The increase in diversity encounter affects all companies, even domestic ones due to globalisation and movement of labour. For Herrera et al. (2011, p.2630) “the composition of the workforce is more demographically diverse than ever before”, and this trend will continue.
One of the positive aspects is that, according to Wessendorf (2013), the more people are ‘confronted’ to diversity, greater the chances that they won’t develop prejudice. While high exposure to diversity might not create deep cultural understanding, it tends to become part of normal life and from there on, attitude towards diversity tends to be positive. Valentine and Sadgrove (2014) support this view and confirm that attitudes can change through exposure to different values and ways of living them.
All is good then, not much to do?
Not quite, unfortunately. We see it everyday: where there are differences there are tensions, sometimes high intensity conflicts. Low intensity conflicts are not always immediately visible and can result in lower level of productivity, absenteeism, low morale, etc. This is why the more diverse a company, the more attentive management should be to work practices. Outside robust grievance mechanismsand conflict resolution processes, some more proactive measures should be taken.
A clear position and communication around diversity is definitively one: “attitudes towards diversity are shaped by a public discourse that positively celebrates diversity” (Wessendorf, 2013, p.409). This is often considered to be the most important factor in successfully managing diversity (Herrera et al., 2011).
However, by itself, it is far from being sufficient to change behaviours (Wilson, 2013).
The company must also multiply the occasions of face-to-face interactions between the different groups, around work tasks but also around celebrations and other opportunities to involve emotions.
Training in cultural awareness and emotional intelligence (Kamps and Engelbrecht, 2011) will contribute in creating positive and productive attitude towards diversity in the workplace. Proper training will help employees understand the differences that occur between different groups while also discussing the various myths that may be associated. By getting these issues out in the open, employees can better appreciate the cultural differences of co-workers while reducing preconceived stereotypes or prejudices.
We would love to hear what actions you would recommend to manage a diverse workforce!
Please email us at hello@globe24-7.com to discuss further.
Globe 24-7 (Globe) has been conducting human resources consulting and search assignments for local and international mining, power and energy companies around the world for over a decade. Globe has offices in the major markets of the world to ensure consulting assignments and search campaigns are effectively managed at both site and corporate locations and has grown internationally to now service small, mid-tier and large-scale companies through its project recruitment, search, HR consulting and HR Systems divisions.
