...Introduction: Diversity in the workplace is natural to Canada with its multicultural population and more than 250,000 newcomers entering the country every year (Government of Canada). One of the distinguished features of Canada’s current workforce is its growing diversity. As a concept, diversity refers to a broader set of qualities than race and gender. Its dimensions include, but are not limited to, age, ethnicity, educational background, geographic location, income, marital and parental status, religious and moral beliefs, physical abilities, working experiences, and job classifications. For example, for the first time in history, today’s workplace accommodates four different generations — the Matures, the Baby Boomers, Generation X, and the Generation Y. Each age group brings different perspectives on life and work; all of them relate differently to the same working environment; all of them bring new ideas that benefit the workplace on different levels. It is a great challenge for both employers and employees to learn to value and to embrace differences and not get caught up in stereotyping those who look, think and act differently. It is a great need to start learning about diversity by talking to people, asking questions and listening. The more we know about differences, the more we understand them and the more we can appreciate and value their contributions to the workplace. Employers need to learn how to integrate and manage their diverse workforce; employees need...
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...case discussed in Chapter 5 of Opportunities and Challenges of Workplace Diversity. After a company experiences a racial discrimination lawsuit like the one at Texaco, how can an organization implement a comprehensive diversity management policy and become a model of effective diversity management? Canas and Sondak (2011) provide details of the Texaco lawsuit in the text. In summary, Texaco historically has not promoted minorities specifically blacks into certain groups or positions and has fostered a very unhealthy work climate as a result. Six employees filed a class-action discrimination suit in 1994 on behalf of 1500 other employees. In what was supposed to be private discussions, senior leaders of the organization were recorded making racial slurs targeted at African American employees and other comments around destroying documentation and other evidence related to the case. These comments were leaked causing a stir in the national media and increased racial tension in the workplace. Unfortunately, in some cases it may take a lawsuit for organizations to implement effect diversity management policies. For example, DiverstyInc (2013) describes how Sodexo implemented stronger and more open lines of communication with employees using a Chief Diversity Officer. In doing so, Sodexo gained a stronger level of trust with its employees. Sodexo also established metrics to continuously monitor diversity to mitigate discrimination. Metrics on demographics on promotions...
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...Cultural Diversity Training Denise Raftie-Bryant BUS 375 Employee Training Instructor: Niccolle Johnson June 30, 2015 As Human Resource Manager my responsibility is to oversee training and development for a global organization. To effectively create a cultural diversity training course for all employees it’s imperative to be able to understand cultural differences, employment and business law practices. Cultural diversity is embraced by many companies in the workplace and essential to maintain a balanced organization. Organizations that understand cultural difference can secure business deals with global affiliations and increase employee awareness in a diverse workplace offering training courses. It is important to a company’s organizational structure for employers and employees in the workplace to recognize and respect cultural differences. Multilingual employees benefit many companies because of different perspectives from various diverse backgrounds, creativity and problem-solving skills. Organizations continue to seek opportunities for growth, through encouraging cultural diversity provide ways to expand their business. Also the organizations can enhance its ability to solve problems encouraging their employees to share business practices and belief systems who come from different backgrounds. Employee differences are considered beneficial to help build a corporate culture team. However, diversity is embraced through providing employees with cultural...
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...Managing Diversity in the Workplace The modern business environment is marked by the many people-oriented variables brought to organizations. These variables include gender, race, age, and religion, and socioeconomic background, regional and national origin. All these factors form the current workforce in the market place. Diversity is widely recognized as one of the world’s greatest strengths. Diversity continues to affect the society and the organizational workforce in the process of shaping the 21st century workforce (Konrad, 2006). Organizations appreciate individual sensitivity and differences to allow them to succeed at the organizational mission. Sensitivity and training on diversity focuses on changing the standards and expectations of people. This paper gives details on understanding diversity. Although the scope is limited, it highlights how the understanding of diversity is a challenge in managing the current workforce. It remains a fact that the contemporary workforce does not have the same desires as the previous workforce. Work diversity is a challenging experience. Managing and valuing diversity touches on peoples’ values, emotions and beliefs. It demands that people must change their behavior. It demands that organizations must question and change their systems, policies and practices some of which have not been questioned for centuries. Besides, they have contributed to the organization’s values, traditions, and ultimate success (Albrecht, 2011)...
