Assessment 3: Individual Assignment

MGMT8054 Managing Cultural Diversity

Chosen Topic: Black Lives Matter

Australian and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ) in Hong Kong

Word Count (All inclusive): 3999

Student Name Ioanna Michailia Kyprioti

Student ID 46169539
Unit Convenor & Lecturer Dr. Meena Chavan
Other Lecturer Dr Muhammad Aftab Alam
Day/Time of Workshop Wednesday, 6 pm

Table of Contents
 1. Executive Summary 2

2. Introduction 3

3. Global Impact of Black Lives Matter 4

4. Risks Operating in Hong Kong 5

5. Analysis of Strategy 6

6. Discussion 8

7. Conclusion 10

References 12

1. Executive Summary

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The purpose of this report is to consult an Australian Multinational Banking and Financial
Service organization, the Australian and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ), while they operate
in Hong Kong. Today, the global issue of Black Lives Matter movement has affected societies
and businesses, therefore, it is apparent that equality and fairness must be adopted to proper
manage cultural diversity. As a consultant of the report, advice needs to be given to ANZ on
their future internalization strategy based on the environment in Hong Kong.

This report has found that African Americans are the main victims when it comes to
discrimination because they are denied fundamental human rights and are constantly paid less
than white people. Although gender inequality has been a huge issue in the US it has expanded
globally to a point where it hinders international management. The government tends to
disregard inequality, yet Australia is one of the prominent countries that value human rights.
Nonetheless, Australian businesses still face discrimination in the workplace. To educate ANZ,
the risks of operating in Hong Kong were studied. Although Hong Kong is one of the wealthiest
countries world-wide with a free-market economy it suffers daily racism. Hong Kong Chinese
treat unfairly South Asian ethnic groups and non-Chinese who have skin colour. Besides that, the
country has suffered political challenges with anti-government protests which will negatively
affect ANZ.

Given that the future internalisation strategy is ‘diversity and inclusion’, before providing
solutions a study on the diversity policies of Hong Kong occurred. The report discovered that
Hong Kong experiences unequal treaties, low labour, expensive housing, long working hours and
a limited work-life balance. People with disabilities are paid less depending on their performance
and gender inequality occurs yet employees are protected by sexual harassment. The ‘Race
Discrimination Bill’ comprised more advanced policies however cultural differences still posed
communication challenges. Although cultural differences existed between Australia and Hong
Kong both cultures are masculine, yet this is a threat for ANZ. To overcome this, ANZ ensured
to respect women and include them in leadership positions while provide more equal
opportunities where bias is unlawful. Diversity, cultural training, and mentorship were found to
be effective as other financial service industries adopted the same and maintained a safe
environment where people felt inclusive and boosted sales and trust.

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 2. Introduction

The management of cultural diversity has become an increasing trend in the 21 st century. Cox
(1993) described cultural diversity as the image of a social system where individuals consist of
different ethnicity backgrounds of cultural importance. Understanding different cultures is
crucial as it prevents stereotyping and personal biases from happening. Multiculturalism has
become a challenge to businesses that operate globally due to the lack of education on varied
cultures, which result in failure to adapt to the local market. This report aims to analyse the
global issue of “Black Lives Matter” (BLM), a global social movement where people and
activists would commit to fight against racism and anti-Black viciousness. The BLM movement
was mainly formed in the United States in 2013 yet the country suffered from slavery in the
nineteenth century followed by racism, gender inequality and sexual harassment on black women
in the twentieth century (Lebron 2017). Today, BLM signals the form of police brutality by the
killings of numerous Black people regardless of gender.

