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Diversity in Organizations
BUS 107
Dr. Raj K. Singh

Agenda
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Explain the pervasive demographic changes

occurring in the domestic and global marketplace and
how corporations are responding.

Explain how the definition of diversity has grown to

recognize a broad spectrum of differences among
employees, and appreciate the dividends of a diverse
workforce.

Explain the complex attitudes, opinions, and

issues that employees bring to the workplace,
including prejudice, discrimination, stereotypes, and
ethnocentrism.

Agenda (Continued)
3

Explain the factors that affect womens

opportunities, including the glass ceiling, the
opt-out trend, and the female advantage.

Explain the five steps in developing cultural

competence in the workplace.

Describe how diversity initiatives and training

programs help create a climate that values
diversity.

Explain how multicultural teams and employee

network groups help organizations respond to
the rapidly changing and complex workplace.

Do You Know Your Biases?

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As a manager, your day-to-day behavior will send

signals about your biases and values.

What is Diversity?
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Diversity represents all the ways we are

different
Laws provide the first basis for diversity: equal
employment opportunity
Laws based on historical discrimination against
certain groups in our society: race, sex, color,
religion, national origin, disability, etc.

Why Value Diversity?

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Future workforce will have huge

demographic variations
Companies report competitive
advantage as the key driver of diversity
efforts
Diverse markets require diverse
operatives; organizations must know the
markets they seek to serve

The Changing Workplace

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Diversity in the United States

Aging Workforce

Growth in Hispanic and Asian Workers

Minority Purchasing Power

Growth in Foreign-born Population

Global Diversity

The aging population is a global phenomenon

Social and cultural differences are creating challenges

The meaning of diversity differs around the world

Global businesses have global customers, employees,

suppliers, and stockholders

Biographical
Characteristics
and How They Are Relevant
Age
The U.S. workforce is aging.
to
OB

Does

job performance decline with

increasing age?
Studies show that turnover and
absenteeism rates are lower among older
workers, and age is not associated with
lower productivity.

The Village Earth

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If we could shrink the earth's population to a village of

precisely 100 people, with all the existing human ratios
remaining the same, it would look something like the
following. There would be:

The Village Earth

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57 Asians
21 Europeans; 14 from the Western Hemisphere, both
north and south
8 Africans
52 would be female
48 would be male
70 would be non-white
30 would be white
70 would be non-Christian
30 would be Christian
89 would be heterosexual
11 would be homosexual

The Village Earth

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80 would live in substandard housing

70 would be unable to read
50 would suffer from malnutrition
1 would be near death; 1 would be near birth
1 (yes, only 1) would have a college education
Less than 2 would own a computer

The Challenge of Workplace

Diversity?
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The challenge lies in the continuous improvement

of the integration and social acceptance of people
from different backgrounds.
Our differing human characteristics influence the
way we think, act, interact, and make choices.
Often, these differences interfere with our ability to
support, trust, and respect each other, and thus to
effectively function together.

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Leaders in Corporate
Diversity

Growth in Employment from 2006 to

2016 by Group
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Managing Diversity
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Diversity is all of the ways in which

people are different

Companies are embracing a more

inclusive definition of diversity

Spectrum of differences: how employees

approach work, interact, approach work,
derive satisfaction and define who they
are

Traditional vs. Inclusive

Models of Diversity
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Dividends of Workplace Diversity

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Better use of employee talent

Increased understanding of the marketplace

Increased quality of team problem solving

Reduced costs associated with high turnover,

absenteeism, and lawsuits

Factors Shaping
Personal Bias
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Stereotypes are often based on folklore, media

portrayals, and other unreliable sources of
information

Stereotypes contain negative connotations

Stereotypes assume that all members of a group

have the same characteristics

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Federal and State Laws Regarding

Diversity

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964

The Equal Pay Act of 1963
The American with Disabilities Act
The Age Discrimination in Employment Act

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Factors Affecting Womens

Careers

Glass Ceiling. An invisible barrier that separates

women from top management positions.

Opt-Out Trend. Many women are deciding to

get off the fast track to top management before
hitting the glass ceiling.

The Wage Gap

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Biographical
Characteristics
and How They Are Relevant
Sex
There are no consistent male-female
to
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differences in problem solving ability,

analytical skills, competitive drive,
motivation, sociability, or learning drive.
But women earn less than men for the
same positions and have fewer professional
opportunities.
Lilly Ledbetter

Diversity Initiatives and Programs

Changing Structures and Policies

Expanding Recruitment Efforts

Establishing Mentor Relationships

Accommodating Special Needs

Providing Diversity Skills Training

How Organizations
Manage Diversity
Attracting, selecting, developing, and
Effectively

retaining diverse employees

Target recruiting messages to specific

demographic groups.
Ensure that hiring is bias free.
Create a positive diversity climate.

How Organizations
Manage Diversity
Diversity in groups
Effectively

Most people in groups need a common way

of looking at and accomplishing major
tasks, and they need to communicate well
with each other.
Emphasize

higher-level similarities among

people.
Use transformational leadership.

How Organizations
Manage Diversity
Effective diversity programs
Effectively

Teach managers about the legal framework

for equal employment opportunity and
encourage fair treatment of all people.
Teach managers how a diverse workforce
will be more effective at serving a diverse
customer base.
Foster personal development practices that
bring out the skills and abilities of
everyone.

Increasing Awareness of
Sexual Harassment

Sexual harassment creates an

unhealthy and unproductive
work environment

Sexual Harassment is illegal,

violation of Civil Rights Act

150% increase in sexual

harassment filings in US

Companies are creating

awareness programs

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Why Value Diversity?

The Business Case for Diversity

Improved Organizational Performance

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Companies rated on Fortunes 50 Best

Companies for Minorities outperformed
the S&P 500 over three- and five-year
periods
Academy of Management Journal:
Organizations with diverse management
teams correlate with superior corporate
performance

The Business Case for Diversity

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Reduced Turnover, Improved

Retention

Society for Human Resource

Management (SHRM) study: diversity
initiatives positively affect the bottom
line

Ability to recruit
Ability to retain
Improved client relations
Improved productivity
Improved corporate culture

The Business Case for Diversity

Increased Innovation
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Diversity provides a richer variety of

approaches to work and problem solving
Diversity strengthens an organization's
resilience in changing environmental
conditions
Diversity allows challenges to longaccepted views

The Business Case for Diversity

Increased Effectiveness in Minority Markets

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Helps organizations understand how to

effectively interact with all of its client
base
Informs organizational practices that
create community support in all
populations
Helps manage perceptions of
historically underserved markets

The Business Case for Diversity

Positive Impact on Group Performance

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SHRM and Fortune survey concluded

that diversity:

Improves corporate culture 83%

Improves employee morale 70%
Increases creativity 59%
Decreases interpersonal conflict 58%
Enables movement into emerging
markets 57%
Improves productivity 52%

Class Discussion Question

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What can we do as managers to show

our employees that diversity is valued?
Please explain with examples.