Opportunities and Challenges of Diversity Management in China, India and Germany - Case Study Example

Leadership in a Changing Context Name Course Institution Date Contents Contents 2 Executive summary 3 Introduction 4 Managing diversity 5 Opportunities and challenges 6 Opportunities of diversity management 7 Challenges 9 Opportunities and challenges of diversity management in China, India and Germany 11 Recommendations 12 Conclusion 14 References 15 Executive summary In recent years, globalisation has changed and affected the roles of firms. Enterprises must accustom their policies to global enterprise and also the global human resource management. There is an upcoming challenge which is imposed on the global managers and to global human resource managers: ways to make collaboration among employees who represent diverse social backgrounds. Another challenge is how to discover a typical personality in multicultural groups. The increase of the worldwide scope of human resource management in addition to globalization represents a major premise on the subject of the global harmonization of the HRM practices. Nevertheless, diversity is the key feature of global human resource management representation. The HR practices have been a victim of considerable changes in the last decade, which has been attributed to social, political, economic and cultural context globally. The human resource managers are involved in the procedure of detailing organizational policies and strategies. Globalization has helped in the creation of a political, economic, legislative and a social environment worldwide but regardless of all this, the cultural diversity amongst different countries means that the human resource practices are characterized by various elements Introduction The management of human resources in various economies, legal systems and cultures is faced with various challenges. One of the major hindrances to the human resource management is the cultural forces. Culture is made up of forces within the society which affect the actions, beliefs and values of different groups of individuals. Cultural differences surely subsist in the midst of states and also considerable cultural differences subsist within states. For example there are conflicts in the globe that are caused by ethnicity or religion, this shows the significance of culture on global corporate. Getting people who hail from diverse tribal and ethnic backgrounds working collectively as a unit is a challenge in different parts of the globe. Human resource management in organizations calls for understanding of the impact of both the external and internal surroundings of the organizations. The internal work culture characterizes the internal setting while the institutional or enterprise culture together with social cultural environment characterizes the external surroundings (Mor-Barak, 2005). The literature on cultural diversity management demonstrates that in the course of recent years social variables appear to be more of a predicament than preference in global organizations. These variables are regularly connected with clashes, false impressions and low execution in companies. Work groups which are diverse culturally have a larger amount of disagreements and less involvement and unification plus the failure to characterize normal objectives and goals. This expresses that there lacks an ideal approach to oversee workforce differences in associations. This paper will discuss how the human resource manages the challenges and benefits of multicultural diversity. Managing diversity Work place diversity means uniting individuals of distinctive ethnic foundations, age groups and religion into an organized and gainful unit. Progress in correspondence technology, for example, the phones and Internet; have turned the market a more worldwide idea. So as to continue to exist, an organization is required to have the capacity to oversee and use its assorted working environment successfully. Overseeing differing qualities in the work environment have to be a piece of the entire organization culture (Steers, Sánchez-Runde & Nardon, 2010). Managing diversity is a structure which gets rid of the disparities which are present in multicultural workgroup. It should be carried out in a way that will yield high level of productivity which will benefit both the employee and the organization. This simply means managing individuals in the interest of both the employer and the employee. Diversity management is a continuous process which makes use of the different capabilities and talents brought into the company, society or community by the different population (Mor-Barak, 2005). Due diversity management, a safe inclusive environment is created which helps individuals to do away with rejection, appreciate diversity while making the best out of it. Everybody benefits from Multiculturalism since diversity management is a process which is inclusive and nobody is left out (Narkhede, 2011). Previously, the melting pot strategy was used by the management to settle conflicts in the workforce. The presumption was that individuals who were diverse would in one way or another make it with the popular group. However, in the recent past it has come to be known that workers don’t put aside their beliefs, values, preferences, and lifestyle and so on when reporting on duty (Steers, Sánchez-Runde & Nardon, 2010). For that reason, it is imperative to value and appreciate such divergences through taking up management methods to diverse work styles and life on the different groups. The process of diversity management entails the creation of a culture which is supportive in which all the workers will be efficient. When such a