Without doubt racism negatively distresses people of colour in dissimilar ways and those at the
junction of discrimination in relation to race and gender have the vastest effect on this global
issue. However, racism goes beyond the interpersonal acts of discrimination and broadens to
institutional policies and societal norms. The police violence that exists nowadays is only one
example of racism in the criminal justice system. For companies operating globally this is an
immense barrier and managers should provide external research to inhibit discrimination. Having
said that, as a Management Consultant, a comprehensive research will be conducted on a specific
client; the Australian and New Zealand (ANZ) Banking Group, a financial service company that
operates across thirty-three markets globally comprising of fourteen markets in Asia (ANZ
2021). Given that Asia is one of the ever-growing economic regions universal, ANZ has
numerous opportunities in the projected future. The country of selection is Hong Kong, but it
daily suffers multiculturalism issues of racial discrimination which will negatively impact ANZ.

The report firstly outlines the impact of BLM movement in the world and businesses as well as
analyses the external risks when operating in Hong Kong. Political, economic, legal, social, and
cultural factors are examined because what is acceptable in Australia may not be acceptable in

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Hong Kong. The advised future internalization strategy that ANZ must adopt is diversity and
inclusion in the workplace since it will help ANZ to adapt to the Hong Kong environment.
Diversity, and inclusion policies of Hong are supported by academic research stating that
although discrimination occurred in Hong Kong the ‘Race Discrimination Bill’ ensured that bias
were illegal. Nonetheless, due to the cultural differences this issue still existed hence Hofstede
Insights is conducted to better understand both Hong Kong and Australian cultures. Solutions are
delivered based on what ANZ is doing and how they can improve by comparing Macquarie’s
Group and Westpac’s diversity and inclusion policies.

3. Global Impact of Black Lives Matter

Long before the BLM movement there was a movement of black lives in 1965 with Baldwin as a
civil rights activist. Since 2012, protests struck due to police brutality, yet the BML movement
became more noticeable after the death of George Floyd in 2020. While BLM movement
originates from the US it has become internationally known in sixty countries across the globe
due to the role that social media took in spreading the message (The Geopolitics 2021). African
Americans constantly get denied access in fundamental human rights, such as affordable houses,
schools, food, health care and become overwhelmed. Olshansky et al (2012) claims that the life
expectancy for Blacks compared to Whites are shorter which have developed to obesity and
deaths from heart diseases to strokes.

In the business context, many black employees experience racism at work and are paid less than
white employees. In the US, a 13% decrease in payment occur for black men in comparison to
white men and a 39% reduction arise for black women in contrast to white men in addition to
21% less payment than white women (Fortune Magazine 2020). By doing so, gender inequality
emerges, economic growth decreases and hinders the development of businesses today. Gender
inequality interlaces with ethnic diversity and has caused other illegal practices of
discrimination. Elvira and Zatzick (2002) state that companies perceive inequality in terms of
personal decisions that result from bias managers during the hiring process. For example, black
men receive lower promotions in comparison to white men and when evaluations occur
managers speak differently to people with skin colour. Stenou (2004) clarifies that for a business

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to succeed, a culturally diverse environment with ethical workplace policies will help women
and other minority groups to gain more opportunities while decrease turnover.

Nevertheless, Hooker (2016) argues that the government’s inability to deal with injustice and
systematic racial raises questions about the success of businesses even if diversity is used. It is
estimated that a majority of Black and white men are behind bars at some point in their lives yet
when they are released, Black men are misplaced from social programs. Inequality on this scale
influences firms unknowingly as they discriminate on grounds of structural race. In Australia,
human rights are valued, and companies must protect individuals, still employees of color, race,
sex and disability have been denied basic rights (Australian Human Rights Commision 2021).
This harm businesses’ reputation and recruitment process as well as the chance to operate
abroad. For ANZ to effectively operate abroad political, social, cultural, legal, and economic
factors of Hong Kong will be discussed to educate the business about the risks.

