Workplace Diversity

Leveraging the Power of Difference for Competitive Advantage

Diversity represents a company's fundamental attitude that it not only respects and values the individuality of its employees but also understands how to tap the potentially significant contributions inherent in diversity.

Diversity Defined Today

The definition of diversity extends well beyond the traditional view that once focused primarily on gender and race and reflects the broader perspective of workplace diversity today.

A broad definition of diversity ranges from personality and work style to all of the visible dimensions such as race, age, ethnicity or gender, to secondary influences such as religion, socioeconomics and education.

The impetus behind workplace diversity is that of inclusion and the business case: embracing and leveraging differences for the benefit of the organization. The collaboration of cultures, ideas and different perspectives is now considered an organizational asset-bringing forth greater creativity and innovation-with the result that many companies are increasingly focusing on corporate diversity initiatives to improve organizational performance.

Today, groundbreaking research goes beyond the historical framework of workplace diversity. The emerging paradigm is integration and learning. That is, companies promote equal opportunity and value cultural differences, using the talents of all employees to gain diverse work perspectives. To achieve this level of diversity management organizational leaders must have a clear understanding of how they define diversity as well as what exactly the organization does with the experiences of being a diverse workforce.

 The Business Case for Workplace Diversity

Increasingly, the case for workplace diversity as a business imperative is gaining recognition by leaders in the business world.

One of the major drivers behind the business case is the demographic changes that directly affect the labor pool and available talent.  These changes are significant. In an organization, human capital and workforce relationships are the backbone of success. The flow of information between colleagues, work teams, customers and suppliers, for example, depends on the quality of relationships and talent in the workplace. Consequently, workplace diversity is increasingly viewed as an essential success factor to be competitive in today's marketplace.

Advantages

• Six key reasons to tie workplace diversity to organizational strategic goals and objectives are: 1) greater adaptability and flexibility in a rapidly changing marketplace; 2) attracting and retaining the best talent; 3) reducing costs associated with turnover, absenteeism and low productivity; 4) return on investment (ROI) from various initiatives, policies and practices; 5) gaining and keeping greater/new market share (locally and globally) with an expanded diverse customer base; and 6) increased sales and profits. Workplace diversity can be viewed as having both direct and indirect links to the bottom line. In business, the preferred equation for success is a single action that directly impacts financial performance. Workplace diversity, however, is a complex phenomenon. Consequently, the link of workplace diversity to financial success is not always immediately apparent. 

Senior Management's Role

Visibility, communication and accountability are key to achieving a competitive diverse workforce. A recent study on what makes and breaks diversity initiatives found three critical points of leadership: 1) accountability; 2) a passion for diversity; and 3) sustained involvement. Visible commitment throughout the organization is important: adding diversity on the agenda at executive meetings and company conferences, appointing diversity candidates to top positions, and assigning clear roles and responsibilities to the senior management team regarding diversity management. Accountability creates sustained involvement-that is, holding managers accountable to deliver diversity results. Participation in diversity councils is recommended as a development path for senior leadership.²³ However, simply placing women and/or minorities in high-profile positions, for example, is insufficient. Rather, the more effective approach is to hold management accountable for results. Consequently, to get middle management and employee buy-in, top management must establish clear implementation and reporting requirements. The company's goal is to supply managers with a best practices list that offers flexibility tied to individual business cultures as well as performance.

Diversity Management and the Board of Directors

Increasingly, the business case for diversity focuses on the board of directors. The impetus to change the board composition is a direct result of the trend toward corporate governance and diversity of the workforce, customer base and other stakeholders. Organizations want a wider range of leadership skills, work styles, perspectives and expertise, as well as increased representation of women and minorities among board directors.

There is no "best way" to manage diversity. The identification, selection and purpose of diversity initiatives and their development and implementation differ from company to company. The likelihood of success is dependent on business needs and workforce issues as well as situational factors, such as the organizational culture and workplace environment. Ultimately, the strength of commitment by the CEO, senior management and HR leadership will determine whether the organization successfully leverages workplace diversity for competitive advantage.  

An Affiliate of the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce
 
 Send mail to randyb@scdiversitycouncil.org with comments about this site.
Last modified: 02/28/2008