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I ran a Kinko's Copies long ago. When I took over, the branch was 100% white male. I was talking about that with a buddy, and he suggested that anyone that wasn't a white male wouldn't apply there. He went on to say that he wouldn't encourage his younger brother (right age/experience) to apply at a store like that, because it would just be too hard to be the sole minority.
I had a hellava time getting a diverse mix of coworkers going. But I found his comments to be right on the money. 10/10 applicants when I started were white males (I interviewed everyone that gave me an application). 2 years later, after building a diverse staff, the applicant pool was all over the road. And, go figure, the number of applicants was waaaay up. This allowed me to hire better people, and turn a better product.
Unconfirmed, but I believe it without reservation: the client base changed/grew as well. We certainly became much more profitable over that period. Both gross sales and profit %.
What's that have to do with AA? In my mind, everything. The other branches were staffed the same as mine at the start, and were staffed largely the same 2 years later. Without some time of system to encourage diversity, it isn't gonna happen on it's own. Inertia is a good word.
And I wouldn't have even noticed, probably, if my college buddy hadn't given me shit about a store full of white guys until I realized *I* could change something.
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