Businesses nowadays are moving away from traditional hiring stereotypes of their industries, one of them is employing certain groups of people, and moving towards workplace diversity instead. Let’s learn how Diversity can make an impact!
What Is Workplace Diversity?
Workplace diversity means that an organization employs people coming from different races, ages, gender, religion, and other demographic profiles. The workplace is not entirely made up of people coming from one gender – like an all-male or all-female staff, for instance. Instead, they welcome people coming from different backgrounds to work for them. The organization considers an applicant or an employee according to their skills or abilities. Their demographic profiles are not taken into the equation of whether to recruit or promote them.
How Does Diversity Impact the Workplace?
1. Increased Problem-Solving Capabilities
Having a racially or ethnically diverse workplace develops better critical and problem-solving skills. There is a 35% performance advantage of racially or ethnically diverse workplaces over organizations that consider employees based on being culturally fit. Hiring from a diverse set of talent allows you to explore out-of-the-box solutions that may not be thought out when you recruit only from a specific demographic.
2. Promotes Innovative Thinking
Businesses want innovation to be a part of their employees’ mindset. And what better way to make this shift than incorporating workplace diversity? This is what 74% of respondents from a Deloitte Millennial Survey agree upon: they believe that innovation is better achieved when management opens up to diversity.
3. Enhanced Adaptability and Flexibility
With the uncertainty of the market and economies at scale, how does a company become more adaptable and flexible? Workplace diversity can help organizations adjust to changes. This can be exemplified by a McKinsey study in which they found out that gender-diverse executive teams create 27% long-term value over male-dominated counterparts. And, for racially diverse executive teams, a long-term value of creation of 33% more than those least racially diverse organizations.
4. Better Understanding of Customers and Markets
When you have workplace diversity, it becomes natural for an organization to empathize with the needs of specific customer demographics. This is because you already have a diverse group of people working inside your organization – it becomes an instinct for them to understand the customer and market needs. It may even lead to a 70% probability of capturing new markets. Thus, securing your place in the industry than less-diverse workplaces.
5. Improved Profitability
Workplace diversity also means profitability for your business. Diverse firms can achieve a 2.3% higher cash flow than those with a restrictive staff composition. Also, innovative practices within a diverse organization can bring them 19% more revenue. This is because employees from diverse workplaces have an eye for innovation and are more resourceful.
What Is an Example of Good Diversity in the Workplace?
Hiring people from different gender or racial profiles can already be a good start. It means that an organization recruits people based solely on their abilities and not according to their background. However, there is more to this than simply having a database of employees with a gender or racially diverse profile. The workers must be assessed based on their skills, talent, and the amount of effort they put into their jobs – regardless of what gender, race, age, or disability they may have.
A challenge in workplace diversity is the need to have a role model. This is evident in the trade sector, for instance, where female trade workers can show that they too are capable of doing a job that’s typically reserved for males. More people, especially those about to enter the workforce, have to be informed of the opportunities available to them by having role models they can look up to.
The representation of a good role model, such as leadership positions held by people coming from a minority demographic, can set the standard of accepting workplace diversity. This is one way for companies to exemplify that they are a diverse workplace organization.
How Can You Respect Diversity in All Areas of Work?
Respecting diversity shouldn’t be limited to hiring people from different backgrounds. It has to be active participation by acknowledging their holidays, customs, or traditions. Also, it’s important to mix up teams to guarantee diverse team members. This shows that people from a different gender or race are not segregated. Instead, they are integrated into various teams within the workplace.
Another is managing unconscious biases, which can typically happen if people coming from the same background work together on a project. There has to be a check and balance to prevent any untoward biases.
How does an organization implement these? Investing in continuing education and training is crucial for workplace diversity. Help employees enhance their skills to reach their potential. Let them grow within your organization to become an asset to your company.
