The 21st century is landmarked by advent in technology that has contributed highly in bringing people of different background together. In the modern world, people seek employment from one country to another. Further, globalization has also made it possible for employees to work overseas in different branches of particular organizations. The modern-day organizations are therefore tasked with encouraging diversity within their borders to enhance their public relationship, and also to accommodate every employee within the organization. The difference is becoming the epicenter of the organization today (Hunt, Layton, & Prince, 2015). Despite such glaring impotence of diversity, some organizations still lags, by having too many employees from a specific background. Further, other organizations still doubt the impotence of diversity and instill organizations cultures which are less favorable to people from different cultures. This paper explores the diversity in the workplace. The specific topics within the article include, what diversity within an organization mans, its importance, how to foster diversity within an organization, and some of the diversity issues which are present in the modern day organizations.
Diversity in a workplace
An organization that has the interest to foster a diverse culture within its borders needs to understand what diversity within a workplace implies. Such an organization also needs to understand what constitutes diversity within organizations. Diversity in a workplace refers to the variety of differences between individuals in an organization. Diversity not only includes how individuals identify themselves but also how others perceive them. Diversity within an organization includes not limited to race, gender, age, religion, and sexual orientation. It is the obligation of a company that needs to foster diversity to consider such factors that constitute diversity within an organization. A diverse workplace thus has a range of employees that have a mix of these qualities. Such is an organization that has policies which do not discriminate against factors which create differences between one people to next.
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Diversity issues within an organization
Though the rate of diversity awareness within different organizations in the modern corporate world is high, many organizations still suffer from diversity syndrome. Diversity issues within such environments still pose challenges which organizations are dealing with unsuccessfully. As a result, it is paramount for such organization to identify diversity issues and come up with strategies to adequately address them. This section presents some of the most common diversity issues within the organization, and how best they can be handled.
The first diversity issue in the current companies is the acceptance and respect among workers. The differences in beliefs among workers can create a conflict and misunderstandings which will translate to lack of respects. The best way to handle such an issue is to train the team for them to understand what diversity means, and its importance among the employees and the organization as a whole. The next diversity issue in modern-day companies is accommodating other people’s beliefs. In a diverse workplace, people have different beliefs. There are different cultural, religious and political beliefs. Sometimes, conflicts result between employees which stem from misunderstanding and the inflexibility which prevent some employees from understanding other employees' beliefs. Such employees give superiority to their culture while viewing other people's beliefs as inferior (Houghton, Neck &Krishnakumar, 2016).To handle such a problem, diversity training is the best approach to make employees understand the importance of having a diverse workplace.
An ethnic and cultural difference is a significant diversity issue in the workplace. Some employees hold prejudice, against others who come from the different ethnic and cultural group. Racial and culture deference affect many people within an organization and need the attention of organization management to solve. The management can solve this puzzle by introducing cultural sensitivity training and diversity awareness programs within a company. These will help employees understand the meaning of diversity and the best ways to work with other employees from different cultures (McCann, Sparks &Kohntopp, 2017). Gender equity is also another diversity issue which has had a massive impact on most organization inthe modern world. Gender equity is the gap that exists between genders. Gender equity and diversity is all about having a transition culture and policy which support other genders. The solution to gender diversity lies on enacting policies and regulations which consider both sexes within a company. These include systems which enhance equity in compensation, promotions, and hiring. The next issue of diversity within an organization is the physical and mental disabilities. Disable individuals sometimes have difficulties moving within an organization. In some organizations, there are no proper accommodations that cater to these individuals; as a result, they find it discriminating to work within such areas. Despite their status, an organization needs to come up with policies which are inclusive of all employees despite their disabilities. They need to ensure that they provide a fair and comfortable work environment for all employees despite their disability status.
Why diversity within the workplace?
Diversity, in the modern corporate environment, is becoming a necessity for success. First, therearechangingdemographics in theUnited States and other countries in the world, and this makes it necessary to have a diverse workforce. “In the US, Minorities, now roughly one-third of the US population, are expected to become the majority by 2042. Considering consumer purchasing power in 2013, Hispanics will account for 9.9 % of all US buying power; African-Americans will have an 8.8% share, and Asians will represent a 5.4% share, LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual, and Transgender) will reach a buying power of $835 billion by 2020." Other than the demographic change, globalization is making it easy for people to meet and interact with each other. Thus, making it possible for the organization to contract people from other ethnic and cultures. Further, diversity is made necessary because of the generation gap. Currently, "The new trend the trend of people living longer and retiring later, resulted in four distinct generationsworking side by side—conservatives, baby boomers, Generation X, and Generation Y or Millennials—each with its own mindset, work habits, technology attitudes, and customs” (Hunt, Layton, & Prince, 2015).
Importance of diversity in a workplace
Difference in the workplace comes with a lot of benefits. The first is an increase in production. With diversity comes a diverse talent working together to achieve an organizational goal. Within such a pool of talented workers, people have unique strengths which they apply to find a solution to problems. As a result, it is possible for such an organization to increase its productivity. Other than that, diversity increases the chances of creativity and problem solving within an organization. "With so many different and diverse minds coming together many more solutions will arise as every individual brings in their way of thinking, operating and solving problems and decision making”(Oberfield, 2016). Talent attraction and retention is another benefit accrued to an organization that considers diversity within its operation. Employees normally have faith in an organization that has a diverse works force. Such an organization is viewed as discrimination-less enterprise and thus impresses talented workers. It thus attracts and retains more workers that organization that is based on discriminative culture. Other than that, there is a possibility of increasing market share for an organization that minds diversity. "By relating to people from different backgrounds, it does propel the United States and its status to claim its place and success in the global business world of the 21st century” (Rock & Grant, 2016).
Recommendation to increase diversity
There are numerous recommendable practices which an organization can put in place to increase diversity within its environment. These recommendations are best used by an organization which has done an internal staff audit and have concluded that the workforce in the organization does not depict diversity face. The first recommendation is to enhance the culture of diversity within an organization. Culture defines behavior within an environment. An organization needs to ensure that the culture within its environment is less discriminative to other employees. Other than that, an organization needs to come up with policies which are less discriminative (Rock & Grant, 2016). The compensation policies and other policies relating to gender, equity and disabilities should be put in place to ensure that a decision made within an organization affect all people equally. Further, the organization should review its recruitment policies and culture and try to adjust the policies to allow it to acquire people from diverse culture.Lastly, an organization needs to provide diversity training. This is critical as it enhances a culture where people appreciate and respect others based on their beliefs and culture within the company.
In summary, diversity is critical in modern-day business. Diversity is necessary since there is a shift in population demographics and policies which demand fair treatment for every employee within a work environment. An organization that embraces diversity within its operation is at advantages and can increase its market shares. As a result, organization management needs to strive to enhance a culture of diversity within their working environment.
References
Hunt, V., Layton, D., & Prince, S. (2015). Diversity matters. McKinsey & Company , 1 , 15-29.
Rock, D., & Grant, H. (2016). Why diverse teams are smarter. Harvard Business Review , 4 (4), 2-5.
Houghton, J. D., Neck, C. P., &Krishnakumar, S. (2016). The what, why and how of spirituality in the workplace revisited: A 14-year update and extension. Journal of Management, Spirituality & Religion , 13 (3), 177-205.
Oberfield, Z. W. (2016). Why are some agencies perceived as more committed to diversity than others? An analysis of public-sector diversity climates. Public Management Review , 18 (5), 763-790.
McCann, J. T., Sparks, B. H., &Kohntopp, T. F. (2017).Leadership integrity and diversity in the workplace. Leadership , 2 (5).