4. Risks operating in Hong Kong

Hong Kong was in the British territory but unsuccessfully secured an anti-racism discrimination
law in 1997 and became a governmental region in China (Sautman and Kneehams 2002). The
country is considered one country with two separate systems and has a dissimilar legal system
from China with its own legislative structure. Hong Kong’s legal system can be seen as one of
the best judicial systems in Asia due to an effective application of contracts and their minimal
legal procedures that require when setting up a business, thus, an opportunity for ANZ.
Nevertheless, China has full authority over its foreign affairs which can be problematic due to
their cultural and economic differences. Although Hong Kong has a free-market economy,
political challenges have been faced since 2019 due to anti-government protests affecting its
business environment in parallel with its political instability that brings uncertainty to citizens.
Given that one of their key industries that drive their economy is financial services it will
negatively impact ANZ since the issue reduces the consumption index and affects ANZ’s
operating income.

In 2019, Hong Kong’s GDP was $366.03 billion but in 2020 it was predicted that it will decrease
(Trading Economics 2021). Unemployment was low and stable yet in 2020 it increased and

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drove challenges in the labor market. Despite this, Hong Kong is considered one of the
wealthiest countries worldwide which gives opportunities to ANZ as it is an attractive market.
The population is 7.5 million with high life expectancy for both men and woman of
approximately 81-87 years. From the 7.5 million, 3.144 are either African or have African origin
born and raised with fluent Cantonese and English but racism and inequality endures (Post
Magazine 2020). Hong Kong’s history of racial discrimination will pose challenges to ANZ
when operating there as their parent country, Australia, is culturally diverse with a
comprehensive anti-racism strategy. Most of the population is categorized under the Chinese
Folk Region while the remaining are either Buddhist, Taoists or Christians related to Australia
where most majority are Christians and Catholics. Religion consequences ANZ due to the
difference in employee beliefs and workday rituals if not respected. Housing is tremendously
expensive with many families living in apartments which can be problematic for ANZ’s
expatriates. To bring harmony it is essential for ANZ to be aware of the different factors
mentioned above and be particularly mindful of the culture.

5. Analysis of Strategy

The future internalization strategy that ANZ must adopt is ‘diversity and inclusion’. According
to Davis et al (2016), diversity management has its origin from America’s Civil Rights
movement which began in 1964 and discrimination was illegal, while inclusion promoted equal
opportunities. Ensuing America’s example, equal opportunities were approved between most
Western countries, such as Australia, where employees were protected by racial discrimination.
However, due to the different cultures that lie in Western countries, diversity policies take
various forms for each country. In Australia between the mid 1960’s and 1970’s, the workforce
went from Anglo-Saxon, meaning a policy of racial discrimination, to an anti-discrimination
strategy that supported employees with different gender, race, religion, ethnicity and disability.
In the 1980’s women’s rights in the workforce were implemented and today, Australia is a
leading country that promotes diversity and inclusion.

While Hong Kong is known for its multicultural society consisting of both Eastern and Western
cultures, most Hong Kong Chinese reject South Asian ethnic groups. The British colonial rule

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for many years negatively impacted the social elite from their unequal treaties, like age
discrimination, where it mostly impacted senior employees who desired to work after their
retirement. Similarly, a low labor involvement arisen to women with family responsibilities. As
attested by Half (2019), Hong Kong’s job advertisements required more Mandarin speakers
instead of non-Chinese which excluded Hong Kong’s ethnic minorities. Although companies
provide opportunities for career progression, challenges occur for expatriates due to the
expensive housing, long working hours and limited work-life balance where employees are
forbidden to request work flexibility. For expatriates to obtain visa they need to have special
skills, knowledge, and experience with no criminal record.

