Recent developments in the corporate world have led to an increase in diversity in organizations as people from distinct cultural backgrounds are brought together. Consequently, managers have been compelled to take a keen interest in controlling the diversity within a workplace which could be based on gender, age, origin, education, culture, and religion among others. Efficient management of diversity enables the management to mitigate risks involved and increase their profitability.
Diverse Workforce and Future Change
The concept of diversity has permeated the business world leading to numerous organizations integrating it within its operations. The evolution in the workplace can be attributed not only to the technological developments but also the general perception of the society. Racial diversity in work environments promotes the exchange of cultural and social ideas which when positively implemented may be used to help attain the projected objectives of the organization (Patrick & Kumar, 2012). However, the lingering sense of racism has curtailed any progress in various firms. Although numerous employers find the issue of age diversity debatable especially when employing the aged, it is recommended for an organization to employ an age-diverse workforce. Shaban (2016) demonstrates that millennials are particularly a unique group to work with due to their vast knowledge and dependence on technology. A majority of employers either fail or procrastinate the inclusion of millennials in the organization despite the current zeitgeist presented by the group.
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Women and Persons of Color
Gender-based diversity is equally monumental to the unbeaten run of a business. Both men and women have been scrambling for recognition and representation in various capacities within the society. Patrick & Kumar (2012) elaborate that “As significant differences were found among gender for strategies to increase awareness about workplace diversity, organizations ought to implement different strategies for male and female employees to increase awareness about workplace diversity including the legislative arm of government.” Consequently, there have been many issues that have risen from the subject of gender disparity in the workplace such as the gender pay gap. The difference in remuneration packages between women and men in the corporate world has led to the unending debate of gender prejudice as women are considered to be paid less compared to their counterparts (Sharma, 2016). Hence, for an organization to be fully diversified, the management and ownership should equally represent members of both genders. The company will be able to portray an attractive façade to the investors thus breaking the glass ceiling.
Government Role
The government is involved in ensuring that society welcomes diversity or race, culture, gender, age, and even religion in the workplace. The government through its legislative representation has strived to maintain equality in the various houses. As a result, the government has mandated companies to offer equal employment opportunities through policies (Shaban, 2016). Section three of the United States Constitution which is Promoting Compliance with Existing Law Requiring Federal Workplaces to be Free of Discrimination Based on Non-Merit Factors states that the office of personnel will issue regulations to all members of an organization against prejudice of any form. Dixit & Bajpai (2015) elaborates that companies are required to evaluate employees solely on job performance basis and not other factors such as gender, age, or religion. Additionally, the government has placed stringent and punitive measures against perpetrators of any form of sexual harassment at the workplace.
Diversity as Competitive Advantage
Diversity offers a pool of new innovative ideas, skilled workforce, vast positive experiences, and connections across the highly competitive market. Conclusively, diversity presents an opportunity for the organization to increase its profitability. When a company is equipped with all the factors mentioned above, it gains a strategic position in the market that gives it an added advantage over traditionally composed firms (Patrick & Kumar, 2012). A diverse workforce offers complex ideas which enable the organization to emerge ahead of the competition concerning creative and sustainable productivity. Thus, having a homogenous taskforce will only lead to the presentation of exhausted notions which may yield the same results as the current concepts. In the current volatile market, innovation is one of the topmost guarantors of success (Sharma, 2016). Diversity cements the chances of an organization to become creative and more crucially, socially responsible. Since the employees come from different fronts of life, the management will have a better understanding of the society in which it operates in giving it a competitive advantage.
Best methods for managing workforce
The classic abstraction that “there is unity in diversity” is not fallacious as numerous organizations in the world have been witnessed to integrate it into their operations. Positively, the concept has profoundly impacted the general perception of the public towards workplace diversity. Dixit & Bajpai (2015) assert that cultural, gender, age, religious, and any other form of diversity has been determined to have high values to an organization as it entails a myriad of benefits such as innovative ideas, skills, strategies, and interests. One of the approaches is that the management and the human resources departments are necessitated to ensure that the organization maintains and respects the rights of each member despite the variances amongst them. Hence, diversity should be viewed as variety and not difference (Patrick & Kumar, 2012). Also, another strategy is to create a conducive and motivating environment by implementing company policies that carter to the social and monetary needs of the employees such as including child care. Organizations should maintain a flexible working environment that encompasses every member of society.
Companies employ individuals from different aspects of life to best suit their diverse production and management practices. Organizations with heterogeneous workforces obtain a better comprehension of the productive social and cultural environments. Thus, having a diverse labor force presents the opportunity for creative ideas, qualified personnel, and connections within the industry. While a few organizations have yet to adopt diversity, a majority of companies are reaping the advantages of employing varying individuals. Diversity, hence, gives an organization a competitive advantage over other companies. Therefore, the strategic management of diversity within a business will help in increasing not only the profit margin but also the operating lifespan of the firm.
References
Dixit, P., & Bajpai, B. L. (2015). Managing Workforce Diversity in Competitive Environment. International Journal of Business and Management Invention , 4 (1), 01-011.
Patrick, H. A., & Kumar, V. R. (2012). Managing Workplace Diversity. SAGE Open , 2 (2), 215824401244461. doi:10.1177/2158244012444615.
Shaban, A. (2016). Managing and Leading a Diverse Workforce: One of the Main Challenges in Management. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences , 230 , 76-84. doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2016.09.010.
Sharma, A. (2016). Managing diversity and equality in the workplace. Cogent Business & Management , 3 (1), 1-14. doi:10.1080/23311975.2016.1212682.