culture is created, it is imperative for the organization top management to support strongly the work place diversity as an organization objective and also incorporate the diversity initiatives in the organizations strategies. Diversity management has come out due to the organizations need to appreciate the shifting workforce plus any other social demands that regularly arise (Shen, Chanda, D'Netto & Monga, 2009). Opportunities and challenges Human resource management is one of the major issue in business practice and international management in the recent past. The global human resource management strategies have been developed due to the increased importance of qualified employees in the global organizations. Initially, the global organizations implemented the standardization of the HRM which assumed coordinate practice and coherence model can lead to operational efficiency and effectiveness (Narkhede, 2011). Nevertheless, they encountered challenges following the global dimension turning out to be more popular due to the changes in operating structures and environment. Various individuals from different nations have diverse conceptions and cultures on organization behaviour. Complexity and diversity of the cross culture and cross nation may lead to conflict in strategies for global organizations when they executed global standardised HRM. In a move to overcome the challenges and cut cost, more global organizations started localizing employment in the host nations (Mor-Barak, 2005). Opportunities of diversity management The process of cultural diversity management in an organization can transform into a competitive advantage, when the organizations values diversity and includes it in to its strategies. When there is more diversity at the place of work among the workers, the more it becomes a valuable asset to the organization. There are six components, which can be used to bring good fortune to the organization via diversity management. They include cost, marketing, problem solving, creativity, organizational flexibility and resource acquisition (Kirton & Greene, 2010). A significant number of these variables are constantly tended to in other writing also, and will be clarified in the accompanying paragraphs (Hall, 2003). As per different research turnover rates, non-attendance and low employment fulfilment, each and every one of which are regularly associated with the absence of profession development prospects, are a lot advanced among female representatives and social minority bunches (Trompenaars & Hampden-Turner, 2004). Through emphasizing more into diversity management the organizations figure out how to attract and keep representatives from diverse foundations (Kirton & Greene, 2010). It also helps in attaining expense investment funds in turnover costs and diminished truancy. Overseeing diversity in a good manner and using distinctive abilities leads to higher, expanded performance and productivity, consequently expanding the expense reserve funds and enhancing intensity (Hall, 2003). Resource acquisition alludes to attracting and holding socially and demographically assorted workforce so as to improve intensity. Records have been made open of the associations, which have made it in these exertions and made a picture and notoriety of an appealing and great executive for enhanced workforce, thusly boosting their selecting (Narkhede, 2011). Due to the fact that culture is an important factor which affects the consumer’s behaviour of buying, it is imperative to employ individuals from diverse nations and social foundations (Trompenaars & Hampden-Turner, 2004). These employees have the competence and the knowhow to recognize the desires and need of various clients’ groupings. Furthermore, the multicultural groups have the likelihood to discover the type of advertising and marketing appeals to diverse clients in addition on how to build up suitable, attracting and better products (Steers, Sánchez-Runde & Nardon, 2010). Dealing with the social diversity during products and services marketing is significant in the globalized world. Analysts have inferred that socially more heterogeneous groups have the capacity to concoct non-customary and non-clear choices, as the minority viewpoints can revive and fortify inventive manners of thinking in the gathering (Narkhede, 2011). Subsequently the workforce diversity and their expert information improve and support inventive and disparate intuition and innovativeness. In this way influencing item and administrations improvement in a positive manner and expanding capacities to reaction client requests and desires. Besides, for instance different dialect abilities inside the organization can bring about a more customized client administration (Mor-Barak, 2005). As a result of different work societies, the process of decision making and problem solving is more efficient because there are different aspects and perspectives and also boasts a wealthy of experience. The experience helps in scrutinizing each and every dilemma present in the organisation (Hofstede, 2001). Nevertheless, so as to use this as a benefit, the members of the work force society have to appreciate each and everyone’s cultural background as well as managing the diversity. There are some common values that are shared by the work force group; this helps the group to be cohesive. Learning among the diverse cultures educates people to examine their culture decisively, control uncertainty as well as accepting that there is no single model of doing things (Shen, Chanda, D'Netto & Monga, 2009). The use of diversity management leads to the adaptability and flexibility of the company. Research has shown that the minorities within