Managing Diversity in the Workplace - Essay Example

?Introduction Diversity can be defined as the norm or set of practices that are consciously undertaken by incorporating, appreciating and understanding the relationship between cultures, humanity and the natural setting. Diversity can be defined by looking at it from a primary dimension that may be through age, gender, ethnicity, race, sexual orientation or physical qualities and these shape the self-image of the individual and his view of the world and have the biggest impact in any organization or society (Loden and Rosener, 1991). There are also the secondary dimensions of the diversity of a particular group known through the educational background of an individual, his income, geographical location, religious beliefs, marital status and work experience amongst other factor. Diversity therefore defines how people perceive each other and how they handle it against the other in their daily interaction (Sweetman, 2004). Diversity in an organization or the work place can only be practiced or appreciated by recognizing the fact that discrimination can create a serious disadvantage to a particular group of employees or workers while at the same time bestowing privilege on others. Managing diversity in a place of work or organization increases the productivity of the employees in that particular organization. Managing diversity at the place of work or organization is important as it creates and maintains a conducive work environment, which incorporates both differences and similarities of the employees. Several studies and research have confirmed that managing diversity at the work place or organization results into increased commitment and satisfaction by employees or workers in their duties thus leading to an increase in returns. Managing diversity in the organization may involve the proper balance of gender in that persons of different sexes are allowed to perform similar duties or functions. This is aimed at bringing a positive work environment through the incorporation of both gender is incorporated as it brings into consideration the value of both similarities and differences of employees. This makes each and every employee or worker realize their potential thus maximizing the overall contribution they make in order for the company to increase productivity and achieve its goals and objectives. Discrimination based on the gender of an employee continues in most organizations, for example in some organizations women are and feel discriminated against at all levels of their employment (Gregory, 2003). There is therefore need to diversify the roles each gender plays at the work place or organization. Managing diversity at the work place therefore entails the respect and acceptance of employees of both sexes as equal partners in the work place through the recognition of the employees and their uniquely acquired skills. This would include overcoming barriers or stereotypes that hinder the participation of some people in some duties in the organization. For example, the belief that that women are not good in industrial or technical jobs can be done away in order to accord everyone an equal opportunity at the work place. Successful management of diversity of employees in the work place or an institution has a direct effect in improving the performance of all employees in the organization. Extensive research has shown that management of diversity by incorporation of both men and women in the work place has direct impact in the results achieved as a heterogeneous team that composed of both men and women perform better at the work place as compared to teams made up of only men or women (Barbara, 1988). Organizational Strategies and Policies Cox and Blake (1991) have argued that having an organization with a diverse work force results into decisions that are better, creative and innovative while at the same time resulting into a flexible organization that appreciates divergent thinking. It may also make the organization attract and retain the best talents thus ensuring a greater capability in marketing. These can only be realized through organizational strategies and policies or interventions that are aimed at improving the management of human resource in the organization while considering their diversity. The strategies may be focused on the individual for example through the selection processes or be aimed at the collective group of the employees for example in the management of conflicts. The interventions may also be at the organizational level such as through top management commitment. The intervention strategies employed do not only target the superficial outcomes like productivity and turnover of the organization but also the informal but intermediate outcomes related to the processes such as the quality of the interaction of individuals in the organization through teamwork or cooperation, cultural experiences, and the commitment of the individual with the goals of the organization. Organizations have put in place strategies and policies that ensure equal employment opportunities to every person irrespective of the diversity of the particular individual. This could be through affirmative action and other strategies, for example, establishment of Diversity Advisory Committees or the undertaking of mandatory training and putting in place communication strategies that are aimed at different affinity group members (Jackson, 2002). Similarly, Goodman, Fields and Blum (2003) have found an important and positive relationship between organizations emphasizing the development and promotion of employees and proper representation of women in the organization at all levels. Organizations should put in place formal human resource practices that may be in defined or written documents that will dictate hiring and firing that ensures that there is adequate representation of women in the management. This is because the positions or opportunities that come up in the organization are not assigned or got through patronage or ascribed beliefs of managers who are deemed to be productive usually assumed to be men (Reskin and McBrier, 2000). Diversity training has been found to be the most effective intervention at the individual level as it changes the attitude of the employees either affective or cognitive and their behaviors to