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Fortunately, there has been abundant research into how teams function best and what makes them perform most efficiently and productively. In one wide-ranging study, scientists at MIT and Carnegie Mellon found that high-performing teams are made up of people who have high social sensitivity, who take turns when speaking , and that include women in the group. But perhaps the most important trait of any team is that its members contribute a diversity of talents, experiences, and perspectives, which maximizes the the number of possibilities the team can explore and leads to smarter, more innovative solutions. However, building a diverse team that works well together is a challenge that takes real effort to overcome. L eaders shouldn’t underestimate it. The Diversity Paradox Diversity, all too often, is viewed as being in conflict with performance; something that leaders will get around to once they ’ve made their quarterly numbers. However, the evidence that diversity improves performance is nothing less than overwhelming. One study found that diverse groups solve problems better than more homogenous teams of objectively high-ability problem solvers. Another that simulated markets showed that ethnic diversity deflated price bubbles. A McKinsey report that covered 366 public companies in a variety of countries and industries found that groups that were more ethnically and gender diverse performed significantly better than others. The list goes on. Yet while the benefits of diversity are clear, so are the challenges. We are hard-wired to be hostile to those we see as “other.” In a study of adults randomly assigned to “leopards” and “tigers,” fMRI studies noted enmity to outgroup members. Similar results were found in a study involving five-year-old children and even in infants. To some extent, tribalism is unavoidable.