the society in additional to women have the tendency of having flexible cognitive frameworks (Steers, Sánchez-Runde & Nardon, 2010). The implication of this is that they can achieve their job tasks which are ambiguous and multilateral. The same abilities are evident in the bilingual individuals that represent mainly the minority societies. Due to integration of diversity management, methods and policies have been changed into a more tolerable and flexible manner, most probably the organization won’t be hesitant to other forms of changes (Noor, Khalid & Rashid, 2013). Challenges There are challenges for managers in human resource are the diversity management particularly to managing varying prospects in the place of work. Ananthram & Chan, (2013) in their globe study, societies with higher levels of gender equality tend to advocate for equal employment opportunities in addition to affirmative action as compared to the societies with low levels of gender equality (Hofstede, 2001).. In relation to this, equal employment prospects, which form part of organization laws in some countries, may prove to be hard to implement in other nations. Increased cultural differences also contribute to difficulties and conflicts in cross cultural communication (Ananthram & Chan, 2013). Disparities in prospects and communication techniques between immigrants and the indigenous employees plus managers may also bring conflicts at the workplace (Forstenlechner, 2010). Challenges in communication can be aggravated by the manner in which people interact. Distinct characteristics are taken to be obvious for people emanating from low context society; for instance, the use of reasonable, action-oriented and unequivocal communication approach. On the contrary, individuals from high context society call attention to non-linear, process oriented and non verbal style of communication (Ananthram & Chan, 2013). Effective communication facilitation of global teams is challenge under diversity management. With the emergence of technology in communication, it is achievable to organize meetings and impart information worldwide any time (Kapoor, 2011). Nevertheless, different mind-sets concerning suitable time of work may bring about challenges in logistics. It is believed that the use of virtual globe teams is an effective mode of communication; this can be hindered by challenges brought about by cross cultural differences (Graf, Koeszegi, & Pesendorfer, 2010). For example, absence of physical contact possibly will influence building of trust, essential in particular societies to assist decision making. Focusing on global virtual teams in terms of cultural dimensions, different team members differ in perception and expectations from culture to culture (Steers, Sánchez-Runde & Nardon, 2010). For example, members of American culture who are high in individualism do not think it necessary to include all team members as compared to members from the Dutch society who value collectivism so much. Besides, message misunderstanding may arise due to absence of visibility of non-verbal signal that are significant in high context cultures. Therefore, there is a necessity for HR managers to pay attention on the welfare of the expatriate in a move to capitalize the accomplishment of global assignment (Ananthram & Chan, 2013). Another challenge that HR managers face is the political factor, these are the effects caused by the government policy. Although the government policy is sorted out through legislation, it includes all the legal element in this analysis which includes taxation policy, government regulation and government stability ((Hofstede, 2001). Opportunities and challenges of diversity management in China, India and Germany Considering the corporate governance in the different countries and how they shape the human resource management. Labour unions in Germany have customarily held main corporate positions. Founding families in India have the main influence in corporate boards, whilst the corporate boards in China are dominated by communist party officers. Diverse nations have come up with diverse dialects, foods and home customs in addition to also embracing their own structures of corporate governance (Steers, Sánchez-Runde & Nardon, 2010). As globalization continues to take place, organizations continue to be threatened by regulators on the basis of national and local corporate boards. Case in point, India has proceeded to enhance the sovereignty of the board members through a new regulation that requires that 50 percent of their board members be independent. The multifaceted blend of political, legal, economic and historical factors determines each country’s corporate setting. Therefore the board structure and corporate governance continues to vary globally and is a challenge to many organizations (Steers, Sánchez-Runde & Nardon, 2010). In Germany, India and China each and every individual has a chance of employment in any organization regardless of religion, age, ethnic background, sex and disability. For example the car manufacturer Ford has employed individuals from more than fifty five different countries; this has lead to provision of creative solutions to their problems as well as production of quality products. The ford management believes in diversity which has increased the customer base and used as a marketing tool by the organization (Steers, Sánchez-Runde & Nardon, 2010). Each organization and each nation have different recruitment and selection policies. Starting up business locales in China, India and Germany as well as getting the right individuals to deal with the operations and capacities could be a critical test particularly in these new countries