Workplace Diversity and High-Performance Corporate Culture - Essay Example

Workplace Diversity and High-Performance Corporate Culture By + Workplace Diversity and Corporate Culture Introduction Workplace diversity and corporate culture tend to have a conflicting relationship that may have adverse effects on corporate success. However, managers can combine the benefits of the two concepts in various ways to create and sustain an attractive organizational performance. This paper will analyze the meaning of diversity and corporate culture in the organization, how an organization can meet the needs of its diverse workforce while concurrently shaping its corporate culture with shared values for organizational success. Definitions Workplace diversity Workplace diversity refers to the creation of a workplace that has a non-uniform workforce composed of people from different backgrounds and of different characteristics into an organization’s workforce. Diversity may be changeable (place of residence, income, values, social status) or unchangeable (gender, physical challenges/abilities, ethnicity, race). Many organizations value the diversity of the workforce in offering opportunities for exploring unique abilities, the appreciation of talent, and building an impressive corporate image. According to Price Waterhouse Coopers, 82% of chief executives worldwide value diversity (The Economic Times, 2014). Corporate culture Corporate culture refers to the shared values and norms of the organization that guide the practices of the employees and owners. Corporate culture is essential in dictating the way the organization does its business. Balancing diversity and corporate culture Training managers on managing diversity Training of the workforce needs to balance between diversity and instilling shared values. The introduction of diversity in the organization usually experiences some shortcomings. There may be resistance towards different people and ignorance on the needs of various categories of people. The management needs to develop training programs for employees and managers to sensitize them on diversity issues (Idowu, 2012). These trainings will enable the managers to understand the unique needs of different employees and treat them fairly. For example, an organization can develop programs and seminars to create awareness and demystify the myths about different backgrounds of people (Staffing, 2014). Fair and equal treatment of individual groups in the workforce is key in ensuring that all employees receive an equal opportunity to perform well in their jobs. An organization can improve its performance by creating a culture of equality for all its employees. The organization’s employees will strive to work hard because of a sense of motivation that comes with appropriate treatment by the supervisors and the employer. The proper management of diversity results in cost savings from employee turnovers. For example, Ortho Pharmaceuticals estimated its savings to be $500,000 from reduced turnover for ethnical minorities and women (Cox & Blake, 1991). Develop culture coherence and understanding An understanding between various cultures is of significance in creating shared values for organizational success. There is a need to develop cultural coherence and competencies among the employees within the organization. An organization should encourage its employees to have an understanding of the various cultural norms within and surrounding the organization, cross-cultural dynamics, and religion/language of other people (Australian Government, 2014). Some organizations make it a requirement for potential employees to demonstrate an understanding of at least two languages. These efforts of developing a culture of understanding and sharing values are beneficial to all employees especially to those who appear unique. All employees develop a sense of value in themselves as they have people who understand them and can easily relate with their circumstances. The corporate culture of understanding helps employees to develop innovative working patterns and relationships that are adaptable to each other’s preference (Radhakrishnan, 2012). These innovative working relationships that base on mutual understanding bring about better performance of the employees since every employee works in a way that he/she enjoys and is highly productive. The lack of workplace satisfaction is a major contributor to turnovers for minorities. For the United States, Corning Glass indicated that the turn over for female workers was twice that of males, and the turnover for blacks was 2.5 times that of the Whites from1980-1987 (Cox & Blake, 1991). Conflict resolution and honest feedback The availability of conflict resolution measures and the use of sincere feedback are essential in bringing together a diverse workforce that shares the values of the organization. In many cases of diversity, there is a high chance of conflicts, tense situations, and lack of knowledge that comes with a multiplicity of cultures at the workplace. The diverse workforce requires the assurance that its individual needs are within the protection of the organization (Idowu, 2012). The organization needs to provide conflict resolution mechanisms that handle diversity-related issues. However, the organization should point out the mistakes in a culture that wants to infiltrate its harmful behavior to the organization. For instance, the organization needs to correct individuals that embrace corrupt practices. This bold step of pointing out injustices within its diverse workforce is essential for shaping a corporate culture that does not allow acts that have adverse effects on the organizations success. The culture of pointing out wrongs helps the organization to build a sense of ethics among employees in the way they work. Employees are likely to work ethically since they will fear assuming the identity of being unethical persons. The overall effect is that the business of the organization will gain a good reputation for ethical considerations and increase its chances for long-term achievements in the industry. Promote the value of continuous learning The organization needs to promote continuous learning and improvement to overcome diversity challenges in unifying the human resource. The variety of needs that a diverse workforce presents requires time and input in terms of effort in order to understand and provide solutions. These requirements call for the recognition of the privileges, biases, and unique cultural preferences. The collection of feedback from a variety of persons provides insight on the different perspectives of the needs of the employees (Staffing, 2014). The organization needs to create a shared culture of continuous learning among its employees. Just as the organization shows commitment to the continuous improvement in addressing diversity issues, it should require its employees to express the willingness to learn too. Employees need to be ready to learn each other’s cultures as well as how to improve their work. Some employees may perform poorly on the pretext of cultural barriers but when an organization integrates a culture that requires continuous learning, these employees will improve their work performance and have no reason for poor performance. A culture that promotes continuous learning is important for the continued growth of the organization and