Cowen Hamilton Secondary School

Diversity and Inclusion to a more productive Trinidad and Tobago-

Civil Society Perspective

As there is a shift in workforce demographic and with new global markets emerging, diversity

within the workplace has significantly become a business necessity rather than a banner

companies use to show their commitment to embracing differences and change. Diversity and

Inclusion lead to more innovation, more opportunities for all, better access to talent, and better

business performance. . There has been an increased growth of civil society pushing for the

fulfillment of diversity and inclusion in the workplace and other places in society with the use of

legislation.

Diversity and inclusion is quite simply the right thing to do by creating equal rights for everyone.

This is still a work in progress but statistics show that we still have a long way to go. When we

take gender equality into consideration, women account for 60% of college graduates but only

3% of leaders worldwide. Women and girls also represent two/thirds of the worlds illiterate

population. Thats why PwC is supporting HeForShe - a movement led by UN women, which

aims to mobilize 1 billion men and boys in support of gender equality.

By bringing together individuals from different backgrounds and experiences there would be

equal opportunities for everyone, showing there is progress. Hiring diverse members means for

the business that there would be some skilled labor that in all provides greater productivity. A

diverse workforce can gain a greater share of the consumer market. Diversity moves our

economy forward as greater interaction and work forces more profits to be made. This is most

beneficial to our economy at this time where it is seen that a greater push for profits is being

made.
Cowen Hamilton Secondary School

Diversity is good for business and if organization doesnt manage diversity properly, theyll get

left behind. Companies that embrace diversity gain higher market share and a competitive edge

in accessing new markets a diversity dividend first quantified in a recent study by the Center

for Talent Innovation (CTI). Business leaders increasingly recognize this benefit. In our most

recent 18th Annual Global CEO Survey, 85% of the CEOs that were surveyed whose companies

have a formal diversity and inclusiveness strategy said its improved their bottom line

Today workplace equality is foremost for businesses, governments, regulators, society, and -most

importantly- the vital talent that will drive their future success. Thus, companies that dont focus

on this are outdated. In the most recent Global CEO Survey, 77% of CEO said that they already

had a diversity and inclusion strategy or they set out to adopt one in the year to come. A PwC

research shows that 86% of female and 74% of male millennials consider the policies of

employers policies on diversity, equality and inclusion when deciding which company to work

for.

Diversity plugs the talent gap for business- and is also good for society. Today, one of the biggest

concerns for CEOs worldwide is not having the right people to run and grow their businesses. So

theyre now started to look to diversity to accomplish this. Good workplace diversity doesnt just

benefit the businesses themselves, but also the economies they operate in a fact which was

underlined by research from the non-profit organization Catalyst. This shows that increasing the

level of female employment could help raise GDP substantially.This starts even before

quantifying the positive social impacts.

Cowen Hamilton Secondary School

Diversity and inclusion bring us all opportunities to learn from others and grow. By working with

people of different backgrounds and with a variety of experiences and working styles, we learn

and get another view. Diverse views make for better decisions, and thus drive a high-

performance culture. I think that the benefits of diversity are clear and unarguable. This does not

mean that embracing diversity vis always easy. We all therefore need to show leadership and

hold ourselves to account.

Diversity is a journey and we shouldnt kid ourselves we are very far from our destination. But if

we keep raising the pace, energized by the fact that this is a business-critical journey will lead to

more innovation, create more opportunities foe all in society, have a better access to talent and

overall a better business performance.

Cowen Hamilton Secondary School

Bibliography

Bibliography

West, M., Dawson, J., and Kaur, M. Making the difference: Diversity and
Inclusion in the NHS.

Mayhew, R. (n.d.). Why Is Diversity in the Workplace Important to

Employees? Retrieved March 03, 2016, from
http://smallbusiness.chron.com/diversity-workplace-important-employees-
10812.html