Assignment

on

Diversity in Workplace

Submitted By
Jabir Farabi

Submitted To
Krishno Bhasin

Submission Date: February 05, 2021

 Diversity in workplace

Diversity
The concept of diversity encompasses acceptance and respect. It means
understanding that each individual is unique, and recognizing our individual
differences. These can be along the dimensions of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual
orientation, socio-economic status, age, physical abilities, religious beliefs,
political beliefs, or other ideologies. It is the exploration of these differences in
a safe, positive, and nurturing environment. It is about understanding each other
and moving beyond simple tolerance to embracing and celebrating the rich
dimensions of diversity contained within each individual.
Diversity is a reality created by individuals and groups from a broad spectrum
of demographic and philosophical differences. It is extremely important to
support and protect diversity because by valuing individuals and groups free
from prejudice and by fostering a climate where equity and mutual respect are
intrinsic, we will create a success-oriented, cooperative, and caring community
that draws intellectual strength and produces innovative solutions from the
synergy of its people.
Diversity is generally defined as acknowledging, understanding, accepting,
valuing, and celebrating differences among people with respect to age, class,
ethnicity, gender, physical and mental ability, race, sexual orientation, spiritual
practice, and public assistance status (Esty, et al., 1995).
According to Patrick & Kumar, “Diversity is a set of conscious practices that
involve understanding and appreciating interdependence of humanity, cultures,
and the natural environment; practicing mutual respect for qualities and
experiences that are different from our own; understanding that diversity
includes not only ways of being but also ways of knowing; recognizing that
personal, cultural, and institutionalized discrimination creates and sustains
privileges for some while creating and sustaining disadvantages for others; and
building alliances across differences so that we can work together to eradicate
all forms of discrimination.”[CITATION Har12 \l 3081 ]
Diversity in Workplace

In recent years, the topic of diversity and inclusion in the workplace has
extended to ensuring that companies increasing the participation, performance
and compensation of minorities, not just symbolic hiring in order to “tick a
box”. More importantly, companies have recognized the huge value that hiring
a diverse range of individuals and personalities can add more to their business.
Diversity in the workplace is thriving within the HR world now more than ever.
That said, all the businesses are looking to adapt to diverse teams since it comes
with a plethora of amazing benefits.
Workplace diversity (WPD) is a holistic concept that denotes the differences
that exist between people working within an organization. It describes the
complex physical, sociological or psychological attributes such as gender,
ethnicity and sexual orientation, religious or political beliefs that define an
individual or group. Therefore, WPD transcends the recruitment, representation
or preferential treatment of people within an organization.
It can also be referred as the variety of differences between people in an
organization. That sounds simple, but diversity encompasses race, gender,
ethnic group, age, personality, cognitive style, tenure, organizational function,
education, background, and more. Diversity involves not only how people
perceive themselves but also how they perceive others. Those perceptions affect
their interactions. For a wide assortment of employees to function effectively as
an organization, human resource professionals need to deal effectively with
issues such as communication, adaptability, and change.[ CITATION Har12 \l 3081 ]
Workplace diversity is not simply acknowledging differences such as age,
disability, ethnicity, gender or expression of religion and sexual orientation. It
involves positively creating an environment that embraces and values
differences, as a business’s core competitive advantage and promoting
inclusiveness.
Types of Diversity in Workplace

List of the different types of diversity in the workplace:

 Cultural diversity
 Racial diversity
 Religious diversity
 Age diversity
 Sex / Gender diversity
 Sexual orientation
 Disability

Here’s a breakdown of these forms of diversity:

Cultural diversity
This type of diversity is related to each person’s ethnicity and it’s usually the set
of norms we get from the society we were raised in or our family’s values.
Having different cultures in the workplace is more common in multinational
companies.
Race diversity
Race has to do with a person’s grouping based on physical traits (despite the
dominant scientific view that race is a social construct and not biologically
defined). Examples of races are Caucasian, African, Latino and Asian.
Religious diversity
This type of diversity refers to the presence of multiple religions and spiritual
beliefs (including lack thereof) in the workplace.
Age diversity
Age diversity means working with people of different ages and, most
importantly, generations. For example, millennials, GenZers and GenXers can
coexist in the same workplace.
Sex / Gender / Sexual orientation
Sex and gender can be used in the traditional sense of male and female
employees. For example, you may sometimes hear the term “gender balance”
used by companies trying to achieve a 50-50 balance between employees who
identify as male and employees who identify as female. But, as gender is
increasingly redefined, the term “gender diversity” may be more appropriate,
since there are multiple variations in gender and sexual orientation.
Disability
There are various types of disabilities or chronic conditions included here,
ranging from mental to physical. Companies often make reasonable
accommodations to help people with disabilities integrate into the workplace,
such as installing ramps for wheelchairs or providing mental health support.
Some companies also adjust their hiring process to make sure it's inclusive.
Benefits of Diversity in Workplace

