MANAGING DIVERSITY

Managing Diversity

Managing Diversity

Introduction

Defining diversity management from an organizational perspective requires first a definition of workplace diversity itself. These definitions of diversity have evolved significantly over time. Early efforts defined diversity almost exclusively in terms of race and gender differences in the workforce. In some sense, the terms diversity and race and gender were treated synonymously during the 1990s. Since then, however, the meaning of these terms has expanded. In addition to race and gender, individuals with disabilities, older workers, and foreign-born workers (to name only a few examples) became recognized for their contributions to workforce diversity. Beyond the incorporation of additional demographic differences, as efforts to address organizational diversity increased, researchers began to look at a variety of individual differences as well. Differences in experiences, expertise, and knowledge among members of a team might be considered to represent important elements of diversity.

Managing Diversity

The concept of managing diversity refers to efforts by organizations to actively recruit, motivate, retain, and facilitate working relationships among individuals who are demographically different and from a variety of backgrounds. Managing diversity means establishing a heterogeneous workforce to perform to its potential in an equitable work environment where no member or group of members has an advantage or disadvantage. As such, managing diversity differs from affirmative action, which refers to actions taken to overcome the effects of past or present practices, policies, or other barriers to equal employment opportunity. Affirmative action gives managers the opportunity to correct imbalances, injustices, and past mistakes. However, after such inequities are corrected, the long-term challenge becomes to create a work environment that respects and includes differences, recognizing the unique contributions that individuals with many types of differences can make, and that maximizes the potential of all employees and allows them to compete for organizational rewards based on merit.

Diversity Paradigms

Organizations differ in their approaches to diversity management. Some manage diversity with a focus on equal opportunity and fair treatment. Based on an assumption that prejudice has kept members of certain demographic groups out of organizations, this approach is intended to restructure the composition of an organizational workforce to let it more closely reflect the composition of society. Focusing on members of historically disadvantaged groups, this approach concentrates on compliance with federal mandates stemming from equal employment opportunity legislation and affirmative action policies. In addition, organizations following this approach often institute programs to increase the representation of women and ethnic minorities in their workforces and to retain members of these groups in the organization.

Some organizations manage diversity with a focus on access to, and legitimacy in, diverse markets. Under this paradigm, workforce diversity is viewed as a business opportunity. Differences are accepted and valued because they generate a broader range of multicultural competencies and multilingual skills that allow organizations to better understand and serve the needs of customers. As markets become more diverse and minority groups gain purchasing power, organizations also attempt to match the demographics of the workforce with those of customer or constituent groups to gain credibility with such ...