The “Race Discrimination Ordinance” state that although special arrangements befall for people
with disabilities, they are permissible to be paid less according to their performance which raises
questions of discrimination. Employers can decline disabled people if the role of employment
can’t be performed according to the company’s needs. While it is claimed that no nationality
restrictions are allowed during the hiring process and minimum wage apply to all regardless of
age, gender or ethnicity, gender is specified if employees decide to work abroad, and the job
can’t be performed by the opposed gender. Protection for employees that deal with sexual
harassment occur and victimization, but whistle-blowers are prohibited of protection because of
their wrongdoing. Due to these rules, protest campaigns were created, and people demanded
protective laws for ethnic minorities (Law and Lee 2012). Henceforth, few changes were made
by the ‘Race Discrimination Bill’, in 2018, comprising of discrimination against job applicants
where it is illegal for employers to refuse employees based on their homosexuality, race,
disability, or sex. It is unlawful to harass or treat unfairly employees however employers are
allowed to differentiate management amongst local employees in comparison to employees who
have contract from overseas.

Despite the laws against discrimination, discrimination still existed thus understanding diversity
and inclusion policies is not enough. Cultural differences and inter-cultural communication are
of the essence and so through Hofstede’s dimensions the differences that occur amongst
Australia and Hong Kong will be comprehended. Drawing upon Hofstede Insights (2021),
individualistic cultures, such as Australia, value their own interests along with their families and

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are considered high on autonomy in contrast to collectivistic cultures, like Hong Kong, which
desire group decision making. Australia, with a low power distance, indicate that although
organizations accept inequality, managers and employees share information frequently with
informal communication. Hong Kong is high on power distance with a desire of hierarchical
structure and strict rules with better negotiation setting; they are rare and infrequently governed
by formal procedural rules. Employees negotiate with employers over wages, but employers are
the ones who decide due to the independence of workplace regulation that exists in such a highly
industrialized society.

Australia and Hong Kong are a masculine culture where both strive towards success, yet gender
differentiation is a conflict as senior executives are mostly men. Thus, seeking diversity and
inclusion is challenging because it minimizes woman’s interest to work in such an environment.
Additionally, both countries use distributive bargaining as a negotiation strategy rather than
collective bargaining being a potential consequence for ANZ due to having no shared interests.
This can be seen unethical and may violate rules of negotiation. Chan et al (2011) found that
Australia and Hong Kong fall under the category of having dissimilar perceptions on behaviors.
Researchers made a further investigation and implied that individualistic countries that have high
or moderate uncertainty avoidance, such as Australia, value wealth which is seen as unethical
behavior. Comparably, collectivist countries alongside low uncertainty avoidance, like Hong
Kong, show limited importance on ethical dilemmas (Hwang et al 2003). Thus, an ethical
sensitivity arises which imposes threats to ANZ. The company should take a leadership position
in their diversity and inclusion practices however given that researchers suggest Hofstede’s
dimensions is outdated the outcome isn’t based on the model but mostly from the research that
was conducted.

6. Discussion

ANZ already has an inclusive workforce with values of “integrity, collaboration, accountability,
respect and excellence” (ANZ 2019). Employee’s cultural backgrounds and perspectives are
respected, and the company takes advantage of their diverse group to build an innovative
environment that strive towards making personal relationships with clients. Opportunities are

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given to people with disabilities, and they facilitate equal employment based on their employee’s
performance and potential. This will help them due to the age and gender discrimination that
exists in Hong Kong. Flexible work practices are given based on employee needs, however,
when they operate in Hong Kong they need to adhere to local policies. For instance, employees
in Hong Kong are forbidden to request work flexibility. Although working long hours is
expected being receptive to telecommuting would be beneficial. This way employees could still
work long hours yet the ability to be close to their families will increase organizational
commitment. Nonetheless, in Hong Kong, work flexibility doesn’t always work for people with
retirement because some may want to continue to work and feel that they are age discriminated.