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...------------------------------------------------- WORKPLACE DIVERSITY ------------------------------------------------- (CULTURAL DIVERSITY) SAZIA KHAN SANJA GM410: FOUNDATION OF PROFESSIONAL COMMUNICATION. INSTRUCTION: ROBERT WOODS Keller Graduate School of Management Introduction: The social composition of the world is changing. And the increasing of the globalization demands more interaction with people from diverse cultures religion and background ever before. As a result of that the demography of the world is changing. The word becomes a single market place. Anyone with a cell phone or access to the internet is a potential customer. In today’s global economy traditional barrier are disappear. So being increasing the opportunity as well as competition if the company wants to compete effectively and globally, Todays Companies need to realize that they longer have choice.it is now essential to be knowledgeable about and be able to communicate with people of different nationalities cultures and religions. Corporation realizes that they must embrace that diversity in the workplace brings. What is Work place Diversity Workplace diversity refers to the variety of differences between people in an organization. That means diversity encompasses race, gender, culture, ethnic group, age, personality, cognitive style, tenure, organizational function, education, background and more. Diversity not only involves how people perceive themselves, but how they perceive others...
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...Explain corporate social responsibility and diversity in the modern workplace Identify how companies influence their ethics environment Valuing diversity means making decisions based on merit, encouraging different perspectives, and challenging behaviors that undermine other cultural or gender groups. Valuing diversity means developing attitudes, practices and procedures that provide genuine equality of treatment and opportunity for all employees, regardless of issues such as gender, religious belief, age, disability, sex or ethnic origin. Valuing diversity means: * Championing and progressing diversity, building a positive culture that harnesses diversity. Consistently challenging behavior/attitudes that undermine other cultural or gender groups. * Proactively supporting a meritocracy. * Being fair and objective. * Displaying sensitivity to the needs of individuals, using a broad range of interpersonal styles to suit the requirements of any situation, local environment or culture. * Encouraging a full range of perspectives and assimilating these into business decisions. When it comes to incorporating social responsibility or sustainability in the workplace, it’s not just about creating a green building or complying with green building code; it’s about creating healthy and productive workplaces for people while increasing social and shareholder value for the organization. The 100 Best Corporate Citizens list (from Corporate Responsibility...
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...BEHS 220 (2152) Personal Action Plan for Diversity Consciousness 8 March 2015 Introduction Diversity is an ongoing discussion in day-to-day life. Not many situations occur without diversity having a role. There are a multitude of topics that introduces or involves diversity, to include age, sex, race, gender, ethnicity and so on. Prior to participating in this Diversity Awareness class, I’ve always thought diversity was more geared around discrimination and racism. Through weekly readings and discussions, I have discovered that diversity is much broader than that. There are many countries that are mixed culturally with people from all over the world, but none like the United States. The United States has the largest mixed culture in the world. Growing up in South Carolina I was exposed to different cultures, however I never fully witnessed some of the cultural things I’ve witnessed since joining the Army. My time in the Army has taken me places I never would have imagined and have exposed me to many different cultures. Reasons for taking BEHS Diversity Awareness I am pursuing a baccalaureate degree in Criminal Justice and it is required for me to complete 6 semester hours of Behavioral and Social Science courses. I’ve always been fascinated with understanding and learning more about...