appreciate diversity by reducing subtle forms of discriminating against individuals that excludes them from the workplace thereby making them ineffective (SHRM, 2002). Training may be conducted to foster assimilation through education about the norms and goals of the culture that is dominant in order to target the minorities in an organization. It may also be to make the majority in an organization to be accommodative and also to emphasize multiculturalism that allows members of two or more cultural affiliations to be allowed to retain and practice some key aspects of their culture. It is important to note that the training program will include a proper evaluation of stereotyping, prejudice, styles of communication and attitudes towards affirmative action (Nkomo and Kossek, 2000). Rynes and Rosen (1995) have described the positive impact of training when used as a strategy for managing and improving diversity in an organization. In their research, they have found that 75% of persons who undergo training aimed at appreciating the importance of diversity in an organization leave the training with helpful positive diversity attitudes as compared to a small percentage of 9% who star the training with favorable diversity attitudes. Mentoring can be used by organizations as a strategy in the management of diversity at the individual level whereby a successful or effective but senior member of the organization is paired up with a junior employee. This is from a marginalized or discriminated group such as persons living with a disability or a woman with an objective of enabling the under-represented individual to go up against the barriers that usually prevent the advancement in careers (Ragins, 2002). A mentoring relationship therefore provides a stronger influence on the attitudes of an employee in the organization in terms of commitment to the job, his satisfaction, turnover intentions, and his views of the organizational justice (Ragins, Cotton and Miller, 2000). Organizations may also employ strategies that address the culture aimed at creating a work environment that emphasizes employees working as a team through collective participation through the instilling of characters aimed at cohesion of both the individual and the organizational culture (Dwyer, Richard and Chadwick, 2001). This can be achieved through the creation of a diversity council that is composed of credible people from diverse backgrounds or affiliations that can create strategies that are diverse business-wise that when integrated in the objectives of the organization leads to successful ventures (Richard, 2000). Workforce diversity strategies can also be implemented to have a positive effect on the outcomes of the groups as a diverse group most of the time has better-quality solutions for assigned tasks as compared to homogeneous groups as they instilled a norm of cooperation in the accomplishment of tasks (Cox, Lobel and McLeod, 1991). Impact on individual and organizational performance Cultural diversity has been in practice in most organizations in the recent past and it is defined as the “representation in a particular social system of persons with different or distinct group affiliations of cultural importance. Cox (1993) in the book, Cultural Diversity in Organizations-Theory, Research and Practice states that the affiliation of a person such as his age, gender. Moreover, when compared with the relationship of the individual with another individual in the group or the organization defines the diversity of that particular organization and ultimately affects the organizational factors in terms of the quality of work and the productivity of the individual. The performance of the organization or the workforce is therefore affected by how the individual employees interact with the factors put in place by the organization. A worker who feels that the organization values his input perform will in this instance better in his duties as opposed to a worker in a less diverse setting. Managing diversity in the organization will have a direct impact in process such as solving of problems, creativity and communication. The importance of the diversity of a group in relation to problem- solving is that it gives critical analysis of the alternatives available and minimizes thinking as a group. Moreover, creativity enhanced by a diverse work force enables the sharing of the ideas of the group as each individual is given the opportunity to share his ideas, which may be creative to the whole group. Differences in communication between individuals due to their culture can be the basis of misunderstandings that eventually lowers the effectiveness of a workforce. Diversity affects the performance of an organization in the sense that a set factors at the level of the individual, group and the organizational level interact to influence the outcome from an individual that in turn influence the outcome by the organization. These in turn affect affective outcomes, which are how individuals feel and think about their work or jobs and their relationship with employers, or have the effect of influencing achievement outcomes, which are the tangible measures that show the contribution of the workforce to an organization such as the rate of promotions and performance. An organization that has a diverse workforce can have the positive effect of having or increasing the customer demand for its products or services (Richard, Kochan and McMillan-Capehart 2003) as such firms with a diverse culture is able to accurately read the increasingly diverse products in the market and attain more elaborate and inimitable social resources. In a study about the linkage of between the diversity of gender at higher levels of management and the performance of companies in the Fortune 500 grouping showed that organizations or companies with a diverse management. This is in terms of gender recorded higher return of equity in the percentage of 355 and a total return of 34% to the shareholders as compared to other firms (Catalyst, 2004). Frink et al (2003) suggests that there is a relationship between the gender of employees and their performance and this varies according to the industry being surveyed. He states that the increase in the representation of a particular gender especially the women is closely related to productivity and the performance