scholarly journals Diversity management in the workplace: beyond compliance

Curationis ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
N.S. Gwele

Diversity management is not a numbers game. Diversity management is a holistic and strategic intervention aimed at maximizing every individual’s potential to contribute towards the realization o f the organization’s goals through capitalizing on individual talents and differences within a diverse workforce environment. Managing interpersonal relationships within a diverse workforce environment presents a number of challenges related to changes in the social, legal and economic landscape, individual expectations and values as well as the inevitable change in organizational culture (Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development 2005: 1-7). Whether or not organizations are effective in managing diversity is a function of senior managements’ commitment, and the perceived centrality of diversity management by all those who populate the institution’s workspace. Above all it should be clear to all employees, irrespective of race, gender, or vocational/professional status, that each and every one of them has something of value to contribute towards the realization of the institution’s mission and goals. It is crucial to determine clear and manageable success indicators, focusing not only on compliance with legal obligations to include and/or increase the number of employees from the underrepresented and designated groups, but also on strategic intervention strategies to be used to promote and nurture individual talent and potential toward the realization of both individual aspirations and organizational goals re-quality patient outcomes.

2021 ◽  
pp. 109634802098690
Author(s):  
Ashokkumar Manoharan ◽  
Michael J. Gross ◽  
Shruti R. Sardeshmukh

The topic of cultural diversity in hospitality firms has been somewhat neglected in the abundant research on cultural diversity in organizations. To overcome the gap, the purpose of the research was to examine the antecedents and outcomes of employing a culturally diverse workforce in hotels. Results from semistructured interviews showed there are four antecedents for the increase in cultural diversity and outcomes reflect significantly more benefits than challenges. Our findings suggest the benefits of cultural diversity come from the informational advantages, supporting the processing perspective. The challenges of diversity are rooted in the social categorization and in-group-out-group dynamics, lending support to the social identity theory. This study advances diversity literature based on research evidence of the various antecedents and outcomes in employing a culturally diverse workforce. Implications for diversity management are offered so the benefits may be sustained, and the challenges may be minimized in hospitality firms.


2009 ◽  
Vol 15 (5) ◽  
pp. 639-651 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jawad Syed ◽  
Robin Kramar

AbstractThe purpose of this article is to develop a conceptual framework to describe ‘socially responsible diversity management’. This framework seeks to demonstrate that the desired social justice outcomes of affirmative action programs and the business benefits of diversity management programs can be achieved but only by undertaking initiatives at a number of levels. Traditional approaches to afirmative action have been unsuccessful in achieving their goal of equitable labour market outcomes and it is unclear that diversity management programs have contributed to business outcomes. The article argues that neither affirmative action nor diversity management has been able to fully achieve its objectives because of a number of limitations. The article argues that organisations can achieve better business outcomes, as well as equity outcomes associated with a diverse workforce, by adopting a relational, multilevel framework of managing diversity. Such a framework provides for the creation of what is termed ‘socially responsible diversity management’.


Author(s):  
David Knights ◽  
Vedran Omanović

The problem addressed in this chapter is whether emphasis on the ‘business case’ has gone too far, for even on its own terms there have been questions concerning the actual commercial benefits of diversity management. The concern is that if practitioner interests in anti-discrimination are reduced to the business case, then any failure to achieve commercial benefits will condemn the whole programme. Consequently, there has to be some return to the social justice arguments for managing diversity. As a way of seeking to stimulate such developments, we have conducted a literature survey of the various methodological and analytical frameworks deployed in diversity in organizations research. This is in order to search for alternatives to the reduction of ideas and interests in diversity to a single managerial preoccupation with making diversity ‘pay’, or limiting diversity practices to their potential to generate commercial benefits.


Author(s):  
Judith K. Pringle ◽  
Glenda Strachan

This chapter presents a history of diversity management through the use of dichotomies that cross-cut the field. These are used as a framework to organize the evolution from equal opportunity policies and practices to managing diversity in organizations. We trace the shift from the social justice case for equality to the business case for managing diversity; from practitioners’ initiatives to academic research, from the US diversity discourse to many country contexts, from an emphasis on gender to ‘other’ demographic diversity dimensions, and from quantitative to qualitative research methodologies. The discussion demonstrates the complexity of combining historical and socio-political country contexts on organizational policies and practices. The resulting influences on an individual’s experiences of diversity management are as complex as are the partiality of theoretical explanations. We urge researchers to move beyond dualisms combining their strengths, to create transformative approaches. Altogether the continuing debates add to a vibrant field.


