The modern corporate world is increasingly pushing for the fair representation in workplaces. According to Banks (2015), the aspect of diversity has been viewed as multipronged with gender and cultural aspects of diversity being continuously emphasized. The increasingly dynamic corporate environment has seen business owners and leaders bringing on board diversity strategies and policies in their organizations. Research by Banks (2015) reveals that such policies and strategies are aimed at creating an appeal to clients, suppliers, and employees. Johnson and Johnson has been lauded as among the top corporate organizations globally with the healthcare giant continuously understanding the potential created by having diverse minds working together. Diversity assumes numerous aspects ranging from gender, race, age, and cultural diversity. The paper will put more emphasis at cultural diversity at Johnson and Johnson.
Importance of cultural diversity
Adopting homogeneity of workforce downplays the gains that would be achieved by having heterogeneous workforce. Johnson and Johnson have overtime enjoyed the numerous benefits of having a culturally diversified working environment. Continuous studies have hinted at companies achieving higher returns greater than industry medians with fifteen percent of culturally diverse organizations registering higher returns ( Homan, Buengeler, Eckhoff, van Ginkel & Voelpel, 2015). Additionally, studies in the United Kingdom showed that for every ten percent positive change in cultural diversity, earnings before taxes and interests increased by over three percent revealing the significance of a culturally diversified workforce.
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Moreover, Homan (2015) indicates that diversified workforce is integral in bringing varied technical expertise that works a long way in creating a competitive advantage for corporate organizations. A culturally inclusive workplace provides a stage upon which multiple voices and opinions are heard, valued and considered. Given that individual employees are listened to and their opinions valued in such organizations decision making becomes easier since there is a pool of knowledge coupled with options to impact the decisions. In full realization of the pivotal role that diversity plays in an organization, Johnson and Johnson has fully embraced diversity to enjoy the ensuing benefits.
Embracing cultural diversity has made Johnson and Johnson to stand out among their peers. Research by Banks (2015) has shown that diversity consistently improves reputation of an organization among stakeholders both directly as well as indirectly. As such Johnson and Johnson have consistently secured top positions in diversity and inclusion indices. In 2017, the healthcare giant topped the ‘Thomson Reuters Diversity and Inclusion Index’ in addition to joining the ‘2017 Diversity Inc Top 50 Companies for Diversity’ ( Reynolds, 2016) . Stakeholders and shareholders as well as customers are becoming more attracted to cultural diversity friendly organizations. Moreover, a customer base is broadened given that varying individuals within an organization have different market insights, viewpoints, and ideas. Incorporating such individuals within an organization is integral in building a customer base.
Cultural diversity among organizations has been shown by studies to be beneficial in providing a platform upon which such organizations can venture into new markets (Banks, 2015) . Johnson and Johnson have reaped the benefits of cultural diversity by being able to start operations in other culturally different markets. Johnson and Johnson have successfully been able to tap new talent using their cultural diversity programs. Numerous Glassdoor surveys point out that two thirds of job seekers value cultural diversity and use it to evaluate job opportunities and companies ( Reynolds, 2016) . Therefore, organizations such as Johnson and Johnson that embraces inclusive and multicultural working environments make such organizations stand out to potential employees with the needed technical expertise as well as knowledge. Enhancing cultural diversity significantly reduces the costs that are connected to employee turnover.
Diversity programs
Johnson and Johnson have stood out as a global leader in promoting cultural diversity at the workplaces. Numerous diversity programs have been adapted and integrated within the Johnson and Johnson organizational structure. One of the most notable diversity programs that the healthcare giant has adopted is the “Scientist Mentoring and Diversity Program” (“ What Makes Johnson & Johnson a Global Leader in Diversity & Inclusion?”, 2018) . The program has mainly focuses on consumer healthcare workforce, medical technology, and biotechnology. Johnson and Johnson have increasingly encouraged graduates and researchers to engage with the healthcare providers in the mentoring program to enhance diversity within the healthcare industry. The mentoring program is mainly aimed at attracting individuals from ethnic and racial groups to work with the healthcare giant to enhance diversity within the organization and encourage competitiveness. The minority groups who are underrepresented in the medical field and research have continuously found a home in the organization’s diversity program enhancing the depth of its human resources.
