Modern Management
MGT500- 2012
Managing Diverse Workforce
Workforce diversity includes the obvious differences we see when we look around: race, gender, national origin, sexual orientation, age, religion and ethnicity. But it’s also the less obvious traits, the subtle differences that often register with us unconsciously, such as socioeconomic status, marital status, educational background, language, accent and appearance. We all have something that makes us unique, some special talent or ability that we bring to the table that differentiates us from our colleagues. That’s diversity at its best.
Sourcing and managing people from a diverse background have become a critical part of an employment and management
…show more content…
Training Programs: Awareness and skill building training programs provides information on cultural norms of different groups and how they may affect work behavior. New employee orientation programs are ideal for introducing workers to organization’s expectation regarding treatment of fellow workers irrespective of their cultural or ethnic background.
Recognize individual differences: There are number of dimensions around human relationships. These include but not limited to: acceptance of power equality, desire for orderliness and structure; the need to belong to a wider group etc. Difference should not be assumed to be cultural. Other sources are personality, aptitude or competence ( Goffee, 1997).
Actively seek input from Minority workers: Seeking opinions of minority groups and their involvement on important matters is beneficial not only because of the contributions they can make but also as it sends a message that they are valued by the organization.
Revamp reward system: An organizations performance appraisal and reward system should encourage and reinforce effective diversity management.
Flexible Work environment: Cox (1994) indicated that flexible work environment could be highly beneficial for and to people of non-traditional cultural background because their approaches to problems are more likely to be different from past norms.
Continuous Monitoring: Experts recommend that
Diversity at the work place has over the years become a matter of serious discussion. This is because there is a need to stop the common stereotyping that has been in existence over the years. There has been a need to guarantee that there is diversity at the areas of work to ensure that each individual is given an opportunity to work. This is only possible if there is an end in discrimination, this is because discrimination is the major factor that affects diversity in organizations.
Recruiting and retaining a culturally diverse workforce are crucial components for an organization that wants to build and sustain a successful operation. Organization must identify and take necessary action to resolve issues involved in the recruiting and
Diversity in any organisation includes hiring and promoting a workforce of people with differences. These differences include race, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, physical abilities and economic backgrounds. The premise of a diverse workplace is that employees are
Diversity is what makes people different, not just culturally but in human differences. Having a multitude of differences in the workforce gives an organization the ability to use many ideas to reach a common goal. A person could say that a diverse group of people together in one room can accomplish greater achievements than a room filled with the same types of individuals. Managers understand the concept of diversity, and how important diversity is to the success of a company’s ability to implement programs that continue to develop a harmonious and diverse workplace. The recognition that diversity is a reality in the workforce has generated an enormous amount of activity over the years among leaders in business, government, and civil
When people are employed from different backgrounds, they present a diversity of skills, viewpoints as well as personalities (Brethower, 2004). Such diversity if well managed helps to spot opportunities, speculate problems and subsequently provide solutions to the problems or challenges ide). Basic elements that entail successful management style revolve around a rare ability to confidently take on any risks without any fear, as well as the belief that Organization’s success has its foundations proper management of the diversity of work of the work force. The overwhelming impact that people have on the success of the Organization serves as the catalyst for a fundamental democratic element of diverse work force management. The belief is that
What diversity are we talking about? We have ethnic mixes, cultural differences, racial diversity, and religions across the spectrum, wide age ranges, class mixes, and sexual orientation options. The world is so connected that we are doing business by e-mail and computer transmission all over the globe at all hours of the day and week. We encounter a staggering variety of people every day. We have so many types of people in the workforce today that we must define what we mean by diversity.
The general line of reasoning is that if we learn to incorporate each other’s diverse traits and characteristics in the workplace, we can then use these differences to foster an innovative environment, which will give the company a competitive advantage over the competitors that do not accept workforce diversity. According to the Allied Academies International Conference, “Diversity is rapidly becoming a common practice among companies due to the increasing number of minorities entering the job market today. As these groups become more prevalent throughout companies, upper-level employees are facing numerous challenges when determining what changes must take place to create a positive working environment for everyone. Management is responsible for the development and implementation of effective policies directly relating to diversity to ensure the acceptance of minorities into the workplace and to aid in minorities’ success through equal opportunities and treatment.” (Marcia L. James, 2001, Academy for Studies in International Business Proceedings)
Today’s workforce is ever more diverse in means of personal traits such as race, ethnicity, gender, national origin, religion, gender identification, and sexual orientation. Diversity research proposes that such diversity in the workplace will steer to lesser costs and/or greater revenues, enhancing the bottom line of an organization. A culture is defined as a group or society which imparts common beliefs and values. A cultural group is known by the way in which it acts. A person can adapt to different cultures simultaneously displaying different traits contingent on birthplace, family background, language, etc. (Axner, nd).
From our research, we identified three different perspectives on workforce diversity that people embrace, each with different implications for a work group’s ability to realize the benefits of its cultural diversity. We use these observations here to examine critically some of the themes and basic assumptions of previous research and to propose new directions for both researchers and practitioners interested in diversity (Ely &Thomas, 2001). When organizations have a diverse economy, it makes the company strong. Once our nation has embrace the changes from the demographics that reap the economic benefits of a diverse and inclusive workforce. Burns et al. (2012) stated in their investigation that:
The following essay will delve into the challenges of the changing working force and the positive outcomes of managing diversity at work. Ageing baby-boomers along with an increased number of women in paid work and an influx of workers from diverse backgrounds within the workplace raise new diversity challenges, which people managers must handle. Managing diversity in the workplace has become an essential skill for people managers. There are many social and economic reasons that make it highly beneficial to a business.
Maya Angelou, a famous African American poet, once said, “We all should know that diversity makes for a rich tapestry, and we must understand that all the threads of the tapestry are equal in value no matter what their colour,” (Angelou & Johnson, 2014). This quote shows how cultural diversity is widely believed to be a benefit to society, but how do these benefits stretch to the context of a business? This review will be looking into literature surrounding the question, what are the key outcomes of creating and managing a culturally diverse working environment?
Diversity in the workplace means bringing together people of different ethnic backgrounds, religions and age groups into a cohesive and productive unit. Advances in communication technology, such as the Internet and cellular phones, have made the marketplace a more global concept. In order to survive, a company needs to be able to manage and utilize its diverse workplace effectively. Managing diversity in the workplace should be a part of the culture of the entire organization.
The Influence of Culture on Human Resource Management Processes and Practices. Dianna Stone and Eugene Stone-Romero, eds. New York: Psychology Press, 2008. 340 pp. $38.25, paper. Although national and international workforces have become increasingly culturally diverse, human resource systems and processes often lag in adapting to multiculturalism in ways that will reduce the cultural bias of existing human resource systems and enhance organizational effectiveness. Nearly 15 years ago Sharon Lobel and I developed a framework for our edited book, Managing Diversity, on the human resource implications of managing the growing diversity of the workforce (Kossek and Lobel, 1996). Although some changes have been made to account flexibly for
Diversity can be defined as the differences among the people working in the same workplace. Those differences can be related to gender, race, religion, marital status, sexual orientation, culture or personalities.
diversity is a work place where we find a range of following elements such as national difference- different language , religion , social status and sometime age also can be included in diversity . Managing diversity is very different job but if we manage diversity effectively then no one can gain competitive advantages. But if we fail then we have to be ready for facing the difficulties.