1. Increased confidence:
When employees recognize that differences are embraced and celebrated in an
organization, they are likely to also be more confident in their own unique
qualities. Encouraging diversity can help to boost confidence and performance
from individual team members, who may be more easily able to express their
ideas, become closer to their colleagues and enjoy and take pride in their work.
2. Unique Viewpoints
The infinite indifferences of the individuals in a team come from different
experiences and life histories. Their viewpoints are unique. Their differences
make them unique as a team. A diverse group is a brewing cup of creativity,
exposure, new ideas, new thoughts, and new business outcomes.
3. New and Better
Innovations When you identify a lead as a qualified lead, you should feed
him/her with more Today's tight competitive markets require constant
innovation. A diverse workplace has a higher chance of innovation. This comes
from combining different ideas and perspectives and getting a whole different
idea or innovation altogether.
4. Creative Solutions
Cognitively similar people lack problem-solving skills when compared to
diverse people within a team. A diverse group can contribute to a distinct
solution, at the right time or even sooner.
5. Multiple Solutions
Including diversity in the workplace has benefits in better decision making. As
compared to individuals who make business decisions, a diverse team can make
better decisions and solve multiple issues. They can provide better solutions and
benefit the workplace from their varied qualities.
6. Increased Profits
With diversity come varied interests, opinions, arguments, different kinds of
performances, and diverse feedback. It results in your company making
informed decisions, and that leads to better and increased profits. 03/05
 7. Increased Employee Engagement
When different kinds of people come together, each one of them gets a chance
to grow more from what they see or like from other people. When employees
feel like they can mingle, contact well, be entertained, and included, they
perform better, and it results in an increased employee engagement rate.
8. Boost Morale
When diversity is inclusive in the workplace, employees feel valued and
accepted. Employees always look to stay with the company longer when they
are happier, and this leads to a reduced employee turnover overall.
9. Brand Value
The workplace diversity widely influences a company's reputation. If the
workplace has different people, it creates a different perspective of the
company, with new images, exciting people, an inclusive environment. It all
combines to showcase an excellent company reputation. This, in turn, increases
brand value, adds new customers, partners, and helps companies venture into
new markets.
10.Attract New Talent
New hires always look for companies that are fun and enjoyable to work with;
this is possible only with a diverse workplace. If the employee base is diverse,
with a great talent pool, it naturally attracts more varied people.
11. Remove Bias
Diversity in the workplace destroys any societal bias. There is a decrease in
gender and pay bias. Employees learn from their strengths and weaknesses and
work together as a team.
12.Boost Productivity
Making diversity a priority in the workplace maximizes productivity; there is no
negative atmosphere that results in burnouts. Unique ideas and passion bring
excellent outcomes, and it increases the productivity of your team.
Barriers of Diversity in Workplace
Companies across a range of industries are embracing a more diverse
workforce; but with these benefits also come some key obstacles to overcome,
as there are many challenges of managing diversity in the workplace. Below are
the most common challenges of diversity in the workplace which are important
to consider.

