Diversity and Inclusion - Essay Example

Diversity and Inclusion Lecturer: Diversity and Inclusion Introduction Cultural diversity refers to the different societies or culture in a particular region or it is the multiculturalism, which have diversified across the globe. Diversity has evolved over time due to work changes for the past decades and increased globalization, which is aided by rapid technology advancement. The swift globalization demands more interaction among communities from wide-ranging cultural backgrounds more than before. The society or diverse cultures no longer work in limited marketplace but they are now part of the global economy with increased competition from every region. Diversity has created obvious cultural differences, which exist among diverse communities such as language, dressing styles and traditional values. There also exist different discrepancies on the way communities classify themselves in a common conception of ethics in order to interact effectively with their surroundings. Cultural diversity offers the society the context within which the society or people in organizations interact with each other and the environment surrounding them. Dimensions of Cultural Diversity Understanding the dimensions of cultural diversity is vital because diverse societies where people live is a composite of diverse cultures, values and beliefs, as well as, different ways of interacting with each other. It is also crucial because this will help an individual to develop instructional competencies, which will connect diverse groups or individuals. Therefore, the dimensions of diversity are categorized into varied dimensions including primary and secondary dimensions (Andresen, 2007). The primary dimensions are fixed and they are relevant to the identity of an individual such as age, gender, mental ability, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation among others (Schaefer, 2011). However, the secondary dimensions are more fluid and less central to the social identity of an individual such as family or parental status, income or wage, religion, occupation experience, military, education, first language and geographic location (Kottak and Kozaitis, 2003). Some dimensions of diversity are racial groups and this involves a group, which is socially set apart by obvious physical differences (Kottak and Kozaitis, 2003). Another dimension is ethnic group, which refers to the group that is socially set apart by cultural differences or cultural patterns, as well as, nationality (Schaefer, 2011). Gender is also dimension, which refers to a socially created arrangement of community with male characteristics or female qualities. Harvey and Allard (2009) argue that gender characteristics is a dimension, which can change overtime and it differs among different cultures. The terms employed when describing gender includes man, woman, transgender and many others. The minority cultural group share characteristics of experiencing varied aspect such as unequal team, intermarriages and sharing similarities. Therefore, similarities and differences should be dealt with accordingly; thus it is vital to focus on multiple minority groups when dealing with varied dimensions. Things that Members of the Social Circle Have in Common Varied group in the social circle have diverse aspects or similar things which they share in common. Therefore, it is vital to take into consideration varied similarities and difference of cultural diversity existing in diverse groups of people. For instance, cultural competency is common in the American society and some members in the society share some widespread things in common. Cultural competency includes interpersonal skills, which allow an individual to increase the level of understanding, responsiveness, sensitivity and appreciation to cultural differences (Kottak and Kozaitis, 2003). The cultural competency vary from one society to another but some common aspects can be shared with time due to ongoing process through inclusion or trust building. For instance, immigrants such as the Latinos living in America share common things with diverse culturally groups such as English, which is the second language. Some cultural aspects are learnt through interaction and assimilation process with different cultures. Although there are different ethnic groups in the society, sharing of cultural experiences allow ethnic groups to re-articulate, redefine possibilities and new aspects. Difference between Diversity and Inclusion Diversity is defined as the range of differences, which exists among cultural groups or diverse people in the society. Diversity is a social policy that encourages tolerance of people of diverse backgrounds; thus diversity comprises a wide range of groups of different people with dissimilar experiences (Andresen, 2007). These differences many include color, gender, race, age, sex orientation among others; thus diversity attempts to address the way these different groups of people work or function in the social structure. On the other hand, inclusion is the value or practice of ensuring that the society or people feel they belong to a certain group or organisation. Inclusion is vital because it encourages people in the society to strive to include everyone in significant skills; thus it makes all members feel appreciated and valued, not only for their unique qualities but also for the capabilities. Kottak and Kozaitis (2003) argue that an inclusive environment is where every individual have unique abilities and perspectives vital for contributing to the overall success of