The Implications of an Increasingly Diverse Workforce on Human Resources Management Practice - Outline Example

2 Critically outline the implications of an increasingly diverse workforce on HRM practice Human resources management has focused on the modern day incorporation of organizational strategies, tasks and activities. The philosophy has changed and so has the working basis within the organizational regimes. The role of employees has been changed into one of a team one where the diverse workforce issue has received its importance from the fact that people work as a team rather than working alone yet they perform their own respective tasks and duties in their own capacities within the office environment for which there is no direct or indirect connection as concerns the groups and teams that they are working under from time to time. (Lee, 2004) Also there are a lot of hurdles that stand in the way of success so that organizations can best achieve their mission and vision that have been set right at the onset and the human resources management has the task to accomplish the very same. The goals are always in line with the set aims and objectives and for all these things to happen in the first place, it is of paramount importance to recruit the right kind of people – people who can deliver the goods when the going gets tough, and even when it is not that tough. To start with, in an office setting there are certain instances when it is best to choose different people for the various jobs that are assigned in the working environment. This holds true for the rationale that a single person cannot and will not be able to do his work as well as the additional burden that is thrust upon him with zeal and enthusiasm. Hence the need of the hour is to understand that employees and workers need a manager to comprehend their shortcomings in the field of work and thus be assigned tasks and responsibilities in line with the same. The need for recruiting able and established staff is very much there since every organization or company for that matter wants to achieve efficiency and effectiveness when it comes to getting the things done in a quick manner. (Cooper, 2004) There are instances when employees have been known to prolong things just because they do not feel to be in the mood to do so. This is a definitive statement on the part of the employees that they were recruited wrongly at the time of their hiring and the organization did indeed make a mistake in choosing such a worker over other options that were available to it around the world. One sees that the top line personnel present in offices delegate jobs and assignments to their sub-ordinates without even thinking that the same might not be the correct manner and mode of action as to go about carrying out the tasks and responsibilities. They think that delegation would prosper a sense of getting more work within the sub-ordinates who themselves are pretty much occupied with their already assigned tasks and jobs. This is hence not the correct manner in which things should be done and hence a need has to be chalked out to ramify the very same problem. The best possible diversity that could be made in this regard is to appoint top line managers who understand the psyche of the people working under him or her or on the same level as his so that he or she can get a grasp as to what employees usually are best suited at and what they do not prefer under certain strenuous conditions in the office place environment. As a consequence, being able to do more work is definitely considered a plus and an added advantage for an employee but this should not, under any level, exceed his or her capabilities and skill sets. He or she must be assigned the amount of work which is proportionate with his or her pay, already set working conditions and more so the skills on the basis of which he or she was selected in the first place. (Sims, 2002) Moving on, cultural diversity therefore could be pinpointed in the area of managing these people well with the help of a manager who not only takes care of them but also acts as a person who is professional and knows how to get work done from his specialists, technicians and other sub-ordinates present at various levels within the very company. This manager thus not only plans their work that they have to carry out within a specific period of time but also organizes their routines, looks after them both from the company and the human perspectives, and not to forget his integration skills which are deemed so very necessary for involving people and their commitment towards their assigned tasks and jobs over a period of time. Lastly, he also measures their performance that they have done over this time period. (Cappelli, 1999) This measurement tool goes against a number of managers in the work environment of present times as it is usually very difficult to get a hang of because employees feel that the managers were the one to guide them along and hence they should also be held accountable in cases of extreme failure where the burden only falls on the person who carried out a task or a job. This is pretty much true of the negative aspects related with managing people and treating them fairly. It makes all the more reason that the culturally diverse workforce issue gets its base from the fact that people work as a team rather than working alone yet they perform their own respective tasks and duties in their own capacities within the office environment for which there is no direct or indirect connection as concerns the groups and teams that they are working under from time to time. The manager thus chalks out a plan to review each and every sub-ordinate’s performance and then allot him the potential duties which may or may not be linked to their strengths over a given period of time. (Egan, 2001) Hence diversity certainly takes its roots from this scenario and employees feel somewhat at ease whilst carrying out their jobs and assigned tasks globally. The ramifications of the issue of diversifying work and making people accustomed to management tactics only helps the corporate ladder as much as the employees, specialists and top management themselves. Thus a clear understanding has to be the guiding force to tell one and all in this situation as to the rationale behind doing the same. The end result is achieving success for the company or the enterprise that they all strive to be a part of and not to forget their individual growth that will take them up the ladder of expansion and development over the years. (Reeves, 2000) However, on the flip side of the coin, falling short