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...By Freddie Lesser North centralUniversity Workplace Diversity October 2012 | | According to Konrad, Prasad, & Pringle (2006) researches interested in workplace diversity have commonly drawn upon psychological views to comprehend the influence that labels have on the occurrences and consequences of different groups of people in establishments. Nevertheless, need for equal opportunities, the pressure to internationalize, increased migration, and developments in communication technology involve all united to make workplace diversity an unavoidable realism in many organizations around the globe. Nevertheless, while the significance of diversity is rising, there still appears to be some misunderstanding in translating the effect of diversity on organizational occurrence. Confirmed diversity effects include developed information processing, group problem solving, and originality. On the other hand, dissimilar groups may neglect to capitalize on their differences due to high levels of encounters, low levels of group solidity, and communication problems. One possible controlling aspect influencing the outcome of demographic heterogeneity could be dissimilarity in the group’s faiths, stances, and feelings towards diversity. The philosophy is that a common entity’s inner environment that is open to demographic contrasts expands the chances of positive group processes in diverse situation Lauring and Selmer (2011). Multiplicity environment is an evolving area of research...
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...Religious Diversification Today Religious diversification in the workplace is an issue employers will always face. Management of this diversity is necessary so that employees can reach their full potential, maximize productivity, and create a positive work environment by which everybody is accommodated. By understanding the positives and negatives of having religion and spirituality in the workplace, it is clear that there are advantages and disadvantages. Positive aspects of integrating religion or spirituality into the workplace may include improved worker performance and better relationships between management and employees. There are disadvantages as well, such as discrimination, and resistance to religious culture, which can reduce productivity and may lead to legal issues. Law and Regulation The most common way a company integrates religious views into their work place would depend if the company were public or privately held. For example, if the CEO of a private organization was Christian there might be rules for allowing extra prayer time at the work. Under federal law, regarding religious expression in private work areas, “Employees should be permitted to engage in private religious expression in personal work areas not regularly open to the public”(Earp, 2008). Publicly held organizations must allow for prayer during the day and if the other employees are atheist or another religion they must be respectful. As long as work is being completed during work hours all...
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...Spirituality in the Workplace ABSTRACT In this paper I will attempt to study and understand the need for spirituality in the workplace. Workplace Spirituality is awareness, interconnectedness with one another and a higher existence, a sense of fulfilment, and value and meaning to one’s calling. Spirituality in organizations is an area gaining increasing popularity. The growing interest, however, is on how spirituality improves organizational performance, and the impact of spiritual influences in a workplace. Introduction: In today society’s organizations want their employees to be able to come to work and manage their emotions while working with coworkers and customers. However, employees are constantly under stress which may reduce the effectiveness of his or her work ethics. Workplace spirituality is the method of incorporating one’s personal idea of “spirituality” in their daily work schedule. Spirituality can give employees a sense of balance and security and therefore improve their organizational efficiency and effectiveness. With spiritualty now incorporating itself in to the workplace it is helping the organization enhance its performance and increase the development of business ethics. The importance of a business to incorporate spirituality within the workplace will continue to influence the culture of business in the anticipated future. What is Spirituality? Webster’s College Dictionary defines spirituality as the quality or “state of being...
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...Dionne Butler Analyzing Diversity in the Workplace Business 610 Organizational Behavior Gary Shelton July 18, 2011 Abstract Diversity plays a very important role in success of an organization. The concept of diversity encompasses acceptance and respect. It means understanding that each individual is unique, and recognizing our individual differences. These can be along the dimensions of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, age, physical abilities, religious beliefs, political beliefs, or other ideologies. It is the exploration of these differences in a safe, positive, and nurturing environment. It is about understanding each other and moving beyond simple tolerance to embracing and celebrating the rich dimensions of diversity contained within each individual (free dictionary). In order for a company to survive and prosper in an increasingly society, organizations must capitalize on employee diversity as a source of completive advantage. The debate over how to deal with diversity has become highly charged and politicized. Therefore, companies have to design a diversity training program to raise awareness, understanding for cross-cultural issues as well as for areas of sexual orientation, age, gender, ethnicity, race, religion and mental or physical disability. Analyzing Diversity The word diversity is not new to the American vernacular; it has been around for many years. However, the meaning of the word diversity continues to evolve...
