Western Leadership And Global Expansion

According to Ozbilgin (2008), diversity is one of the top global issues and requires management attention. There are both benefits and challenges in managing diversity. However, Golnaz and Hoa (2002) stated that most organizations agree that diversity is a reality and while managing the same, it can be either an asset or a hindrance towards goals (Gleason 2004). Diversity helps the organization become proactive and flexible to new aspects and scenarios (Pwc 2011). To manage a successful diverse workforce, organisations need to promote self-awareness, openness, clear-headedness, adaptability, candour and egalitarianism. This can be a challenging task due to complex human behaviour and biases (Parkin 2009).

In recent years, diversity and inclusion have emerged as an essential business practice. Why are diversity and inclusion so critical to organizations nowadays? Do they really help organizations achieve better results? Why is it a unique issue in the 21st century workplace? To answer these questions, organizations should look into factors such as globalization. Globalization increases interactions around the world and diversifies the profile of the workforce, which also contributes to the changing composition of the current workforce. While globalization offers extensive opportunities for organizations, it also imposes many challenges that require new responses. Organizations are not only looking for ways to effectively manage a diverse workforce but also to leverage it to achieve better outcomes.

Year after year, the various departments and agencies of the United States Federal Government are becoming more diverse. The discussion of workplace diversity is not a discussion that is likely to disappear anytime soon in the future. To explain, the literature from Starks (2009) notes that by the year of 2050, minorities groups will account for fifty-percent of the population, in the United States of America. As a result, the discussion of diversity in the workplace is likely to still be a constant topic, for the various department and agencies of the United States Federal Government.

Obvious quantifiable benefits can be gotten from appropriately represented arrangements to advance diversity (Jamrog, 2002). Differences in sex, race, and age on senior administration groups is associated with unrivalled business performance in labourer efficiency, networking profits. Advancing differing abilities pulls in capable specialists, decreases turnover, and unleashes inventiveness (Diversity Inc., 2002). Leaders confront various difficulties in endeavouring to keep up this equalization, for example, administration, single hard working attitude, work environment power, coaching, new work configurations, and work-life parity.

Many organizations are beginning to view diversity as an organizational change. This could possibly mean changes in the power dynamics and organizational structure, the way decisions are made, and the way an

With a shift in demographics in the last decade, workplace diversity has become one of the main concerns for companies. Diversity is now based upon race, gender, ethnicity, disabilities, and sexual orientations. A diverse company will seek individuals who bring “unique perspectives or outlooks to the organization” (Shackelford, 2003). Workplace diversity allows for each individual to have an equal chance no matter what his or her demographic is. Diversity in the workplace also shows that the company is not discriminatory.

The first factor that is increasing the diversity in the U.S workplace is welcoming social diversity meaning to recruit talented workers of both sexes, racial and culture backgrounds. The potential of employees requires meeting the needs of women and other minorities, which may not be the same as white men’s. The second factor is that the businesses must develop a way to deal with the tensions that are in the work place from social differences, which means they will have to work harder to make sure that everyone is treated equally and respectfully by having no tolerance for sexual or racial harassment. The third and last factor is that these

Imagine that you are a highly qualified former Hispanic executive who was recently laid off from a fortune 500 hundred company. Within that company you held several key roles in which you were crucial to the success of the organization. In the prior roles you may have never really understood the need or the process of managing diversity. You hold several advanced degrees in key business fields despite all of your experience education and the economy flourishing you can’t seem to find a job comparable to where you were. You happen to buy a copy of the Wall Street Journal and on the front page is the article below:

Advancements in technology allowed companies to become globalized and have a further reach than in the years before. As companies expand on a global scale, it has become increasingly important to take into account different viewpoints from individuals all over the world. As companies became globalized, diversity is becoming a term that comes up frequently when discussing the management of companies. Businesses (especially global and national businesses) are moving away from a workforce that is primarily white and male, and moving towards a more inclusive environment of workers that includes different genders, as well as people from various racial and socioeconomic backgrounds. Not only is diversity an important moral issue, it is critical to think about when discussing the success of businesses.

In order to investigate that what will it take for organizations to reap the real and full benefits of a diverse workforce, a research effort taken by the article author’s team. In order to understand three management challenges for Diversity, it conducted its research over a period of six years. The challenges undertaken were:

Across the world much attention has been given to workforce diversity. As a result of the expansion of the global economy across national territories, and the growth in workforce diversity as it relates to ethnicity, race, gender, age and disability, many organizations are now more intentional in their efforts to enhance and maintain workforce diversity (Peretz, Levi, & Fried, 2015). At the core, diversity is about inclusion. Firms have a responsibility to promote equity and social justice by considering the experiences, perspectives, knowledge, and abilities of various groups of people.

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)

The journal presented this week discusses the newly diversified workplace. Global companies are no longer the only entities with multicultural workforces. Encouraging diversity within teams or departments requires experienced leaders who can harmonize the cultures present.

Future trends for a diverse society will become more evident. As a result, the workforce and to a greater extent, the marketplace must increase diversity. Globalization of corporations begat a global economy increasing the marketplace, and enlarging a diverse workforce. The reality is diversity will become less of a social issue and more of a business concern linked to competitive strategies. Upper management will become more involved in diversity issues because diverse workforce needs to be better utilized in order to remain competitive. Diversity training will be integrated into other types of training. Corporations will continue to explore demographic changes in our society and link them more closely to global changes.

The first thing to acknowledge about diversity is that it can be difficult. In the U.S., where the dialogue of inclusion is relatively advanced, even the mention of the word “diversity” can lead to anxiety and conflict. Supreme Court justices disagree on the virtues of diversity and the means for achieving it. Corporations spend billions of dollars to attract and manage diversity both internally and externally, yet they still face discrimination lawsuits, and the leadership ranks of the business world remain predominantly white and male.