surroundings. Due to the fact that the organization is new and strange to the accessibility of the human resources, labor laws, the nature of countries labor sector and so forth (Mor-Barak, 2005). The assignment of discovering individuals skilled enough to perform well on their occupation while helping the worldwide aggressiveness of the international organization could prove to be a colossal undertaking (Pudelko & Harzing, 2007). This issue could be intensified by the way that distinctive cultures with their principal suspicions stretch on diverse values and practices that show themselves in the manner in which associations are controlled and managed (Noor, Khalid & Rashid, 2013). Recommendations Diversity in the organizations can be managed through the following steps. Embrace diversity: the management should value diversity successfully which begins with embracing the ideology of multiculturalism. The value of diversity should be accepted not because it is supposed to be but for its own sake. Recognition of diversity should be replicated in words and actions (Hall, 2003). Recruit broadly: if a vacancy presents itself within the organization, the human resource management should strive to get an application pool which is diverse. Reliance on referrals made by the present employees should be avoided; this is because there is a tendency to get applicants who possess the same qualities as the present employees (Noor, Khalid & Rashid, 2013). The only exception in which referrals should be accepted is when the entire work force is well diversified. The selection should also be conducted fairly ensuring there is no discrimination whatsoever. Training and orientation should be provided to ensure that the translation from a stranger to an insider is made especially for non traditional workers (Hofstede, 2001). Sensitization: all employees within the organisation should be encouraged to embrace diversity. Diversity training among the employees can move along way in helping them to appreciate the significance in diversity. The value of diversity can be appreciated through recognition that diverse groups enjoy diverse values and needs (Steers, Sánchez-Runde & Nardon, 2010). The organization should be flexible to accommodate the requests of all employees. The managers must be sensitive about the employee’s values, culture and background. For example, the needs of a woman who has two kids to support are different from those of a single young employee or an old worker who is supplementing his or her retirement savings. The manager should always try to motivate individually (Shen, Chanda, D'Netto & Monga, 2009). Reinforce workers differences: the human resource manager should encourage his workers to value, accept and support diverse views. The organization should come up with ceremonies and traditions that will promote diversity. Diversity can be appreciated through emphasizing on its positive aspects. Management should also be ready to deal with diversity challenges like miscommunication, differences in attitudes, mistrust, stress and non cohesiveness. All employees across all levels in the organisation should be involved in program designing initiatives. This will get the employees conversing about the program while at the same time promoting the initiative (Steers, Sánchez-Runde & Nardon, 2010). Evade stereotypes: these are the notions which are pre convinced and the individual holds for a specific individual. These are the beliefs which all individuals in a particular group share related personality and have a possibility to conduct themselves in a similar manner. Stereotypes form groups and later fit people into those groups. Keeping the stereotypes is harmful to the organization for various reasons (Trompenaars & Hampden-Turner, 2004).. An individual may be misconstrued right on time in an association. Commitments may be restricted and particular qualities or abilities may be disregarded in light of the fact that they don't appear noticeable in the given Stereotypes classification. Then again, poor execution can be neglected in an employee on the grounds that they have a place with a characteristically attractive gathering (Noor, Khalid & Rashid, 2013). By permitting Stereotypes to supervise individuals we make common divisions inside the association. Administrators can battle this by blending groups, making more diminutive blended groups for subtasks, observing all group members‟ advancement and permitting people to volunteer for parts as opposed to being thrown into their default part as characterized by their Stereotypes class (Hall, 2003). Conclusion In conclusion, there is a lot of diversity inside a given society and in addition crosswise over national societies. Multiculturalism of companies has expanded uniquely in the previous three decades. Accordingly, associations are confronting a developing need to manage the outcomes of these expanded social differing qualities for different HRM-related methodologies and practices. This paper has attempted to depict a few measurements along which societies vary and effect of multiculturalism on human resource management associated practices and techniques. Amongst the diverse HRM methodology, negotiations and training are discovered to be the most affected because of multiculturalism. A lot of the insight into HRM processes in companies is based upon investigation performed on single societies or concerning diversity in a specific. More research is needed to come up with good understanding of the impacts of Multiculturalism on practices and processes of HRM (Trompenaars & Hampden-Turner, 2004). References Ananthram, S. & Chan, C. (2013). 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