Diversity in the Workplace

PRESENTED BY:NISHA PAREEK

RITURAJ SHEKHAWAT
MBA-2ND SEM.
SECTION-A

What is Diversity?
Diversity is defined as all characteristics and
experiences that define each of us as
individuals.
A common misconception about diversity is that
it only pertains to certain persons or groups,
when in fact, exactly the opposite is true.
Diversity can include Race, Ethnicity, Gender,
Age, Religion, Disability, and Sexual orientation
A diverse workplace aims to create an inclusive
culture that values and uses the talents of all its
employees

History of Diversity in the Workplace

The 1964 Civil Rights Act made it illegal
for organizations to engage in
employment practices that
discriminated against employees on the
basis of race, color, religion, gender,
national origin, age, and disability.
In 1965, Executive Order 11246 was
passed requiring all government
contractors to take affirmative actions
to overcome past patterns of exclusion

History of Diversity in the Workplace

These mandates eliminated formal
policies that discriminated against
certain classes of workers and raised
costs to organizations that failed to
implement fair employment practices.
These laws remain a part of the legal
responsibilities under which
organizations abide by today.

History of Diversity in the Workplace

Although many organizations became
more diverse, there were still
organizations inhospitable to certain
classes of workers, and were slow to
change.
In order to foster the development of
more diverse organizational cultures,
companies began to offer training
programs aimed at valuing diversity.

Business Case for Diversity

The belief that diversity is a business
necessity because a more diverse
workforce produces better business
results.
Many organizations began to see that
having diversity in the workplace was a
precursor to diversity in the market
place.

The Effects of Diversity in the

Workplace

Solid research needed to be conducted to

support the idea that diversity was beneficial
to the workplace.
Diversity was found to be a lot more complex
than it was originally thought to be.
Research indicates that diversity can produce
both positive and negative effects when
introduced and enforced in the workplace.
Evidence suggests that diversity may produce
conflict and employee turnover as well as

Benefits of Diversity
Groups with greater diversity were shown to
have greater innovation and creativity.
Diverse groups have a greater range of
perspectives, and are able to generate more
high quality solutions than less diverse groups.
Diversity increases constructive group
processes and is positively associated with
performance in business units.
Diversity is associated with increased sales
revenue, greater market share, more
customers, and greater profits.

Negative Effects of Diversity

Diverse groups are shown to be less
integrated and have a higher level of
dissatisfaction.
Increases the level of dissatisfaction in
group members, as well as
miscommunication.
Diversity can be linked with conflict,
lower group adhesiveness, increased
employee turnover and absenteeism,

Factors that Effect Diversity

Research suggests that whether or not
diversity has a positive or negative effect
depends on different aspects of the
organizations strategies, culture, and
human resource practices. This indicates
that diversity may be beneficial under
certain conditions and in certain
organizations (Pugh, Dietz, Brief, & Wiley,
2008).

Size of the organization

Age of the organization
Type of organization
Diversity of the community surrounding an
organization

Diversity Training
As diversity in the workforce grows at
an amazing rate, more and more
organizations are now focusing on
diversity in the workplace by
emphasizing recruitment, selection,
retention, and training.

Diversity Training
Diversity training has three major
objectives in the workplace:
increase awareness about diversity issues
reduce biases and stereotypes that deter
from effective management
change behaviors to help effectively
manage a diverse workforce

Effectiveness of Diversity Training

With diversity training, employees have a
greater understanding of the value diversity,
better diversity management skills, and more
effective diversity related behaviors .
After undergoing training, managers saw
diversity related practices as more important
than they did prior to the training, and were
more likely to positively engage in diversity
related practices.

Diversity in the Workplace Today

While many organizations are embracing
diversity in the workforce, there are still
organizations today that remain unreceptive.
Although many government agencies and
Fortune 500 companies provide diversity
training, around 40% of organizations still do
not.
Even the organizations that claim to be strong
advocates for diversity do not have the
statistics to back their claims.
Only 30% of female employees hold management
positions in Wal-Mart This is a very low number
considering 70% of their employees are female.

Diversity in the Workplace Today

Gender discrimination is still a huge problem
within many organizations. Many male
managers are slow to promote female
employees to managerial positions. A Senior
Vice President interviewed by Turner (2007),
was quoted saying,
Well, yes we need to have more women in
senior positions. Our senior leadership team
includes only men. But, personally, Im just
less comfortable with women on the senior
team. We spend a lot of time together. You
know you always have to be worried about the
sexual harassment thing, what you say, how
you say itBut, that doesnt mean we

Diversity in the Workplace Today

Other companies such as Abercrombie and
Fitch show extreme racial preference, with a
reputation for hiring people to fit their image
of a Classic American, which they believe are
attractive white employees. Due to this, they
have faced many lawsuits

Diversity in the Workplace Today

Many of these companies now claim that
diversity is important to them, especially on
their websites, however it is clear that this is
only in response to the many lawsuits theyve
faced.
Marques states It becomes apparent,
however, when studying the background of
these appealing statements, that they were
not formulated spontaneously, but, just like
A&F above, merely as a reaction to massive
discrimination lawsuits (2010).

Conclusion
It is clear that diversity has a profound effect
in the workplace. While many studies have
been conducted, these studies show
conflicting results, implying further research is
needed.
As the workforce continues to grow more
diverse at a staggering rate, it is necessary for
organizations to embrace diversity
Although many organizations have increased
their acceptance of diversity, it has yet to fully
garner a majority of support

THANK YOU