2009 ◽  
Vol 15 (5) ◽  
pp. 639-651 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jawad Syed ◽  
Robin Kramar

AbstractThe purpose of this article is to develop a conceptual framework to describe ‘socially responsible diversity management’. This framework seeks to demonstrate that the desired social justice outcomes of affirmative action programs and the business benefits of diversity management programs can be achieved but only by undertaking initiatives at a number of levels. Traditional approaches to afirmative action have been unsuccessful in achieving their goal of equitable labour market outcomes and it is unclear that diversity management programs have contributed to business outcomes. The article argues that neither affirmative action nor diversity management has been able to fully achieve its objectives because of a number of limitations. The article argues that organisations can achieve better business outcomes, as well as equity outcomes associated with a diverse workforce, by adopting a relational, multilevel framework of managing diversity. Such a framework provides for the creation of what is termed ‘socially responsible diversity management’.


2010 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuka Fujimoto ◽  
Charmine E.J. Hartel

This paper establishes the Full Potential Management (FPM) Model based upon the social model of disabilities coupled with principles of diversity management and disability-oriented human resource management. Despite the fact that the concept of management was once envisioned as having ‘value to society’ by improving the quality of life through efficient practices (Rimler, 1976), management literature has narrowly defined management as a means to gain increased productivity and achieve organizational goals, thus overlooking the social formation and implementation design for a better life (Diener & Seligman, 2004; Small, 2004; Whitley 1989). Based upon the diversity literature, we propose that social-oriented diversity management principles and practices are the key to transforming management concepts from achieving organizational potential to achieving social aims that maximize the potential and quality of life of each person.


2001 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
pp. 71-74
Author(s):  
Attiya Y. Javed

The economic reform process began in India in 1991. However, the reform agenda is still far from its goals as is evident from low per capita income. Thus, this reform effort has not produced the desired outcome of a faster rate of economic and social development in a meaningful way. It is the premise of this volume that to transform the social and economic landscape, the proposed reforms should be broadbased and multi-pronged which take into account incentives for the stockholders in both the private and public sectors. The institutions are the rules that govern economy and include the fundamental legal, political, and social rules that establish the basis for production, exchange, and distribution. The two editors of this volume have received contributions from a number of authors and the wide range of papers are grouped under five main headings: political economy of reforms, reforming public goods delivery, reform issues in agriculture and rural governance, and reforming the district and financial sector.


2020 ◽  
pp. 42-50
Author(s):  
Aygul Fazlyeva ◽  
Aliya Akhmetshina

Children, brought up in foster families, experience various problems (diffi culties in interpersonal relationships with parents, diffi culties in communicating with peers, emotional instability), which lead to confl icts, quarrels, running away from home, destructive phenomena, etc. One of the eff ective forms of working with children brought up in foster families is individual counselling. Individual counselling is used by various specialists (psychologists, educators, psychotherapists), where a special place is taken by a social educator. His or her activity involves the implementation of social-protective, preventive, educational, informational, advisory functions. In the process of organizing individual counseling, the social educator takes into account the social situation of the family and the child, personal characteristics, social conditions, social and cultural characteristics and the nature of the relationship with the social environment. To organize individual counseling, a social educator needs to master various and eff ective techniques, and take into account a number of recommendations. An analysis of the literature and practical socio-pedagogical experience led to an understanding of the insuffi cient degree of elaboration of this issue. The purpose of this article was the solution to this problem.


Relay Journal ◽  
2019 ◽  
pp. 17-26
Author(s):  
Tetsushi Ohara

Approaches to understanding learner autonomy in language learning often contain dichotomous views: those that emphasize individual attributes and those that emphasize social influence. In order to articulate our understanding of learner autonomy, it is necessary to find approaches, which view a dialectic unity between the individualistic views and the social views. Sociocultural theory based on the concept of mediation is an approach, which has potential to offer a unique way to analyze learner autonomy. While using sociocultural theory as the main theoretical framework, this article attempts to understand how students take charge of their learning in the language classroom. Qualitative data indicate that interpersonal relationships between students work as mediational means for students to engage in their learning in the classroom. From this finding, it is argued that by understanding mediational means that students employ and are appropriate in the classroom, we are better able to track the students’ ability to take charge of their own learning.


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