What Is the Meaning of Cultural Diversity in the Workplace?

The workplace is constantly changing. Nowadays, people from diverse cultural backgrounds work together; at the workplace, individuals from different ethnic backgrounds, genders and beliefs leave their differences aside and become a team. They become part of a challenging but enriching experience.

Background

According to the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS), in the United States, diversity in the workplace stemmed from legislation which made discrimination in the workplace illegal and has made employers and employees accountable for respecting their coworkers' rights. Organizational restructuring caused by technological advances and globalization has also made it essential for companies to outsource and interact with people from all over the world.

Characteristics

Leadership-Tools.com refers to diversity in the job not just as a moral or legal issue but a necessity. Cultural diversity in the job is having people with different values, styles and personalities working together for the same objective, respecting each other and capitalizing on these differences. It is contrary to the idea of assimilation (emulating one culture). The University of Florida IFAS states that diversity is acknowledging, recognizing and celebrating differences; in the workplace, diversity is an asset that increases productivity.

Benefits

The Multicultural Advantage says that cultural diversity in the workplace has many advantages. It increases adaptability (different and flexible ideas can adapt to a changing market), broadens service range (a company can go globally if employees speak different languages), brings variety of viewpoints (a large pool ideas to please a large pool of clients) and makes the execution process more effective (people who feel valued produce more).

Challenges

The University of Florida IFAS says that managing cultural diversity in the workplace requires not only recognizing differences but also their value; it is also fighting discrimination and making the workplace inclusive. Negative practices such as stereotyping and discriminating can harm productivity and even create legal problems in the workplace. The Multicultural Advantage claims that resistance to change and lack of effective communication of rules, policies and consequences could present a difficult challenge when promoting cultural diversity in the workplace.

Finding Solutions

The University of Florida IFAS suggests that managers need to be aware of the consequences of discrimination in the workplace and address their own biases in order to respect individual differences. The Multicultural Advantage suggests that managers should start by doing a diversity assessment to identify the challenges they need to work on before designing and implementing a plan to promote a culture of inclusiveness in the workplace.

Tips

Promoting cultural diversity in managerial positions increases the chances of promoting a culture of diversity at every level of the organization.

Warnings

Cultural diversity is about respecting individual differences and not stereotyping people by groups.

References

• University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences: Diversity in the Workplace: Benefits, Challenges and the Required Managerial Tools
• Leadership-Tools.com: Cultural Diversity in the Workplace: Strength in Diversity
• The Multicultural Advantage: Diversity in the Workplace, Benefits, Challenges and Solutions

Resources

• Diversity.com: Cultural Diversity in the Workplace: An Evolving Initiative