated second edition of Making Diversity Work is chock full of techniques, strategies, and tangible steps that show readers how to:
- Design and motivate the behavior change that reduces biased thinking.
- Diagnose unconscious, subtle, and disguised bias.
- Remedy micro-inequities or "leakage" -- those times when bias "leaks" from our subconscious in the form of inappropriate and even discriminatory behaviors.
- Create, identify, and focus on shared values, experiences, and goals as a means of bias reduction.
- Communicate effectively when faced with diversity-related conflict and, thereby, further reduce bias.
- Immediately apply the material in the workplace and training room.

Titles

Bias-Free Leadership: Your Competitive Advantage

Becoming Bias-Free: Your Workplace Advantage

`Gateway Events`: How to Turn Diversity Tension into Diversity Dialogue

The Business Case for Diversity: It`s Right, It`s Smart, and It`s Profitable

The Impact of Bias on Innovation and Performance: The Problem, the Solution

Resolving the Diversity Paradox: From Differences to Commonalities

Is `Guerilla Bias` Making War on Your Organization?

Bias- Free Sales: Your Key to the Close

Bias-Free Customer Service: The Key to Business Success

Getting `Culture Smart`: Skills for Doing Business Across Cultural Lines

Culturally-Competent Patient Care: Your Competitive Advantage (Health Care Industry)

Bias-Free Health Care Leadership: Managing Effectively in a Diverse Environment (Health Care Industry)