Ch.5 - Managing Diversity

three reasons to focus on diversity in management

- people management - organizational performance - Strategy (business)

global workforce changes (the changing workplace)

- population will grow significantly (9 billion by 2050) and then predicted to stabilize/peak - UNPRECEDENTED growth rate of elderly population by 2050 - more old people, more old people will be around

what a good mentor does

- provide instruction - offers advice - gives constructive criticism - helps build appropriate - shares technical experience - devs high quality, close, and supportive relationship with protege - keeps lines of comms open - knws when to let protege prove what she/he can do

organizational performance (reason to manage workforce diversity)

cost savings include reducing employee turnover, absenteeism, and the chance of lawsuits - reduced costs - enhanced problem solving ability - improved system flexibility

incivility (type of discrimination)

disrespectful treatment, including behaving in an aggressive manner, interrupting person or ignoring his/her opinions

people management (reason to manage workforce diversity)

diversity is, after all, about people, both inside and outside the organization - workforce diversity efforts revolve around attracting and retaining a talented workforce. - better use of employee talent - increased quality of team problem solving efforts - ability to attract and retain employees of diverse backgrounds

exclusion (type of discrimination)

exclusion of certain people from job opportunities, social events, discussions, or informal mentoring; can occur unintentionally

employee resource groups

groups made up of employees connected by some common dimension of diversity. - Such groups typically are formed by the employees themselves, not the organizations. - important for organizations to recognize and support these groups.

mockery or insults (type of discrimination)

jokes or negative stereotypes; sometimes the result of jokes taken too far

intimidation (form of discrimination)

overt threats or bullying directed at members of specific groups of employees

late 1980s: concept of workforce diversity expanded from compliance to issue of business survival (timeline of evolution of workforce diversity)

publication of Workforce 2000 opened business leaders's eyes about future composition of workforce - that is, more diverse - first use of term workforce diversity

other types of diversity (types of diversity)

refers to any dissimilarities or differences that might be present in a workplace - types of workplace diversity that managers might confront and have to deal with include socioeconomic background (social class and income-related factors), team members from different functional areas or organizational units, physical attractiveness, obesity/thinness, job seniority, or intellectual abilities.

ethnicity (type of workplace diversity)

related to race, but it refers to social traits—such as one's cultural background or allegiance—that are shared by a human population.

late 1980s-late 1990s: focus on fostering sensitivity (timeline of evolution of workforce diversity)

shift from compliance/only focusing on women and minorities to including everyone; making employees feel more aware and sensitive to needs and differences of others

diversity skills training (top management commitment to diversity)

specialized training to educate employees about the importance of diversity and to teach them skills for working in a diverse workplace

workforce diversity

the ways in which people in an organization are different from and similar to one another - ranks with modern business disciplines such as quality, leadership, and ethics. Despite this popularity, it's also one of the most controversial and least understood topics - not only focuses on the differences, but the similarities, of employees. This reinforces our belief that managers and organizations should view employees as having qualities in common as well as differences that separate them.

characteristics of US population (the changing workplace)

total population projected to increase significantly by 2050 - racial/ethnic group populations will increase (especially Hispanic population) - a lager percentage of population will be elderly (larger older population) - immigration will play huge role in population increase - 1 in 5 Americans will be immigrants by 2050 - 1 in 5 americans will be 65 and older by 2050

The Legal Aspect of Workplace Diversity

-Federal laws have contributed to some of the social change we've seen over the last 50-plus years -Workplace diversity needs to be more than understanding and complying with federal laws. -Organizations that are successful at managing diversity use additional diversity initiatives and programs

LGBT: Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (type of workplace diversity)

U.S. federal law does not prohibit discrimination against employees on the basis of sexual orientation - states have filled in gap with laws (some)

1960s-1970s: focus on compliance with laws and regulations (timeline of evolution of workforce diversity)

Title VII of Civil Rights Act of 1964 - Equal opportunity Commission -affirmative action policies and programs

mentoring (top management commitment to diversity)

a process whereby an experienced organizational member (a mentor) provides advice and guidance to a less-experienced member (a protégé). - Mentors usually provide two unique forms of mentoring functions: career development and social support.

discriminatory policies or practices (form of discrimination)

actions taken by representatives of organization that deny equal opportunity to perform or unequal rewards for performance

early 1980s: focus on assimilating minorities and women into corporate setting (timeline of evolution of diversity)

corporate programs developed to help improve self-confidence and qualifications of diverse individuals so they "fit in"

discrimination (challenges in managing diversity)

when someone acts out their prejudicial attitudes toward people who are the targets of their prejudice.

strategic (reason to manage workforce diversity)

workforce diversity is a key to extracting the best talent performance, market share, and suppliers from a diverse country and world. - with a diverse workforce, organizations can better anticipate and respond to changing consumer needs. Diverse employees bring a variety of points of view and approaches to opportunities, which can improve how the organization markets to diverse consumers - potential to improve sales growth and market share value - viewed as moral and ethical

New millennium: focus on diversity and inclusion for business success (timeline of evolution of workforce diversity)

workforce diversity seen as core business issue; important to achieve business success, profitability, and growth

prejudice (challenges in managing diversity)

•A pre-conceived belief, opinion, or judgment toward a person or a group of people. - can be based on all the types of diversity

bias (challenges in managing diversity)

•A tendency or preference toward a particular perspective or ideology.

age (type of workplace diversity)

•Both Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 prohibit age discrimination.

disability/ability (type of workplace diversity)

•The Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 prohibits discrimination against persons with disabilities. - consists of largest minority in America - ADA prohibits discrimination against an individual who is "regarded as" having a disability and requires employers to make reasonable accommodations so their workplaces are accessible to people with physical or mental disabilities and enable them to effectively perform their jobs.

race (type of workplace diversity)

•The biological heritage (including skin color and associated traits) that people use to identify themselves. - Most people identify themselves as part of a racial group. Such racial classifications are an integral part of a country's cultural, social, and legal environments.

religion (type of workplace diversity)

•Title VII of the Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination on the basis of religion. - Today, it seems that the greatest religious diversity issue in the United States revolves around Islam, especially after 9/11.

gender (type of workplace diversity)

•Women (49.8%) and men (50.2%) now each make up almost half of the workforce. - focus now on including more women in upper management roles

stereotyping (challenges in managing diversity)

•judging a person based on a prejudicial perception of a group to which that person belongs. - aren't factual and distort our judgment.

glass ceiling (challenges in managing diversity)

•the invisible barrier that separates women and minorities from top management positions. - whatever's blocking the way isn't immediately apparent.

sexual harassment - quid pro quo (challenges in managing diversity)

•this for that" unwanted sexual advances and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature that creates a hostile or offensive work environment.