Abstract
Many organizational employees exude dissimilar tendencies and attributes as evident in sex, race, nationality and background. These differences are potentially beneficial in decision-making, increased resourcefulness and efficacious marketing strategies. However, bigger differences in cultural aspects at the work place lead to conflicts among employees, sophisticated turnover and communication failures. In order for managers to benefit from organizational diversity and reduce potential costs, they engage in continuous formulation of multicultural organizations. These are organizations where employees of different races, background, ethnicity and experience are free to contribute to various decisions in organizations thus improving overall production.
Introduction
High level of globalization calls for more collaboration amid individuals of dissimilar cultures, credentials and opinions. Individuals no longer toil and live in a blinkered marketplace; instead, they are part of a global economy that embraces rivalry. Therefore, diverse organizations require the appropriate management of diversity for them to be resourceful and flexible (MorBarak, 2010, P 249). This management approach promotes and sustains a progressive workplace environment. The human resource professionals instigate the diversity management program with the intention of encouraging, respecting and acknowledging dissimilarities that exist in a set of employees. This program also inspires workers to be at ease with uniformity at the workplace. As such, they can cultivate an appreciation for variances in race, sex, background and other factors that are not common among similar company employees. The fundamental value in diversity management is acceptance whereby individuals maintain their beliefs and morals while acknowledging that all people are not alike (Griffin, 2010, P. 174; Fine, 2005, P.47). Instead of employees going through intimidation and bias due to their variances in race, background and ethnicity, the process of diversity management is vital as it encourages them to accept their differences in interests, physical characters, values and impassive characteristics. Further, workplace diversity should not lower productivity or cause conflicts instead it should encourage attainment of aims and objectives
Context
Importance of diversity management in multicultural organizations
Multicultural organizations’ culture focuses on encouraging and respecting cultural diversity that exists among the organizations’ employees through acculturation. These organizations are fully united and free from biases and favors’ towards groups and individuals. In multicultural organizations, diversity management is necessary because it fosters honest and ethical reasoning. In these organizations, diversity management fosters equal opportunities to all employees without considering their sex, race, gender and ethnic. These encompass offering potential employees with equivalent job opportunities and providing existing employees with pays that are worth their jobs. In addition, they practice compensatory justice whereby the organizations have a duty to shun historical discrimination against groups of individuals and compensate the deliberately and unjustly wronged employees (Vardy & Morgan, 2006, P. 45).
Diversity management offers a multicultural organization with competitive improvements. Indeed, by managing diversity, organizations gain because of the following factors. Firstly, they experience cost reductions due to a diminished rate of nonattendance and turnovers. Secondly, they benefit from the competition that exists among the employees thus increasing production. Thirdly, diversity management leads to reduction in discrimination level due to the non-discriminating environment, which enhances cooperation amongst employees thus enhancing production. Fourthly, they offer markets that are more current to dissimilar customers and this originates from the fact that employees come from different background with different knowledge. Fifthly, this management results in increased vision and modernism to an organization resulting from varied work teams thus boost the general performance of an organization. Sixthly, the organizations will benefit by getting governmental treaties that go to less fortunate and gender grounded groups thus improving the economic status of an organization. Lastly, diversity management fosters cooperate image of an organization by creating public goodwill which brings the illuminates the organization (Groschl, 2010, p. 250).
In multicultural organizations, diversity management supports the organization’s mission statements and cooperate attitude by having a fully inclusive work place whose aim is to leverage talents. In these organizations, employees are the greatest assets because they embrace essential values therefore providing an enticing working environment. The employees are committed to emerging the winners thus developing an attitude of service to others. While employees make affirmative modifications to their organizations in multicultural organizations, they also support their native communities through dedicating funds to them and participating in community centered services (Groschl, 2010, p. 251; Hardina, 2007, p. 203).
