"Say what?"

As soon as she left the graduation stage, diploma in hand, Jill received a whisper from her favorite professor, "Remember to be aware of the prevailing corporate culture, wherever you go."

Jill paused to wonder just what the professor was talking about, faintly recalling the word "culture" from her organizational sociology class.

Her professor was only concerned that her best student might have a tough time "fitting in" at any company in this rural, conservative state. Jill, an arty person, wears self-designed clothing, sports a tattoo and remains culturally close to her Louisiana Creole roots, reflected in her mixed language.

In any work environment, a dominant set of rules or customs arise over time that guide the way work is done, becoming what is called the organization's culture.

Researchers Deal and Kennedy popularized the idea of developing positive corporate cultures in their 1982 book Corporate Cultures. This idea became a central role in corporate strategy, with some organizations still clinging today to the idea of having a strong and tight corporate culture where all employees must "fit in" to be productive and happy.

In 1988 one sociologist defined four types of corporate cultures: the academy (exposing members to different jobs so they can move within the organization), the club (which is concerned with people fitting in), the baseball team (with its well-rewarded stars who leave for better opportunities) and the fortress (concerned primarily with survival).

Other models soon appeared, and it was thought that employees would work better and be happier if they were in the "right" corporate culture, one they naturally fit into. Not untypical were dictates like, "Managers should model the behavior they wish to encourage, and then reinforce the desired culture with visionary statements or slogans, celebrating employees' successes or promotions, distributing newsletters, hiring culture-compatible staff..."

Today's employees increasingly come from diverse social, cultural and ethnic backgrounds, with different personalities and experiences. So how does this idea of knowing and maintaining a fixed culture stack up with today's recognition of managing and valuing diversity, recognizing diversity's important role in increasing markets, and as a response to globalization?

Not well.

Today's managers, rather than finding the "right" job candidates to "fit" the existing culture or corporate mold are better served by paying attention to the management of cultural differences,concerning themselves more with valuing and managing diversity.

Writes R. Roosevelt Thomas, Jr., a diversity management expert: "Women, Hispanics, Asian Americans, African Americans Native Americans and others outside the mainstream of corporate America bring different, important and competitively relevant knowledge and perspectives about how to actually do work, how to design processes, reach goals, frame tasks, create effective teams, communicate ideas, and lead.

"When allowed to, members of these groups can help companies grow and improve by challenging basic assumptions about an organization's functions strategies, operations, practices, and procedures" - in others words, by challenging and diversifying the existing and "understood" corporate culture.

When companies start thinking about diversity holistically - providing fresh and meaningful approaches to work - "and stop assuming that diversity relates simply to how a person looks, where he or she comes from, how they will "fit in," they will be able to reap the full rewards [of diversity]."

As for Jill, she just might be better off in today's economy by setting up her own graphics shop.

Both she and her professor could be certain the corporate culture of this new business would support broad diversity, making Jill far more competitive with a host of larger businesses that still don't get it.