of this diversification within the organization can have poor employee morals as well as a work ethic that does not support progress within the company nor amongst the personnel present in different departments of the business and at the end of the day, everyone is on the losing end with no winners to take the center stage. Therefore, cultural diversity in work and its related fields is the order of the day and must be supported by managers, top management and people who are in a position to bring about a change in the hierarchy of the business enterprise and its related departments. A conflict within an organization can take place due to differing personalities of the employees or in their attitudes that lead in their linkage with each other. This could also happen due to their norms and behaviors which might not be liked by any one party (person) and thus lead to a conflict of thoughts, ideas, actions and eventual behaviors towards each other. There is a degree of power when we speak of the entrepreneur/owner/manager in terms of the organization over his subordinate or the employee who is working under him in a direct or an indirect capacity. (Duke, 2003) Different conflict handling styles include avoidance of the conflict in the first place which will ensure that the two persons within the organization set up remain at peace and understand each other’s personalities. The second one is that of accommodating where each of these persons would accommodate the personality traits of each other and thus listen to one another. This can lead to understanding which can be reached between the two of them. The third conflict handling style encompasses collaboration which asks them to shed their differences and work in unison with a common goal, preferably of the company, in mind. The fourth conflict handling mannerism is that of compromising where each of these can just forgive and forget and thus move on for the betterment of each other’s relationship amongst the set up of the organization. The last one is forcing which can make matters even worse since it could even be of physical and at times verbal nature. This is the least desired of the five conflict handling measures. (Cronshaw, 1999) The comparisons and contrasts of business leadership and management provide benefits as well as drawbacks to the realms of any organization and it is for the betterment of the organization itself if it comprehends how the two processes mesh along with each other and work hand in hand to produce results, both from the short term perspective as well as in the long term. Speaking from a rational standpoint, a more diverse workforce could only be encouraged when there are equal and fair laws enacted for all the employees and when no one is allowed to discriminate on the basis of any variable whatsoever. (Dipboye, 2005) This is a significant debate which is making the rounds of nearly each and every organization of the world in the current times since the subject is so magnanimous. As far as the aspect of recruitment and selection is concerned and whether or not the same benefits in one way or the other towards the diversity of the workplace is an interesting proposition to state in a mild way. The aspects of selection require stiff challenges on the part of the recruiters, the organization’s human resources department and top management since they need to make the right decision when it comes to employees coming from different professional backgrounds. (Boddy, 2005) There could be so many reasons behind a person’s leaving a job and coming to a new organization. He could state completely different reasons for doing the same but then again one cannot be sure as to what is right and what indeed is wrong when it comes to taking the final call of judgment. The reasons could be best ascertained by an able and competent human resources unit present within the organization so that it gives its very best for the positives that will eventually be gained by the organization itself. (Tomei, 2003) A more culturally diverse workforce could only be encouraged when there are efforts made by the organization to incorporate certain policies which are in line with the ethical and moral code of workers regimes. This means that the workers must be considered human beings first and then they are assigned work in a manner which is manageable for them realistically as well as theoretically. Just getting the work done out of them is an exercise in futility since it would not reap rich dividends at the very end and there would be problems for the organizations left, right and center. This could be made applicable if the human rights policies are in line with the procedures as laid down in the companies’ act. (Handy, 2005) The laws that permit the effective handling of employees and workers within United Kingdom are being followed to the end limits since the authorities at the helm of affairs know that it is best for both the organizations as well as the employees to make effective use of these laws and respective procedures as the end result is one that will benefit not only them but also the government and the related industries. (Kofman, 2001) Bibliography BODDY, D. (2005). Management – An Introduction, 3rd Ed. CAPPELLI, Peter. (1999). Employment Practices and Business Strategy. Oxford University Press COOPER, Cary L. (2004). Reinventing Human Resources Management: Challenges and New Directions. Routledge CRONSHAW, Steven F. (1999). Functional Job Analysis: A Foundation for Human Resources Management. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates DIPBOYE, Robert L. (2005). Discrimination at Work: The Psychological and Organizational Bases. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates DUKE, Shearlean. (2003). Managing Business Crises: From Anticipation to Implementation. Public Relations Quarterly, Vol. 48 EGAN, Mary Lou. (2001). Workforce Diversity Training: From Anti-Discrimination Compliance to Organizational Development. Human Resource Planning, Vol. 24 HANDY, C. (2005). Understanding Organizations, 4th Ed. KOFMAN, Eleonore. (2001). Human Geography of the UK: An Introduction. Routledge LEE, Monica. (2004). Human Resources, Care Giving, Career Progression, and Gender: A Gender Neutral Glass Ceiling. Routledge REEVES, Terrie. (2000). Leading Change by Managing Paradoxes. Journal of Leadership Studies, Vol. 7 SIMS, Ronald R. (2002). Organizational Success through Effective Human Resources Management. Quorum Books TOMEI, Manuela. (2003). Discrimination and Equality at Work: A Review of the Concepts. International Labour Review, Vol. 142 Word Count: 2,036 Read More