Diversity management in a multicultural organization aims at giving noticeable benefits to its employees. This managing method is a business tactic with a tenacity to tap the full prospective of all workers in an organization thus improving competitive advantage. In contrary, in the past, when employees from dissimilar backgrounds fail to conform to values and norms of majority they were regarded as unqualified by their managers. Diversity management permits all employees in an organization to present their exceptional perspective, which are implemented thus increasing total production of an organization. These benefits may include comprehensive appeal to various clients because diverse workers link well with varied clients. Secondly, the organization will benefit by having the best yields because different opinions from employees results to high-level of creativity thus providing recognizable services (Constantine & Sue, 2005, P. 213). Finally, the organizations will prosper by getting high sales because diverse workers understand different clients easily. For example, once they realize that attractive women increase customers, a need arises to increase the proportion of attractive women among the workforce (Albrecht, 2001, P. 250).
Challenges of diversity management in multicultural organizations
As demographics consistently alternate, a need still arises to enhance diversity management; however, this is not without recognizing the challenges associated with it. First, many people do not believe in diversity management meaning that developing, nourishing and treasuring a diverse management calls for persistence, awareness and excessive audacity. The process of managing diversity in multicultural organizations equally faces challenges of systematic and emotional characteristics that negatively affect diversity efforts (Mujtaba, 2009, P.2009).
Secondly, it is intricate for all members in an organization to respect and work freely with each other. Due to differences in the existing subcultures in an organization, employees tend to get interested in their subcultures thus interacting with people from a similar cultural background. This is equally attributable to the notion that people are likely to acquire tendencies attributable to ethnocentrisms hence making employees act in a manner suggesting or displaying the superiority of their culture compared to others (Connerley & Pedersen, 2005, P. 84).
Thirdly, it is challenging to manage different population with different cultures at the work place because this involves diagnosing values that exist in people’s differences, battling discrimination and encouraging inclusiveness. Organizations are also challenged by low productivity resulting from prejudices and insights of employees in the organization. Employees’ negative approaches and behaviors block the organizational multiplicity because they destroy the working relationship that subsists amongst workers thus destroying workers determination and work efficiency. Negative attitudes at the work place such as stereotype and bigotry should be shunned in any organization for positive efficiency (Arredondo, 2006, p. 142).
Finally, diversity management creates tough challenges in multicultural organizations by creating pressures thus giving rise to dilemmas in organizations. Most of these organizations experience competitive pressures in the environment leading to resource scarcity. These pressures can decline the states’ overall production therefore making taxpayers demand for further proficiency and success in their work places. In this case, the organizations enticement to endow employees’ capital in response to the new demands will be minimal (Sue & Constantine, 2005, P. 166).
Research Questions
- What are the drivers for introducing diversity management in multicultural organizations?
- What are the main perceived barriers that stand against integrating diversity management in multicultural organizations?
- What are the management and communication process within multicultural organization?
- How do multicultural organizations differ from the past?
Methodology
Investigating how diversity management benefits multicultural organizations require the utilization of both primary and secondary data methods. In primary data method, collection of primary data for research will occur through interviewing workers from different multicultural organization. It will also happen through observation of the turnout of employees in multicultural organizations. In secondary data method, information for this research will be deductible published works, which include books, reports, journals and related publications that are relevant to the research objectives (Merrigan & Huston, 2004, P. 55).
As a means of achieving superior standards from this research, a need arises to apply various methods in data collection. These methods incorporate the utilization of questionnaires and oral interviews. Application of open ended and close-ended questionnaires will also be vital. The respondents will be free to express their opinions without bias, and seek clarification for all questions thus avoiding misunderstanding. Personal interviews will be instrumental amongst multicultural organizational workers while public interviews will aid the public gatherings especially during the multicultural organizational meetings. Personal observation will happen through observing how employees from multicultural organizations behave while working (Merrigan & Huston, 2004, P. 57).
