Organizational Behavior : An Experiential Approach 8/E

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Chapter 14 Managing Diversity
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Objectives

• Explain the broad definition of diversity
• List the reasons why diversity is a business
  issue
• Discuss ethnicity, gender, age, and culture in
  terms of workplace diversity
• Define ethnocentrism

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Objectives

• Provide examples of stereotyping and bias
• Explain what happens to minority tokens in
  organizations
• Understand how to design an inclusive workplace

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Diversity Defined

• Diversity
• Differences and similarities with respect to
  ethnicity, race, culture, gender, age, functional
  background, educational background, lifestyle
  preferences, organizational tenure, personality,
  and ways of thinking

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Why Is Diversity Important?

• Increased variety of viewpoints
• Ability to reach additional customers
• Attracting and retaining the best talent
• Decreased costs of turnover
• Linkages to profitability

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Aspects of Diversity

• Ethnicity
• By 2010, 34 of the U. S. workforce will be
  composed of non-Caucasians
• Gender
• Women make up 46 of the labor force and hold 50
  of the managerial and professional positions
• Age
• By 2012, workers 55 and older will comprise 19.1
  of the U. S. workforce
• Culture
• Increasing use of multinational teams and
  globalization of the workforce enhances the
  importance of culture

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Barriers and Aids to Womens Advancement in the
Workplace

• Women executives cite the following barriers to
  their advancement
• Lack of general management or line experience
• Exclusion from networks
• Stereotyping and preconceptions about womens
  roles and abilities

• Women executives cite these reasons for their
  successful advancement
• Consistently exceeding performance expectations
• Successfully managing others
• Developing a style male managers feel comfortable
  with
• Expertise
• Seeking out difficult, visible assignments

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Generations and Their Work Expectations
Generation Born Expectations About Work
Silent Generation 1922-1945 Disciplined, hard-working, loyal, respect for authority
Baby Boomers 1946-1964 Optimistic, competitive, active in social causes, focused on personal accomplishment, lack of respect for authority
Generation X 1965-1967 Independent, resilient, adaptive, expect work to be fun, work well in multicultural settings
Generation Y 1977-2000 Comfortable with high tech, desire feedback, respectful of bosses, expect balanced work and family life, want meaningful work
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Culture

• Provides ready-made solutions for basic human
  problems and a sense of identity
• Limits ability to appreciate alternative
  behaviors
• All cultures have positive and negative aspects
• Best understood as a series of trade-offs

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Ethnocentrism - Defined

• Ethnocentrism is defined as the exaggerated
• tendency to think the characteristics of ones
• own group or race are superior to those of
• other groups or races
• Everyone possesses a degree of ethnocentrism,
• but it must be curbed to work effectively with
• people from other groups or races

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Developmental Model Of Intercultural Sensitivity
(DMIS)
This model is a taxonomy that describes
how people react to cultural differences and
develop intercultural competence
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Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity
(DMIS)
Denial One's own culture is the only good
one. Other cultures are criticized as
inferior and differences are denigrated
Defense One's own culture is the only real
one. Other cultures are avoided and treated with
disinterest
Minimization Elements of one's own culture are
viewed as universal. Other cultures assumed to
be basically similar cultural difference is
overly simplified
Ethnocentric Stages
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Developmental Model of Intercultural Sensitivity
(DMIS)
Adaptation One's worldview is expanded to
include perspectives from another culture
and learning to behave appropriately in
that culture
Acceptance One's own culture is just one of a
number of equally complex worldviews.
Other cultures are treated with respect and
curiosity
Integration The experience Of different cultural
worldviews are incorporated into ones identity
Ethnorelative Stages
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Stereotyping - Defined

• To stereotype is to assign identical
• characteristics to any people in a group
• regardless of the actual variation among
• members of the group
• The prejudice that accompanies stereotypes
  prevents us from judging individuals fairly on
  their own merit

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The Minority Experience

• Minorities in both cultures and organizations
  often pay a high price for their differentness

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What Happens to Tokens?
Perceptual Tendency
Result
Performance pressure
Receive more attention
Exaggerated, polarized differences
Contrast with majority
Assimilation via stereotyping
Role encapsulation
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Managing Diversity Effectively

• Allows minorities and eccentric people to feel
  comfortable and contribute fully at work
• Permits organizations to benefit from diverse
  viewpoints
• Makes it easier to serve a diverse group of
  customers
• Helps the organizations attract and retain
  high-quality minority employees

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Characteristics of anInclusive Organization
Capitalize on advantages of diversity
Distribute organizational resources equitably
Pluralistic organizational culture
Fully integrated minority members in informal
networks
Widely shared ability to influence decisions
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Characteristics of anInclusive Organization
Policies, practices, and procedures are flexible
and responsive to needs of all employees
Absence of prejudice and discrimination
Minimum inter-group conflict among diverse groups
Majority and minority members are equally
identified with organizational goals
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Steps to Creating anInclusive Organization

• Tangibly demonstrate top management commitment to
  diversity
• Establish unambiguous, explicit, and focused
  qualifications criteria used in selection
  decisions and clearly communicate those criteria
• Develop strategies to
• recruit a diverse workforce
• Remove barriers to
• achievement and advancement

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Steps to Creating anInclusive Organization

• Encourage the development of a superordinate goal
  and a group identity
• Establish appropriate training programs
• Align organizational reward systems with
  recruiting, hiring, retaining, and advancing a
  diverse workforce
• Monitor the effectiveness of diversity initiatives

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Diversity/Intercultural Competencies

• Tolerance of differences
• Tolerance of ambiguity
• Open-mindedness
• Positive attitudes toward people and experiences
• Patience
• Personal self-awareness
• Behavioral flexibility
• Empathy
• Interpersonal sensitivity
• Good communication skills, including active
  listening
• Ability to connect with others