Essay on Managing Diversity in the Workplace - 1207 Words

John F. Kennedy once said If we cannot end now our differences, at least we can help make the world safe for diversity. Diversity in the Workplace: Benefits, Challenges, and the Required Managerial Tools1 Kelli A. Green, Mayra Là ³pez, Allen Wysocki, and Karl Kepner2 Introduction The worlds increasing globalization requires more interaction among people from diverse cultures, beliefs, and backgrounds than ever before. People no longer live and work in an insular marketplace; they are now part of a worldwide economy with competition coming from nearly every continent. For this reason, profit and non-profit organizations need diversity to become more creative and open to change. Maximizing and capitalizing on workplace diversity†¦show more content†¦population. Companies need to focus on diversity and look for ways to become totally inclusive organizations because diversity has the potential of yielding greater productivity and competitive advantages (SHRM, 1995). Stephen G. Butler, co-chair of the Business-Higher Education Forum, believes that diversity is an invaluable competitive asset that America cannot afford to ignore (Robinson, 2002). Managing and valuing diversity is a key component of effective people management, which can improve workplace p roductivity (Black Enterprise, 2001). Demographic changes (women in the workplace, organizational restructurings, and equal opportunity legislation) will require organizations to review their management practices and develop new and creative approaches to managing people. Changes will increase work performance and customer service. Women in the Workplace The need to understand diversity is also driven by women in the workplace. Todays workforce has the highest levels of employment participation ever by women. The number of dual income families and single working mothers has increased. Change in the family structure means that there are fewer men and women in traditional family roles (Zweigenhaft and Domhoff, 1998). Therefore, diversity issues cut across both race and gender. Organizational Restructuring There have been significant changes to organizations as a result of downsizingShow MoreRelatedManaging Diversity in the Workplace1043 Words   |  5 PagesManaging diverse employees in a multicultural environment proves challenging to managers; yet, increasing diversity in the workplace is very beneficial for an organization. Diverse employees will provide a wider array of talents and will relate better to varied customers. Because managers have more influence than rank-and-file employees, it is imperative that managers commit to diversity of the workforce. Dissimilarities among people due to differences in characteristics can erode companies. 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As a result, the Equality Act of 2010 was formulated and became law whose provisions focus on legal protection against discrimination based on gender re-assignment,Read More Managing Diversity and Ethics in the Workplace - 12979 Words   |  12 Pages Managing Diversity and Ethics in the Workplace Introduction There steps leaders and managers can take to effectively manage diversity and ethics concerns. How a manager effectively manages ethics and diversity, within the organization is directly correlated to the cultural, organizational and external environment influence ethical behavior. One of the step’s leaders and managers can take is to incorporate diversity training of the organization. Read MoreEssay about Managing Diversity in the Workplace1449 Words   |  6 Pagesorganizations need diversity to become more creative and open to change. Maximizing and capitalizing on workplace diversity has become an important issue for management today (UCSF). Workplace diversity refers to having a variety of different types of people working together within a place of business. Employee gender, race, religion, sexual preference, physical appearance, family or marital status, education, culture, personality, or tenure establishes diversity in the workplace. Diversity is rapidlyRead MoreManaging Workplace Diversity Essay1219 Words   |  5 PagesDiversity is a term used most often to describe the different types of race, religion, and nationalities but in today’s business world, it is used to describe the different individual behaviors of employees. Diversity is about characteristics and demographics that differ from person to person and how they affect human behavior. To understand how diversity affects the work place let us look at four types of diversity--Differences in skill and abilities, Values and attitudes, Occupation differences