Theoretical project
This project is initiated based on the theory that arrangements, which existed in traditional work places, are insufficient when it comes to addressing the current challenges e in organizations. Changes from the industrial era to suggestion based cultures, and trade a service economy compounded with pressures from different parts in the globe changes arrangements in the work places. These developments have influenced diverse diversity managements in different nations. In addition, diversity management is becoming an important tool in institutional competitiveness and activeness thus becoming a special instrument to managers during management of their jobs (Hogan, 2007, p 107).
Diversity management is a solution to different multicultural organizations. In European Union, there is awareness on diversity management to lesser and middle scale businesses for them to develop their capacity to work with people from divergent areas across the globe. In Australia, education on uniformity management with the intention of ending common discernment equally exists against Aboriginal and Islander individuals. In Asia, multicultural organizations have more values and they aim in expanding their multinational companies to achieve coherence among the Muslims and Hindus. In South Africa, there is awareness on diversity management in to boost reduction of Apartheid system.
In United States, various organizations, institutions, communities and business sectors have been practicing diversity management awareness since 1960s. In U.S., diversity management in business sectors peaked during late 1980s and all over 1990s, which was important in resolving human rights concerns. Many establishments currently trust in diversity management because they assume that it can boost the organizations productivity and revolution. Diversity management in U.S. started as a response to human rights measures and protest by activists. They were sending messages to Americans that Africans Americans would never keep quiet regarding their ruthless treatment as residents. Therefore, diversity management led to social change in U.S. bringing to more stable society free from race discriminations (Constantine & Sue, 2005, P. 213).
In Africa, the concept on diversity management emerged to promote parity among present opportunities in work places. This helped organizations in acquiring more benefits from diverse employees rather than losing abilities that could contribute positively to progress. High levels of mobility and communication amid people of unlike backgrounds due to introduction of political systems and appreciation of human rights have forced many organizations to practice diversity in their work places. Therefore, all nations should practice diversity management in their organizations because with diversity, there is heterogeneity that requires promotion, enlightening and escalating for it to increase (Groschl, 2011, P.70-79).
Reflection
According to my perception, diversity management in multicultural organizations should be encouraged in all nations around the globe. This is attributable to the importance of diversity management in different organizations. This will create a competitive environment thus leading to better decisions and increased production. Diversity management helps in reduction of discrimination in organizations leading to high level of inclusiveness in decisions concerning the company. According to research by different organizations, it is true that practice of diversity management in organizations will be vital in increasing staff maintenance and efficiency (Arredondo, 2006, P. 153). It helps the organization when responding to different customers all over the globe thus fostering its relationship with the neighboring communities. It enables organizations to coping with instant changes that occur within the premises. In addition to the positive goals that this strategy contributes to organizations, diversity can also contribute to unique goals like improved availability and liability to all members.
Conclusion
A Globalizing economy together with a developing multinational cooperation makes diversity management necessary to organizations that do not only aim at surviving but also thriving in times of social and cultural changes. This is possible because diversity management aims at creating policies and programs with inclusion of employees from different backgrounds who can freely contribute to the objectives of an organization. Implementing diversity management at workplaces is vital because it gives noticeable benefits to organizations and competitive advantages to various regions such as marketing and improving corporate image (Syed & Ozbilgin, 2010, p 65). Concisely, diversity concepts will always be a tricky feature in today’s business environment. Therefore, all organizations should embrace and appreciate the significance of management diversity so that they can continue to be competitive, enhance innovation and react to globalization. Stout commitment and management will deliver essential cultural atmosphere that encourages an all-inclusive environment. Through training, organizational education and purposeful communication, it will be possible to acquire strong management practices. As new chances and potentials are increasing in business environment, it is essential to practice diversity management for the success of organizations in future. Finally, it is vital to note that today’s world is more varied than ever before as evident in religion, ethnicity, backgrounds and other individual attributes. Therefore, there is need for all individuals to accept the differences that exist amidst dissimilar cultures and respect them.
List of References
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