Preview

Importance of Diversity

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
319 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Importance of Diversity
Sarah
07-08-2011
Cultural Diversity

Workplace diversity refers to the variety of differences of people in the work environment. It is very important to understand cultural, ethnic, and gender differences by managers and Professionals in a business setting these days. All businesses can benefit from a diverse body of talent bringing fresh ideas, perspectives, and views to the workplace. In today’s increasingly global workplace environment, the ability to effectively communicate with people of different cultures and backgrounds is an essential skill. (Devoe, 1999) In a diverse workplace, people learn these skills naturally as a result of normal day- to -day interaction and corporate teamwork. It is imperative that we all, especially managers, understand cultural, ethnic, and gender differences to have a successful business due to the fact that Diversity will probably be even more important in the future due to the increasing differences in our population.
There are many benefits to having a diverse workplace. Creativity increases when people with different ways of solving difficult problems work together towards a common solution. Other cultures and genders can offer insightful alternatives that one might not have considered. Language skills are obviously a huge plus and are needed in today’s global economy--and diverse workers often have this proficiency. Studies have also shown that interaction with diverse groups of people helps to reduce workplace discrimination. Sharing of ideas, cultural traditions, and alternate ways of solving problems all help employees to become more tolerant of one another and abandon their pre-conceived notions and stereotypes. (Roosevelt, 2001)
While performing the ball and sock experiment, I was put outside of my comfort zone and was forced to see what it was like in someone else’s shoes. I used my left hand to perform daily tasks such as brushing my teeth, combing my hair, and eating. It was not an easy task a first, but

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Workplace diversity is defined as “ways that people differ that may affect their workplace experiences in terms of performance, motivation, and communication” (Harvey, 2011, p. xiv). It is important to have an understanding of cultural, ethnic and gender differences by managers and professionals in order to have an effective working environment. This can be accomplished when managers and professionals are able to understand their own identities, race/ethnicity, and their own biasness. While attempting to overcome our own biasness can be challenging, acknowledging them can prevent us from discriminating actions (Harvey, 2011).…

    • 562 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    |Diversity |It is the condition of being diverse, different, or varied; difference , unlikeness in |…

    • 1022 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Diversity In The Workplace

    • 1117 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Globalization taking place in the business world today has led to increased workforce diversity as employees from different cultural backgrounds are brought together. Diversity in workplace encompasses respect and acceptance of the differences in the work place creating a positive and safe environment. Diversity entails the way employees perceive themselves and others affecting the way they interact with others in a working environment. Therefore, in order organizations to realize the benefits of the diversity in their organizations, the human resource managers need to effectively deal with diversity issues in the work place (Rosenwald, Mitchell, et al. 148). Organizations have to recognize the benefits of diversity and…

    • 1117 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Diversity has many faces that range from gender, culture, ethnicity, race, economic status, physical abilities, and many more, and this can be a problem that can affect many people who are employed or looking for employment in society because they are being judged or discriminated against for their differences. But if business took the time to understand the importance of differences in people so many doors could open for the employers and employees. Allowing diversity in the workplace could increase work morale, attendance, customers, and efficiency and create a less stressful environment for employees. This is possible by first increasing the diversity in the workplace and allowing for employees to learn about each other’s differences and…

    • 825 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    It is important for managers to be educated on diversity, and have an understanding of the differences in their workforce’s population, because it will improve performance potential and increase employee satisfaction. There are numerous benefits to valuing diversity. With each unique combination of gender, ethnic background, culture, and life experiences, each person brings a different set of strengths, skill sets, and approaches to problems. According to Bell, (2007) , “Valuing diversity can benefit organizations in the areas of cost, resource acquisition, marketing, creativity, problem solving, and system flexibility”. An employee’s satisfaction is much higher when they feel accepted and valued for their unique qualities.…

    • 1059 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    This paper addresses the many dimensions of cultural diversity. How these dimensions affect which cultural, ethnic, or other groups people identify with, and how these groups affect our social circles. The difference between diversity and inclusion is identified as well as the importance of diversity training within the workplace and how workplace culture is affected by diversity.…

    • 1894 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Managing diversity in the workplace is an important faucet for running a successful business. This essay explains the different complexities on gender, age, religion, occupation, and is a guide for understanding the differences in people.…

    • 2065 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    In this society when one person thinks of diversity he or she might think of race, but it also includes ethnic and cultural aspects that might be in the workplace. Society has come a long way and many changes have taken place, therefore many businesses need to learn how to adapt whether it is through training seminars or from firsthand experience.…

    • 1092 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    “unfamiliar” becoming familiar with what is not ( must have a good understanding of society and culture)…

    • 2046 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The United States are made of a large population of millions of people of every race and gender, which understanding diversity and cultural differences important. Working out abroad, there is a need of understanding culture heritage and shared humanity make a difference in professional success and failure meeting organizational goal (Kaplan, 2010). People work in all types of different cultural background. If you communicate successfully, with the multicultural colleagues, clients and customers will help your business performance, competitive advantage and talent retention (Kaplan, 2010). To have an effective communication skill, there is a need for…

    • 388 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    By its strict definition, diversity means that differences exist within a population. For example, an ethnically diverse community may have members who have emigrated from countries from around the globe. A community may have members who walk without assistance while others use wheelchairs. Some members may be wealthy while other community members may not be able to afford new clothes. Diversity entails differences in cultures, values, race, class, gender, age, ethnicity, sexual orientation, physical abilities, religion, ways of life, and other areas.…

    • 250 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    I live in the small town of Scottsville, KY. Everyone knows everyone here, and I like that. I like that when I am walking down the street people smile at each other, people ask how each other are doing, and how their families are doing. There is a real sense of community here, something I value a lot. I have lived here my whole life and have always felt very safe. This a great place to raise a family, and being from a small town has made me into who I am today.…

    • 518 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Chrysanthemums

    • 692 Words
    • 2 Pages

    In the story “The Chrysanthemums” by John Steinbeck. The main character Elisa allen is visited by a stranger who apparently changes her outlook on life. According to the story she seems to be a stay at home wife who loves to garden and is fascinated by chrysanthemums. While she is gardening one afternoon while her husband was in town, a man stops at her house. He offers to fix any pots or tools she has. While they are conversing he strikes up a conversation about the chrysanthemums which gets her going. She seemed to have taken a liking to him after a few words and offerd him work. After he was done he leaves with his money and a pot with chrysanthemums seeds in them. When her husband returns he notices a difference in her and she tried to ignore it. On their way into town together she sees the wagon that the man came in and is aroused again, which her husband notices and questions her about. She suddenly questions her husband about the prize fights and whether or not women attend. He answers her questions and her mood changes; she relaxes, turns her face and begins to cry.…

    • 692 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    This paper will discuss the benefits of diversity and multicultural aspects in the workplace. It discusses how diversity challenges and gives opportunities to management and organizations. The paper covers what many of the challenges are and what can be done to overcome some of the challenges. It discusses the different obstacles that come with diversity and how what some of the resolutions are to the obstacles. The paper also addresses gender diversity and physical disabilities.…

    • 2305 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    The Benefits of Diversity

    • 2245 Words
    • 9 Pages

    The business benefits of a diverse workforce are well known. Organizations that employ people from a wide variety of backgrounds are known to be productive and happier (Kiely). Quantitative measures of productivity include output quality, output quantity, and the time needed to complete a task. Greater output increases cost per unit, which in turn increases profits. Happier workers will raise the companies overall moral. Happy workers will drive down the turnover rate, and cost can be cut on training and development…

    • 2245 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Better Essays

Related Topics