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...The Workplace, Communication and Diversity Vanessa J. Bailey BUS 600 Prof. Sean O’Leary June 8, 2014 Diversity, by definition, has three meanings. According to Collins English Dictionary (website:http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/diversity), diversity means: (1) the state of quality of being different or varied; (2) a point of difference: and (3) the relation that holds between two entities when and only when they are not identical; the property of being numerically distinct. For many of us, however, when we hear the word diversity we immediately associate it with our work environment and maybe even associate it directly with race and ethnicity in the work place. Multicultural diversity is no longer defined by race and ethnicity alone. In today’s workplace, it is important to also include age, gender, sexual orientation, education, religion and life experience (Okoro & Washington, 2012). With a better understanding of how inclusive workplace diversity has become, companies and corporations can now put greater emphasis in effective interpersonal and group communication as it is essential in today’s success (Okoro & Washington, 2012). As future managers and leaders, it is vital to understand communication and the foundation it provides for business, managerial and organizational communication. All three have a lot in common as well as overlap, in their intended functions (Reinsch, 1991). As Reinsch (1991) put it: “organizational communication is communication...
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...Why Diversity Recruitment is Important in the Workplace Latonia Baker lbakey@cc.edu DeVry Keller School of Graduate Studies Professor Burnell Carden April 17, 2016 HRM594 Abstract Numerous organizations have implemented diversity recruitment initiatives to earn the enthusiasm of minority occupation candidates. The verifiable message in these activities is that organizations keep up strong differences atmospheres. Minority work candidates that are along these lines procured may trust that the enrollment strategies used to lure them were misdirecting if genuine work-place assorted qualities atmospheres are unfavorable. This paper will explore the different issues and solutions that diversity recruitment has a staffing in an organization. Introduction Taking a stab at a diverse workforce is a prevailing issue for human asset experts. Its development in HR has given assorted qualities another face. Be that as it may, a basic meaning of assorted qualities is diverse for every association. Today diversity in the working environment incorporates more than the customary perspective that concentrates principally on sex and race. It has tackled a much more extensive definition. The changing demographics of the work power and commercial center are making it essential for organizations to venture up their differing qualities enlistment programs. As indicated by the Society for Human Resource Management, utilizing working environment differing qualities is progressively seen...
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...DIVERSITY IN THE WORK PLACE Herzing University BU 461 Reico Colter 4/14/14 In any workplace employees posses different characteristics that arise due to variances in age, culture, gender, marital status, heritage, sexual orientage,religious beliefs, physical abilities, educational capabilities among others which is referred as diversity in the workplace. It is therefore important that an organization acknowledges its effect. This can be achieved in two ways, the first being recruiting from a pool of skilled and talented employees from various backgrounds which will expose the employer to a variety of skills to the their advantage. Secondly by advertising their products and services, they will be able to reach their target market which mostly will be comprised of different categories of people. It is advisable that a company fully manages the process to ensure that they reap the benefits that come along with it rather than be having the same work against them. This will involve the management studying and understanding their employees as well as the targeted clients. Afterwards they should incorporate an appropriate culture such that they will always uphold the work ethics through continue training on relating to one another as well as the clients. Also as an individual initiative, each person will have to accommodate one another person to reduce the chances of conflicts and have a positive mind (Konrad, 2006). There are various strategies...
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...Most studies of interactions in culturally diverse workplaces focus on communication, obstacles, such as miscommunication, conflict and discrimination. However, another relevant aspect of a culturally diverse context are the positive results of successful intercultural communication, along with the means or techniques to which actors resort to in order to overcome the barriers set by diversity. In other words, how it is possible to work effectively and cooperate in a multicultural environment leading to positive outcomes. As a matter of fact, the lack of studies focusing on such aspect is brought to attention in Ryoo’s study (2005) on service encounters between Korean shop owners and African American customers, where the focus is put on the friendly interactions and successful communication among members of two very different ethnic groups. More specifically, some of the devices customers and shopkeepers employed were joking, complimenting or sharing attitudes, giving support, initiating rather elaborate small talk and often recurring to group identity markers, using terms as “baby” or “my man” to set a positive and relaxed atmosphere (Ryoo, 2005). However, although all these techniques led to beneficial intercultural cooperation, it should be remembered that, due to context where they took place, the relation between the two actors was of the merchant-customer kind, rather...
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