1. Communication barriers
Hiring employees from a range of cultures and backgrounds has fantastic
benefits for businesses; but can occasionally result in communication or
language barriers within a team. This can sometimes lead to frustration amongst
employees and productivity loss.
2. Employee requirements
Whether it's a VISA or specific cultural requirements, hiring employees from
different countries can be tricky; especially if you are a relatively young
company. As well as posing a logistical challenge, it's important to remember
that these accommodations can also sometimes be an added business cost to
factor into your hiring plans.
3. Gender equality issues
Salary inequality between men and women has been a huge topic of discussion
in recent years. Individuals that are treated unequally can become demotivated
and often choose to leave, causing increases in staff turnover. The Equal Pay
Act aims to prevent gender equality issues by ensuring companies pay equally
between women and men for equal work. It is also important for employers to
ensure the same equality is practiced during the hiring process as well as with
career progression in terms of opportunities offered and promotions.
4. Generational differences
In teams where there is a wide age range, especially if the company is recruiting
graduates, there may be some generational differences or generation gaps. This
could potentially hinder discussions on certain subjects; millennials account for
the majority of UK workers, which is evolving today’s corporate culture. This is
something to consider when you start your graduate recruitment plans, as
individuals from other generations might struggle to adjust to any changes that
occur. To bridge the gap between generations, promote an office culture where
all views are heard and sustain a collaborative environment.
5. Conflicting beliefs
Conflicts can arise in the workplace due to differences in religious, political or
cultural beliefs, and unfortunately discrimination and prejudice still occurs in
some corporate environments.
6. Disability discrimination
The workplace can be tough for employees with a physical or mental disability.
In a recent study on disability and employment 12% of employers are concerned
that disabled employees will take more time off work and 19% believe that it is
expensive to hire individuals with a disability due to costs involved in adapting
the workplace. With many offices not fully equipped with wheelchair access or
no allowances for dogs, disabled individuals are still widely discriminated
against today.
7. Isolated individuals
Sometimes employees can feel left out or isolated when groups of other
individuals with similar backgrounds and characteristics, form 'cliques' or social
circles.
8. Time consuming implementation process
When thinking about the disadvantages of diversity in the workplace, one of the
key issues is that implementing a diversity in the workplace policy can be a
lengthy process involving research, time and resources. It can also work out
quite costly, if you decide to offer training to help bridge skills gaps for
example. This can make it difficult, particularly for small businesses and
startups to launch a diversity strategy. However, there are always smaller, less
costly positive changes that can be made to ensure all employees feel included
and have a voice.
9. Resistance to change
In most companies it is common to find certain individuals that are resistant to
change. "This is the way we've always done it" doesn't mean that it's the right
way to do it now; however sometimes it can be difficult to convince these
individuals that change can be a good thing which can inhibit the progress of a
diversity and inclusion strategy.
Managing Diversity in Workplace

We have established there are some workplace diversity challenges employers

face, but they are not impossible for companies of any size to overcome. Now
we explore some potential solutions to these diversity challenges in the
workplace:

1. Identify the problems

Make the challenges of diversity an urgent topic of conversation; whether they
are discussed in a weekly senior management meeting or shared amongst the
whole team for feedback. Frequently assess and evaluate your diversity
processes and make improvements accordingly.
2. D&I strategy for success
Develop a clear D&I strategy. We recommend you seek advice and feedback
from a diverse range of people in the business when it comes to your diversity
and inclusion in the workplace strategy, individuals from different departments
are likely to have different opinions!
3. Involve the whole team
When launching your diversity and inclusion strategy, it is a good idea to get
input elsewhere across the business wherever possible. You could consider
starting a diversity and inclusion team internally to ensure you are meeting the
standards, aims and objectives you've set out. It might also be a good idea to do
a regular 'desk swap' whereby you move individuals around, helping to prevent
'cliques' from being formed.
4. Initiate mentoring schemes
Initiating a mentoring scheme can help to increase employee satisfaction and
retain top talent and is one of the least costly diversity strategies that can be
implemented to ensure all employees feel included and have a voice. Find out
more about how a mentoring scheme could benefit your business.
5. Offer training programmes
Offer a clear, professional development structure to all employees. Bridge the
digital skills gap between generations by offering computer learning training or
offer language training for employees that are non-native English speakers. It
might also be a good idea to offer diversity training to certain team members,
particularly within management or the HR department, helping to ensure they
show compassion to colleagues in distress.
6. Hire bilingual or multilingual employees
Employing multilingual or bilingual staff can also help bridge the gap between
different cultures and resolve any language barriers between English and non-
English speaking employees.
7. Implement initiatives for gender equality
Businesses have a duty to demonstrate equality in the workplace and prevent
gender discrimination, particularly with regards to hiring both men and women,
paying equal salary and offering the same opportunities and promotions to both
men and women. Encouraging more women to work in tech is another prime
example of encouraging gender equality in all job roles.
8. Accommodate disabilities
Support physically or mentally disabled individuals by providing disabled
access, allowing service dogs at work and offering other initiatives to build a
diverse workplace. Find out other ways to manage mental health in the
workplace.
9. Hold people accountable
It is important to hold people accountable if they are not embracing workplace
diversity and inclusion or if they are discriminating against employees who
have different characteristics or different ethnic or religious backgrounds to
their own. Put rules in place and stick to them, if there are individuals who do
not accept a diverse office environment, then prove that you will not tolerate
this behaviour. Employees may need to be regularly reminded to keep personal
beliefs and opinions separate to work, to help reduce the risk of disputes in the
office.
10. Factor in costs and time restraints
Ensure that you factor in all potential costs and time restraints during the initial
planning stages of your diversity and inclusion strategy. This will ensure that all
your plans go ahead smoothly and prevent any costly, unwelcome surprises
further down the lin
Age Diversity
Age diversity is the ability to accept all different types of ages within a business
environment. Companies have to adjust to an aging population in various ways.