the organisation. However, the major difference between diversity and inclusion is that diversity is the old baseline whereas inclusion is the new baseline. The new baseline for inclusive policies and practices address varied issues relating to aspects such as sexual orientation, gender, race, organizational hierarchy among others. Diversity is not always obvious to the casual spectator and building diversity requires one to learn diverse characteristics, which leads to the interpretations of diversity. Importance of Workplace Diversity Training Diversity training is significant because it can help an individual to understand other people’s cultural behaviors, beliefs, values and their feeling, which should be valued in the workplace. Diversity is valuable to both company manager and associates; thus respecting and valuing the differences for each individual can contribute to increased productivity. Therefore, diversity can reduce lawsuits and arguments marketing opportunities, as well as, build business image (Kottak and Kozaitis, 2003). Human resource managers should be concerned with the workplace diversity because of increased globalization that has contributed to increase cultural diversity. Therefore, workplace diversity training is vital because it will promote better interaction where workers communicate effectively, listen, share ideas and work together as a team in a multicultural environment. Schaefer (2011) argues that diversity differ from one another in varied ways; thus providing workplace diversity training is crucial. In other words, there are varied dimensions of diversity such as gender, race, and ethnicity among others that may create impact on the opportunities of employees. Therefore, providing workplace diversity training will enable employees to manage and avoid consequences that may arise from both primary and secondary dimensions of diversity. It is through diversity training that managers will create significant changes and manage diverse work team effectively; thereby, creating high value in the working environment. Andresen (2007) argues that the role of diversity and inclusion learning is vital because it builds up strategically relevant knowledge vital for problem solving. Managing diversity requires effective training programs as this will enable employees to simply acknowledge cultural differences in the workplace. This will contribute to better productivity because culture diversity may impact effective workforce performance in case it is not well managed or addressed in an organization. Experience with Workplace Culture Workplace could be more inclusive in most cases and this is because managers are nowadays finding means of making workplace a better place. Therefore, from my work experience where I worked as an office assistant in one of the non-governmental organisations, I can conclude that the organization was inclusive. This is because the manager in the workplace ensured that the environment in which all employees from diverse culture worked were all supported in order to perform their tasks to the highest level. Moreover, everyone in the organisation demonstrated inclusive communicating and inclusive behaviors such as greeting others genuinely, understanding differences, sharing information and listening to each other‘s ideas significantly. This is vital because it will create significant working environment where there is improved and high productivity. Another stage is change mobilization efforts and this was one of the aspects that took place in the organisation where I was working. The manager made significant efforts of mobilizing human resources in order to create significant change in the organization. Making change and sustaining the new changes are also other significant phases for an inclusive environment. In most cases, organisation attempts to employ varied strategies vital for making changes a daily activity with an aim of sustaining business activities in the global competitive market. Conclusion In conclusion, cultural diversity offers the society the context within which the society or people in organizations interact with each other and the environment surrounding them. Diversity has been aided by rapid technological advancement; thus it has become the main concerning area of study in varied study fields. Therefore, the study indicates that understanding the dimensions of cultural diversity is vital because diverse societies have different cultural values and beliefs, as well as, different ways of interacting with each other. The study indicates that the major difference between diversity and inclusion is that diversity is the old baseline whereas inclusion is the new baseline. Therefore, workplace diversity training is vital because it can reduce lawsuits, promote interaction and enable managers to manage work diversity; thus contributing to increase work performance. References Andresen, M. (November 13, 2007). Diversity learning, knowledge diversity and inclusion: Theory and practice as exemplified by corporate universities. Equal Opportunities International, 26(8), p. 743-760. Harvey, C. P., & Allard, M. J. (2009). Understanding and managing diversity: Readings, cases, and exercises, 4th Edition. Upper Saddle River, N.J: Pearson Prentice Hall. Kottak, C. P., & Kozaitis, K. A. (2003). On being different: Diversity and multiculturalism in the North American mainstream, 2nd Edition. Boston: McGraw-Hill. Schaefer, R. T. (2011). Racial and Ethnic Groups, 12th Edition. Upper Saddle River: Pearson Education. 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