Managing Diversity In The Workplace
Business is getting more global and culturally diversified. But on its own, American society is becoming more culturally diverse, meaning the workforce here at home is getting to be more and more of a melting pot as well.
How can HR managers make sure cultural differences are a help, not a hindrance?
To turn a blind eye to cultural differences is potentially opening up your company to a downward spiral, says an article at www.culturosity.com. Ignoring such differences decreases your firm's ability to manage them - and they can quickly grow into fear, skepticism and bias. And all are seeds for misunderstanding, a lack of cooperation, standoffs and decreased productivity.
HR managers should aim at turning cultural diversity into a powerful resource for meeting the needs of a global market. Because we know people are threatened by differences they cannot understand, diversity within any team can be a key factor in the evolution of conflicts. On a global scale, if both sides feel threatened, trade drops off, standoffs multiply and investments stall.
It behooves managers of any international company or firm with a diversified workforce to understand their own and employees' cultural assumptions and how these assumptions can create behaviors that cost time, money and productivity. From there, examining how misinterpretations can be avoided and how differences can be used to form creative solutions is key to success.
The term diversity used to refer to minority populations. Now it is about the internal employees' needs and the external customers' needs. It is about establishing a culture where each individual - overseas or not - can contribute to the organization's success.
WBJ Web Partners
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