facilitates its achievement of strategic goals. Encourage openness and sharing of ideas The organization can encourage democracy at the workplace as well as the sharing of ideas to overcome diversity barriers and create a sense of unity as a culture for success. A diverse workforce may find it difficult to share ideas for fear of intimidation, rejection, or conflict. The organization should create a sense of democracy in the organization where persons contribute their ideas freely out of goodwill. In the case where employees provide honest criticism of a project, the individual who owns the idea should not take it personally, but see the sense in what his/her colleague is trying to say. This culture of openness and freedom enables the organization to avoid mistakes and encourages innovation towards achieving the goals of the organization (Radhakrishnan, 2012). Prioritizing organizational goals over individual goals It is essential for the organization to place its goals first in some situations where the employees’ interests are detrimental to the success of the organization. In dealing with a diverse workforce, there is a likelihood of focusing on individuals rather than an organization. The satisfaction of the requirements of individual workers is essential for their motivation and productivity. Sometimes these needs may be contrary to the overall organizational goals. For example, employees may require competitive benefits as minimum efforts and qualifications in order to meet the requirements of their high social status. These demands may conflict with the organization’s goal of increasing productivity and maximizing profits. The organization needs to develop a culture of prioritizing the organization’s goals beyond personal interests. When employees prioritize the goals of the organization, they share a common goal and work towards the achievement of this goal as a group. This culture of putting the organization first keeps all employees in focus and in alignment to the achievement of the entitys goals (Ala.org, 2012). Modify diversity options If diversity is a serious threat to the organizational corporate culture of success, the organization can do away with diversity and retain its shared values. Sometimes the diversity of the workforce may seem to dilute the desirable corporate culture (Press, 2014). The management of an organization needs to regain the stewardship of the organization by seeking appropriate ways to ensure that its corporate culture maintains even if it means doing away with diversity in the workforce. In the dilution of the corporate culture, there is a significant adverse effect of diversity on the organization’s success and strategy. The organization can only save itself from this pitfall by doing away with a diverse workforce as a last resort. It is better for the organization to remain in operation but with a lower public image on inclusiveness than to force itself on gaining an attractive image of diversity and its business falls apart. Balance diversity and talent There is need for a balance between diversity and talent. The good image that diversity depicts to the organization encourages some organizations to prioritize diversity at the expense of talent. The organizations end up selecting diverse employees and leave out on talented candidates who would deliver better results (Press, 2014). This inadequacy of the hiring strategy negatively affects the organization’s performance and the productivity of the workforce due to the promotion of a culture of diversity. Human resource managers also face accusations for focusing too much on diversity such that diversity becomes a distinguishing factor at the workplace (Medland, 2014). Organizations need to ensure the integration of a culture of professionalism in their hiring process. However, the organization should consider diversity in cases where there are different applicants of equal qualifications (Conboye, 2014). Well-established corporate culture An organization needs an established corporate culture. A diverse workforce may take more time to understand each other and work together. An organization that lacks a corporate culture for success may take a longer time for its diverse workforce to adjust and learn. This long duration is because of a lack of direction and focus in the organization. Every person is trying to establish his/her culture in the organization and this result into conflicts and reduction in the performance of the organization. It is of great help for an organization to come up with a strong corporate culture that shapes the activities of both the new and current employees (Council Perspectives, 2008). The Gender Equality Report of 2013 in the United Kingdom emphasizes on the availability of gender diversity programs as well as a supportive corporate culture (Medland, 2014). The corporate culture acts as a guide for the new employees to join the mainstream organization and adapt to the corporate culture of the organization (Ala.org, 2012). With this culture in place, the organization will minimize the chances of divergence from its strategic goals. Summary The implications of diversity on the organization are clear and significant. For organizations to maintain their success and create shared values, they need to apply one or a combination of the following: to train their managers, create understanding, provide honest feedback, encourage continuous learning and sharing of ideas, prioritize its goals, do away with diversity, and establish its corporate culture. However, considering the elimination of diversity from the workplace should be the last resort (Press, 2014). Conclusion The handling of diversity issues in organizations needs careful attention. Certain essential values ought to define an organization’s inclusive culture. These values include integrity, leadership, collaboration, passion, accountability, quality, and diversity. These tenets work in tandem with each other to develop a work ambience that considers every individual’s effort irrespective of their religious or racial affiliation and promotes optimal output. A diverse team promotes ideas and talent within the organization. A business ought to be in a position to comprehend, embrace, and consequently operate within a multicultural environment, both at the work pace and within the marketplace; this modus operandi is essential to the organization’s sustainability. A diverse strategy ought to capture programs that seek to attract, develop, and retain diverse talent. By providing efficient systems that support groups hailing from different backgrounds and giving training opportunities to every associate, they are able to master apt skills ascribed to high performance and driven by the desire for optimal work output. Bibliography Ala.org, (2012). Diversity Standards: Cultural Competency for Academic Libraries (2012). [online] Available at: http://www.ala.org/acrl/standards/diversity [Accessed 17 Oct. 2014]. Australian Government, (2014). Australian Public Service Commission - ARCHIVE: Guidelines on workplace diversity. 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The Economic Times, (2014). Improving workforce diversity important for 90 per cent of Indian CEOs. [online] Available at: http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2014-10-21/news/55279555_1_indian-ceos-pwc-india-workforce [Accessed 23 Oct. 2014]. Read More