in terms of profits up to the point when both women and men hold an equal proportion of the job. Legal Framework and Cultural Issues Having a flexible career is important for both men and women in the sense that when an organization offers all employees equal opportunities they get motivated and become willing to continue with their current employment or duties. In order to manage diversity properly in the organization it is significant to integrate both men and women in decision-making processes of the company. This can be achieved through the bringing of all stakeholders in the organization that is the employer and the employee that has an impact of improving employee satisfaction and motivation, satisfaction of customer needs and improving brand image of the organization. Increased empowerment at the work place can be undertaken in different ways as discussed hereunder. One way of increasing the participation of both men and women at the work place is through transparency in the implementation of gender sensitive initiatives. There should be creation and monitoring of policies and indicators that are sensitive to gender that can be achieved through having a favorable proportion of both men and women in the running of the organization both at all levels of recruitment and management. For example, the organization should implement uniform pay levels for both men and women. It is also recommended that the organization implement strategies that ensure that the rate of attrition or retirement by the employees or workers in similar functions at the organization or work place is identical for both men and women. The organization may also put in place measures that sustain the monitoring of the set performance indicators by the authorities so that the organization know the gaps to be filled or rectified and give a reflection on what directions or course of action to be taken. For example, some organization such as IBM have put in place policies that are especially attractive to women at the time of recruitment for example it organizes public information campaigns that aim at recruiting freshly graduated women into their employment programs. To increase the participation of women in the work place or organization, some employees have put in place policies that favor the women to be in employment and at the same undertake their normal household duties at the same time (Karsten, 2006). This is through programs often referred to as work-life programs that enable women to be able to be both in employment and take care of their home needs. This can be implemented through a number of ways such as having flexible working hours and flexibility of working hours where the organization adopts schedules that allow one to work remotely or engage in part-time employment or in programs known as flexi-time programs. The organization may also introduce mobile offices or making working from home an option or provide breaks such as maternity leave whereby the companies grant their female employees to attend to their maternal needs and later reintegrating them back to the work force. Discrimination in the acquisition or promotion of all employees especially the females should be avoided at all costs (Paludi, 2013). This would require the organization to ensure that they recruit, appraise and manage careers in a manner that puts in place the needs of all employees in their quest for professional development. The organization should also policies that are favorable in the promotion of both men and women in the company career ladder. Recruitment should also be based on diversity and the identification of prejudices that hinder other employees especially women from gainful employment. The organization should also offer career paths that are intended to retain the best human resource amongst them from both genders. Recommendations and Conclusion Currently organizations have responded towards the management of diverse human resources through legal ways or through the implementation of discrete programs and policies aimed at changing the culture of the organization in relation to the work processes. It is important to note that there could be need to improve the human resource management strategies through a careful identification of the relationship between the strategies employed, the target level of intervention at either the individual, group or organizational level. For example in the United States, it has been found that some strategies or policies may be effective in producing results if they are grouped or implemented together with other human resource strategies than when adopted in isolation (Perry-Smith and Blum, 2000). It is important that inclusion of both men and women and other diverse groups in the work place be embraced by both employers and the employees. This is because inclusion of men and women in the work place increase the value to organizations. The respect of each person’s individual differences brings the advantage of inculcating competitive edge thus improved productivity. It creates a safe and equal atmosphere that enables everyone to access challenges and opportunities. Diversification at the work place has enabled women to achieve and advance at the work place. This has in turn led other women to be encouraged and set the tone for empowerment of others. One factor that has a dominant effect or role in achieving this diversification is the women’s attainment of higher and valuable education thus increasing the status at their work place. The role of women can therefore not be ignored in the labor force as they participate in large numbers through their incorporation of innovative ideas and skills that make the company successful. Increasing diversity of women’s position in the workplace is important in a manner of ways. Strategies adopted by organizations that increase the inclusivity of all employers have yielded positive results. For example, employees have become sensitive to differences in gender encouraging every person to accept each other including their abilities. Discrimination in terms of sex or gender, which has been the most reported barrier for accepting work place diversity, has been eliminated through embrace of policies that are favorable for the progression of the woman at the work place. 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