Additionally, Johnson and Johnson have made considerable investment in the “WiSTEM 2 D Scholars Program”. The program aims at encouraging women of diverse cultural background to engage in pivotal areas in design, manufacturing, technology, and math in addition to engineering (“ What Makes Johnson & Johnson a Global Leader in Diversity & Inclusion?,” 2018) . The areas have been identified as potential areas of breakthroughs which will have considerable significance to the organization’s future. Investing in such programs that offer mentorship and scholarships to embrace diversity can be viewed as an integral step taken by Johnson and Johnson in the organization’s efforts to continue excelling in diversity. As such the organization is able to attract top notch talent and retain such talent creating a competitive edge within the healthcare industry. Additionally, the programs are placing the organization in a better industrial position to build a broad customer base, attract more investors as well as making other stakeholders loyal to the organization.
Limitations to the programs
Programs that advance cultural diversity within organizations are faced by a range of challenges that in some cases make them difficult to implement ( Banks, 2015) . First, it is worth noting that there are challenges in navigating visa requirements. In the wake of heightened politically tense working environments, Johnson and Johnson have been faced with difficulties in helping their diverse participants in their mentoring programs acquired valid working visas. Moreover, emerging employment laws in some of the economies that the organization works in has posed a challenge in creating a full integration of diversity within the organization.
It can be argued that language as a barrier to cultural diversity is a considerable limitation to promoting diversity within organizations ( Homan, 2015) . There emerges a difficulty integrating multiracial teams given that there still exist negative cultural stereotypes and prejudice among team members making such teams not give the expected outcomes. In addition, there are possibilities of misinterpreting professional communication while in some instances it may prove challenging creating an understanding across cultures and languages (Schnurr, & Zayts, 2017) . Communication misinterpretation can prove damaging to organizations given that undertaking procedures within Johnson and Johnson healthcare facilities is determined by how effective communication between team members is. It is worth noting that cross-cultural communication is more than spoken word. Continuous studies have shown that non-verbal communication is an integral part of communication whose part in professional communication cannot be downplayed. Moreover, it is challenging to comprehend the various accents that individuals may use despite all of them speaking English.
Improving diversity programs
Numerous steps can be taken by Johnson and Johnson to improve their diversity programs. One of the significant improvements that the healthcare giant can adopt is providing training on unconscious bias to its employees. As Schnurr and Zayts (2017) notes , negative stereotypes and prejudices exist among different cultures. As such Johnson and Johnson should invest in creating awareness as well as training employees on unconscious bias to ensure that cultural bias is eliminated within the organizational structure. To enhance this training, need arises for the organization to research as well as make publications in unconscious bias ( Banks, 2015) . Working to eliminate unconscious bias within Johnson and Johnson will place the organization in a better position as an industrial leader.
Moreover, the organization should create a Diversity Core program. Such a program would be aimed at allowing more employees within the organization to participate in diversity programs. Given that Johnson and Johnson have invested heavily in offering scholarships and mentoring programs, they should make an investment in research to evaluate the impact that such programs have on their organization while evaluating the underlying factors that may be hindering the organization to achieve its diversity goals.
References
Banks, J. A. (2015). Cultural diversity and education . Routledge.
Homan, A. C., Buengeler, C., Eckhoff, R. A., van Ginkel, W. P., & Voelpel, S. C. (2015). The interplay of diversity training and diversity beliefs on team creativity in nationality diverse teams. Journal of Applied Psychology , 100 (5), 1456.
Katie Reynolds. (2016). 13 benefits and challenges of cultural diversity in the workplace. Hult International Business School .
Schnurr, S., & Zayts, O. (2017). Language and Culture at Work . Florence: Taylor and Francis.
What Makes Johnson & Johnson a Global Leader in Diversity & Inclusion? (2018, March 2). Retrieved from http://www.careers.jnj.com/careers/what-makes-johnson-johnson-a-global-leader-in-diversity-inclusion