Benefits of diverse aged workforce

 Teams can gain an edge by utilizing their wealth of experience and talent
of each generation. Older employees to learn to trust and leverage the
younger ones’ skills.
 The younger generation can give energy to the workplace with an
infusion of new ideas
 Millennial are great at doing research especially online but do not know
how to analyze the data, Elders have great analytical and critical thinking
skills, combining these skills will close the circle
 Understanding the key themes for each age group can build a base for
understanding and can reduce stereotypes, prejudice and discrimination.
Build active engagement
 Increased innovation and creativity by sharing experiences, ideas, skills
and perspectives bringing new solutions and opportunities for a
competitive edge
 Mentoring and reverse mentoring: To fill the gaps of experience in each
generation, and avoid the old mistakes.
 The team can attract and retain talented people of all ages, being more
flexible.
 The team can gain and keep greater market share because its members
reflect a multi-generation market, and can meet needs of a diverse public.
 Decisions are stronger because they are broad-base
Challenges of Age Diversity in Workplace

 Stereotypes about Gen Y” Being self-absorbed, feeling entitled, having

no loyalty, no respect to authority, having short attention spans, and they
would rather trade high pay to flexible schedules and a better work-life
balance and avoid working long hours and overtime
 Millennial might view infrequent, more subtle feedback from older
colleagues as proof that they are cold, distant, passive-aggressive or
unwilling to communicate
 People quit learning when they get old, they are rigid and dogmatic.
 Older employees resent to be told what to do; well don’t us all? Older
people stopped being creative:
 Older people are less productive and just waiting to retire, they have
higher absenteeism and accident rates
 Baby Boomers define themselves by what they do professionally, they
sacrificed a great deal to get where they are in their career, so they
believe that both Generation X and Generation Y should pay their dues
and conform to a culture of overwork. Baby Boomers may criticize
younger generations for a lack of work ethic and commitment to the
workplace.
 Boomers believe in ranks and may have a hard time adjusting to
workplace flexibility trends. They believe in "face time" at the office and
may fault younger generations for working remotely.
Managing age diversity in workplace

 Start with a generational audit to grasp your internal demographics.

 Conduct Diversity and Leadership training workshops. The training
will use sensitivity making younger employees aware and sensitive
to older employees’ needs, strengths and potential contributions.
Also give information to older employees to be more aware of their
own actions that foster widening the gap; as well as offering
solutions.
 Bring out the best in each employee, adapt to the styles and
preferences of a multi-generational workforce and look through a
generational filter to consider actions with employees.
 Host a Generational Awareness Week. Post photos that represent the
generations. Include icons and popular expressions. Play music that
is popular to each generation
 Write four versions—one for each generation—of an Employee
Value Proposition, in a way to match each generation’s values,
wants and needs.
 Review the benefits package; match them to appeal to each single
generation. Design three rewards specific to each single generation. 
 Review the makeup of the Board of Directors. To make sure they
match the company’s DNA
 Learn about other generations beside yours. Ask questions, learn
history, characters, motivation, and work preferences. Respect
others.
 Ask employees from the 4 different generations about their ideal
manager characters. Then, create profiles of four ideal managers—
one for each generation. What do all the profiles have in common?
Where do they differ? And think how to apply these findings
 Consider implementing inter-generational mentoring as well as
reverse mentoring and generational employee-resource or affinity
groups