ANZ attracts and retains skilled workforce and includes a smooth process in their recruitment
and selection practices where bias is illegal (ANZ 2019). This adheres with the Race
Discrimination Bill of Hong Kong thus ANZ can likewise fight biases by ensuring that managers
don’t favor potential employees, regardless of gender, that resemble them. Gender stereotyping
should be prevented thus assumptions about women who are expecting a child should not be
rejected if suitable for the job role. Additionally, the company could train upper management on
gender and age equality that apply to Hong Kong’s ethics rules. ANZ must ensure to not exclude
women from leadership opportunities. In fact, the Macquarie Group, an Australian multinational
that is also in the financial service industry, has applied this policy and from 2011 to 2020 their
female executive committees, senior executives and overall workforce has increased
tremendously. As of 2020, 44% of board of directors are female and 56% are male (Macquarie
Group 2021).

In the context of pay, Hong Kong lacks equal pay due to not having a specific legislation and has
low degree of formalization, yet ANZ must adopt a systematic approach that is free of gender
bias to be successful. For this approach to work, ANZ need to provide equal remuneration
between women and men where pay equity will be reviewed annually similar to Westpac’s
policy (Westpac 2021). Macquarie Group, for instance, has likewise done the same as Westpac
yet they additionally conducted a pay gap analysis where they recognized reasons and gaps that
may occur on salaries or performance pay (Macquarie Group 2021). This tactic ensured no
gender bias befall while simultaneously trained managers and reported pay equity metrics. This

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can be implemented by ANZ with additional cross-cultural training comprised of lectures,
informal briefings, diversity workshops, role-playing and language sessions that will support
expats adjust in Hong Kong.

A home mentor can be assigned to communicate with expatriates in case of conflict or

complaints during their assignment whereas an overseas mentor could be a cultural interpreter
aiming to help expats and their families with cultural shock. Similarly, those mentors can provide
team building exercises that will help expats interact with each other and understand one’s
culture better while promote social inclusion. Each member can describe their culture
background and invite others and their families to share their experiences. Keeping record of
those trainings will help ANZ when issues of discrimination arise and then reviewing those
policies with more training lead to better understanding and less conflict. However, due to the
different cultural backgrounds’ disagreements will often occur, thus, encouraging employees to
provide feedback will empower conversations. Macquarie Group conducts surveys to their
employees every two years to better understand various demographics and different gender
attitudes on their diversity and inclusion policies while monitor employee engagement
(Macquarie Group 2021). In addition, they obtain data on perceptions, flexibility, and leadership
behaviors to help them foster new initiatives for future purpose.

Overall, if ANZ has clear diversity policies and set protocols that communicates equality it will
build a sense of security, and inclusion will ensure support from all backgrounds regardless of
gender, age, ethnicity, cultural background, religion, sexual orientation, or disability. Building
and maintaining a safe working environment is of the essence since this will also enhance
customer experience that likewise respects diversity of consumers. This is an important indicator
in the financial service sector. ANZ has been a sponsor to numerous events such as Sydney Gay
and Lesbian Mardi Gras supporting homosexual consumers which has boosted sales, respect and
trust (ANZ 2019). Becoming a sponsor or donating to the BLM movement will increase even
more attention to diversity and inclusion.

7. Conclusion

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To conclude, the BLM movement has massively affected the world and businesses today due to
the issues of multiculturalism discrimination thus diversity and inclusion is vital. Although ANZ
already has diversity and inclusion policies they had to rethink their goals and objectives when
operating in Hong Kong and adjust more locally due to the differences in cultural ethics. From
Hofstede Insights, Hong Kong was found to be a collective culture, hence, diversity policies will
effectively work in ANZ as group compositions enhances the decision making to adhere to local
policies. With a low uncertainty avoidance, change and innovation is valued and with high power
distance inequity can be measured. Providing flexible work policies will improve retention and
attract top talent. With the right diversity policies on recruitment and selection ANZ can fight
gender stereotyping and include women in leadership positions playing a vital role in the Civil
Rights Movement. Equal opportunities, such as, pay being yearly monitored enhances
productivity and performance. Cross cultural training to managers and employees will boost
diversity and inclusion through empowering conversations and will eliminate discrimination as
culture will be educated.

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