Diversity in the Workplace

The World is a diverse place; changing demographics, globalization and generational gaps. Diversity is the mix of people who make your organization. The workforce, including leadership should represent and look like the community in which business is conducted. Work place diversity is the key to survival and growth and is an essential business tool. Diversity promotes inclusion within and across business units and help all employees understand and respect individual differences and the value of everyone’s unique talents. Different types of people bring different talents and competencies to the table. Inclusion allows people to be themselves at work and letting them know they are valued regardless of their age, gender,

Before we move on it is important to take the time and think what diversity means to your organization. How does your company define diversity? A simple definition of diversity is that every individual is unique, and has differences. These can be along the dimensions of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, age, physical abilities, mental abilities, religious beliefs, political beliefs, personality, cognitive style, or other ideologies. Your organization’s success and competitiveness may depend upon its ability to embrace diversity and realize the benefits.

As we enter the new millenium, diversity in the workforce is rapidly increasing. Businesses and organizations are living up to the great melting pot image the United States has always been popular for. Employees now reflect a diversity of cultural perspectives, ethnic backgrounds, ages, genders, physical abilities, and levels of education. This wave of multiculturalism is here to stay and cannot be ignored. It is in need of attention in order to uphold the well-being and success of businesses and organizations all over the country.

Benefits of a high workplace diversity environment is it not being stuck to conformity in group thinking, or being narrow-minded with similar thoughts and having preference to only be around people who think like you do which is known as the “diversity paradox”. According to a quote stated from Friedrich Nietzsche, Hackett (2014) “The surest way to corrupt a youth is to instruct him to hold in higher esteem those who think alike than those who think differently” (p. 415). Instead, it reiterates the importance of having a diverse workplace because it constructs better ideas, coming from different minds, and build upon each other through brainstorming. However, a poor workplace diversity can also adversely affect one’s motivation, which leads to overall job dissatisfaction and demotivation. When there is poor workplace diversity, you can see less communication barriers and cultural resistance, but it also makes it harder for individuals to get used to working with others that aren’t the same as them. This can become a form of adversity for businesses if their employees cannot develop a strong skill set to adapt with not only coworkers but also customers in the environment. Therefore, better communication and interaction skills are essential to promoting a business and making it successful.

Making sure equality and diversity procedures are followed in a business environment will impacts on overall success of organisation. By recognising the strengths of differences between individuals company can get a great advantage in terms of employee motivation and clients satisfaction.

Any organization or institution, including Local Authorities, health service providers, educational establishments, the police service, voluntary organizations and workplaces, that supports and promotes inclusion demonstrates that it values everything about the people involved within it. Inclusion nurtures a sense of well-being and of confidence in ones own identity and abilities. And it ensures that everyone can achieve their potential and take their rightful place in society. Research has shown that certain factors reduce the likelihood of developing a sense of belonging and living a happy and productive life. 1.1d Explain what is meant by Discrimination Discrimination is treating an individual unfairly because of their race, gender, age, disability, religion, sexuality or culture.

I am very happy witht the progress that Vicky has made in her job so far. She has been with the Bureau about 8 months and she has become invaluable to us. She understands the division and bureau vision and direction. She is a real team player who actively participates in bureau meetings and activities such as coming up with a vision and mission statement for the PPI bureau.

“Rarely is the question asked, is our children learning?” When George W. Bush spoke those words amongst a crowd of people in Florence, South Carolina several years ago, he probably had no idea that it would one day be put on a list called The top 25 Bushisms of all time -- and it wouldn’t even be #1. As a politician, no matter how inconsequential your position may seem, you are constantly under a microscope being looked at by your peers, your employers, and the media. Everything you say or do will have an outcome on your career, no matter how unrelated to your field it may be, or how secret you try to keep it. It is for reasons such as this that one must always be aware of their words and actions. To survive under the scrutiny of others, a

Diversity is what makes people different, not just culturally but in human differences. Having a multitude of differences in the workforce gives an organization the ability to use many ideas to reach a common goal. A person could say that a diverse group of people together in one room can accomplish greater achievements than a room filled with the same types of individuals. Managers understand the concept of diversity, and how important diversity is to the success of a company’s ability to implement programs that continue to develop a harmonious and diverse workplace. The recognition that diversity is a reality in the workforce has generated an enormous amount of activity over the years among leaders in business, government, and civil

Former President Lyndon B. Johnson once said, “Yesterday is not ours to recover, but tomorrow is ours to win or lose.” This quote in itself explains my reasons for wanting to become a social worker, which is so that so that I can use my past experiences and work towards the future, so that no child feels forgotten. Also, this quote explains my goals, which are to either be a school or military social worker when I graduate. As well as, this quote explains my perspectives on different conversational topics. This paper, will explain how the reality of my life led me to want to pursue social work, my dreams after graduating and my thoughts on various subject matters.

I think it’s pretty common for people to picture a Caucasian male with a suit and briefcase when picturing someone with some high end cooperate job. We used to be able to blame this on the fact that many different races weren’t getting the same level of education. In these days, with everyone getting equal opportunities in education and more diversity in higher educational institutes, there should be no reason that races aren’t represented more equally when it comes to white collar jobs. Many studies have shown that more diverse economies make for much stronger ones. When businesses can accept the nation’s ever changing demographics, they obtain a more diverse and inclusive workforce which benefits them economically.

The general line of reasoning is that if we learn to incorporate each other’s diverse traits and characteristics in the workplace, we can then use these differences to foster an innovative environment, which will give the company a competitive advantage over the competitors that do not accept workforce diversity. According to the Allied Academies International Conference, “Diversity is rapidly becoming a common practice among companies due to the increasing number of minorities entering the job market today. As these groups become more prevalent throughout companies, upper-level employees are facing numerous challenges when determining what changes must take place to create a positive working environment for everyone. Management is responsible for the development and implementation of effective policies directly relating to diversity to ensure the acceptance of minorities into the workplace and to aid in minorities’ success through equal opportunities and treatment.” (Marcia L. James, 2001, Academy for Studies in International Business Proceedings)

Workplace diversity refers to the variety of differences between people in an organization. Workplace diversity is about acknowledging differences and adapting work practices to create an inclusive environment in which diverse skills, perspectives and backgrounds are valued. It is about understanding the individual differences in the people we work with that arise from a broad range of backgrounds and lifestyles, and recognizing the value of using those different perspectives, ideas and ways of working to enhance the quality and outcomes of work. Our diversity is shaped by a variety of characteristics including age, ethnicity, gender, disability, language,

As companies become more diverse in the work field employees are getting harder to manage and understand. One issue in the global market today is workplace diversity. Workplace diversity is defined as all characteristics and experiences that defined each employee as individuals, but it can also be misunderstood as discrimination against employees. Diversity can include race, ethnicity, sex, religion, disability and sexual orientation discrimination. One reason why workplace diversity is important is because when you respect your employees productivity rate rises and many companies do not know that. A diverse workplace targets to create an inclusive culture that values and uses the talents of all employees.

Diversity can be defined as the differences among the people working in the same workplace. Those differences can be related to gender, race, religion, marital status, sexual orientation, culture or personalities.