IS DIVERSITY HELPFUL OR HURTFUL?
As the method of globalization continues to extend, therefore will the requirement to form an additional various diverse society. In the workforce, a business owner might find it challenging to diversify his employees. A business owner will need to be very creative in his thinking to prevent diversity from having negative consequences.
The following are ways diversity can be hurtful in the workplace:
Increased Tension
People from different cultural or ethnic backgrounds can have very different views concerning lifestyle, religion and politics that can lead to tension and conflict when these concepts are introduced into a work environment. Even a predominately male work culture that attempts to diversify by hiring more women can experience an unwelcome change in the workplace dynamics, also potentially leading to tension.
Communication Problems
Different languages spoken by members of a diverse workforce could also create problems. Workers who are not fluent in the primary language spoken in the organization may be misunderstood. Business owners may need to provide additional language training so the workers can more easily assimilate into the company’s culture.
Learning Curve
Organizations that have difficulty adapting to a more diverse culture may require diversity training. For a business owner, the additional expenses associated with training can be costly, in terms of the expense of the training programs themselves and the lost productivity while workers are training. It can also result in a reduction in the quality of customer service, resulting in unhappy or even lost customers.
DIVERSITY PROPELS INNOVATION
Most people believe that innovation requires smarter people, better ideas. That...
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...optimistic mind about diversifying. But it mostly appeals to middle and upper management.
Conclusion Analysis
The book entitled Reinventing Diversity: Transforming Organizational Community to Strengthen People, Purpose and Performance has brought a different mindset. It has opened me up to gaining more ideas from different cultures and backgrounds. This allows you to bring more ideas to the table which brings a stronger foundation. The best think I liked about the book is the author held no tongue in when describing the problems faced with America today. The least thing I liked about the book was that I was only allowed to report on two chapters. The author could have given more statically evidence to back up his findings. The contributions are defiantly a bigger mindset when brainstorming the book allows you to think as a team vs. a single person.
Stoner, C., & Russell-Chapin, L (1997). Creating a culture of diversity management: moving from awareness to action. University of California. Retrieved April 8, 2005 from University of Phoenix, InfoTrac
Within an organization, diversity is considered a having a population of people that are of different races or cultures working collectively. From this collection of people, a variance of perspective is formed and talent is fostered in order to maximize performance. These great minds work
With the increase in globalization, interactions and communication among workplace employees requires diverse backgrounds, cultures and beliefs to coexist. Humans now work in an isolated workplace; we are a part of an economy with worldwide competition generating from all corners of the world. Diversity is needed within profit and nonprofit companies in order to be more effective; these companies must welcome change and adjustments. Diverse employees and environments will help companies to become more creative and successful. Workplace diversity has become an important issue for management nowadays in an attempt expands the workplace structure.
It helps to promote the organization which leads the company in the direction of becoming an international force to be reckoned with. When diversity is embraced in an organization, it grows the global portfolio and provides employers and employees with multiple options. It helps a person learn to be flexible and to overcome obstacles that get in their way. We all know that the world is diverse with many different cultures, genders, religions, and ethnicities. However, implementation of diversity is imperative within an organization because it allows access to a larger pool of complex ideas. As demographics shift globally, diversity is a necessity that organizations need to embrace in order to show their commitment to being open to change. Diversity in the workplace is important for the organization and the employee because it allows the organization to flourish through outreach and recruiting efforts.
Pollar, Odette & Gonzalez, Rafael. (2011). Dynamics of diversity: strategic programs for your organization. Boston, MA: Crisp Pub Inc.
Cultural diversity can bring tangible benefits to an organization who is ready to foster, maintained, and value the difference in cultures. The marketplace is becoming more competitive, many business executives are expanding and developing new ideas, products and services beyond their usual culture or environment. A diverse workforce will help to understand the need and interest of another culture within and outside of the region. Thereby helping the company to expand globally, acquire more business opportunities, provide opportunities to create an excellent, diverse customer base and remain compe...
The world is a forever changing climate of people. This requires companies to change with the times. The introduction of different cultures, beliefs, and diverse backgrounds requires a new approach for managing a larger arrange of people. People no longer work in a time of intolerance. Diversity is about the many things that make us individuals and also the similarities that bring us together. Companies should diversify the organizations because it is shown that diversification will increase profits, build a more cohesive work environment, and show appreciation for foreign culture.
In summary, most workplaces are becoming increasingly diverse as people from different genders, races, cultures, ethnic origins, and lifestyles find themselves working together. The key to making diversity work is management. Knowing what they are and understanding what effects (positive or negative) they have on the organization is very important to the success of the company.
One way in which workplace diversity translates into improved performance is the increased likelihood of a worker to obtain the necessary information for handling issues and solving workplace problems. When people are disintegrated on the basis of their cultures, race or ethnicity, it becomes a bit difficult to remove the barriers and obtain the information or instruction needed to complete a task. Also, integration of diversified teams creates a pool of innovative workers with unique ideas and solutions, which might lack if each team worked alone in a non-diverse set up, which excludes workers with the right skills, expertise, experience and in-depth knowledge of client requirements, needs and tastes (Fang, 2009). Heterogeneity in a workforce
Ultimately, to create a culture of tolerance that helps attract and retain employees, top executives need to set a tone that accommodates diversity practices. There is no point in diversity programs if management does not get it. And, there is no point in addressing age, and religion. The demographic diversification of the American workforce is well underway and will become only more challenging in the future.
Barak, M. E. (2005). Managing diversity: toward a globally inclusive workplace. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage Publications.
Additionally the text book Understanding and Managing Diversity also highlighted that we have to consider the multiple dimensions of diversity:
Diversity is a highly important issue in today’s business, especially in a globalized company. Workplace diversity helps to get better solutions to business problems (Schawbel, 2012). When you have a group of individ...
According to Kinicki, diversity represents the multitude of individual’s differences and similarities that exist among people. When developing a cultural diversity training program, one has to manage diversity with a new approach of inclusion and recognition. Managing diversity enables people to perform up to their maximum potential (Kinicki p. 111). As we analyze diversity, we will evaluate some common barriers and challenges in managing diversity. In developing a diversity program, we will analyze methods and procedures that will be apart of the program. Kinicki (p.*) says an important first step in overcoming these obstacles is for leaders to convey to their employees why the organization values diversity.
Diversity issues will gain importance because of the effective interactions and communications between the people. Diversity is the reality of the business world. It can have negative and positive impact on the employee’s behaviour towards work and work results. This also depends on how the employees have understood it and grasps it.