Diversity Awareness
If you were born before the 1970's, you would have witnessed the demographic change that North America went through. Your neighbors were not all American anymore; your colleagues and superiors were no longer just Americans. Living and working in today's society requires each of us to become increasingly aware of the challenges of cultural changes.
What is Diversity Awareness?
Diversity awareness is about identifying and respecting differences that exist within your organization, and understanding how they affect your organization. Being aware of workplace diversity means that you view individual differences and behavior - be it a person's religion, culture or sexual orientation - as a benefit to your organization, rather than dismissing it as abnormal behavior or inappropriate. Diversity awareness helps us to appreciate that others are ''not like us''; we stop complaining and instead learn to respect differences, and perhaps even embrace some of it ourselves.
Would a Muslim woman clad in black muslin be treated at par with other individuals in your company? Or would she be isolated? Are the people in your organization accepting of people with different sexual orientation, or do they treat them with hostility? If the answers to these questions do not satisfy you, diversity awareness is an issue that your organization must address in order to harness its true potential.
Advantages of Diversity Awareness
Know your employees better
Employee diversity is like an undiscovered gold mine. Diversity brings with it a host of different skills, talents and ideas. Being aware of diversity in an organization helps you understand the potential that lies within it. Diversity awareness means that you identify and tap latent potential. For example, the more experienced employees in your organization may be suited best to tackle a certain type of work problem. If you are aware that you have employees who speak Italian, you can better satisfy your Italian customers' needs. Unless you make an assessment of your organization's diversity, you are likely to underutilize human resources accumulated within it.
Formulate Diversity policies
Diversity awareness is the first step for you to formulate your company's diversity policies. Every entrepreneur and business person understands that the success of organizational policies depends on policy-maker's ability to understand the organization properly. Without a strong foundation built on the knowledge of the diversity within your organization, diversity policies, training and goals will be less efficacious.
Improve communication
Being unaware of likely differences between two individuals is one of the key reasons for poor communication. Diversity awareness is a way to overcome miscommunications, confusion and lack of team work.
Foresee and avoid conflicts
The root of every conflict is difference. Not all differences within an organization can be monitored. However, it is within your power to manage conflicts that arise out of diversity issues within your organizations. Conflict can be ugly. It reduces individual, and ultimately company performance, leads to attrition and makes an organization less attractive in the eyes of prospective job-seekers. The deeper appreciation for people's differences, as learned through diversity awareness, can make employees better equipped to resolve their differences amongst themselves.
Practical Ways To Become Aware Of The Diversity In Your Workplace
Training is the key step for diversity awareness. There are very effective courses and programs available that can teach your employees the value of diversity.
· Your people make your organization. It is time that you got to know them better. Identify various factors on which employees can be classified. There are no hard and fast factors to go by, as each organization has a unique workforce. However, some common ones include age, gender, religion, nationality, education, marital status and sexual orientation.
· Have a clear understanding of how diversity in your organization is beneficial to you and your organization.
· Formulate sessions where employees at all levels are made aware of the diversity around them, using collected statistics and data. Take pride in, and encourage others to be proud of, being part of an organization that represents world populations and fosters a work employment for all with equal opportunities.
· Understand the effect that current and historic distrust has on inter-personal interactions. For example, because of the threat of terrorism on world security, a common negative phenomenon has been a change of attitude and increasing hostility towards Muslim employees in an organization. Your employees may need to be sensitized towards such issues.
· Diversity awareness is not just about difference. Recognize similarities among people in your organization and among people in general, irrespective of creed, customs and culture. Security, health, education of children, self-esteem, privacy and recreation, transcend all cultural and social boundaries. People understand each other most on these issues, and discussing them builds bonds and relationships.
· Create a diversity committee in your office, to create periodic theme events based on diversity. For example, your organization could celebrate the Chinese New Year, during which employees would have a chance to further understand and appreciate Chinese culture, cuisine and custom.
· Invite professional and community experts to talk about diversity to your employees.
About David McLauren, Ph.D.
David is a diversity specialist who speaks five languages. He brings a wealth of education and expertise to businesses and brilliantly helps companies increase their profits and productivity through diversity.
A highly sought-after keynote speaker, facilitator, and expert on diversity, inclusion, and multi-cultural issues, David consistently energizes, educates, and empowers his audiences.
Call today to book him for your next conference! 888.897.4224
Helping you maximize diversity through connector,
David
David McLauren, Ph.D.
david@davidmclauren.com
888.897.4224 (toll free)
604.897.4224 (voice)
604.557.0246 (fax)
For more information, please go to www.davidmclauren.com
Showing posts with label Diversity network. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Diversity network. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Diveresity 101
Did you know that over 100 languages are spoken in many cities in North America? It has become a multi-cultural mosaic. Canada and the United States are the most culturally diverse nations on earth. Thousands of people from virtually every nation and ethnic group are coming to our shores. We are becoming more of a "toss salad" than a "melting pot".
As the multicultural population in North America explodes, so does the market potential and multicultural customers/workforce. Companies and entrepreneurs often miss market penetration because of the failure to understand the target group's cultural values and customs. Cultural and ethnic diversity is challenging the way we do business with multicultural communities.
What is Diversity?
It is a new word emerged into our vocabulary. Diversity is not a new flavor of the month rather it will be a regular feature on the United States and Canadian HR menu. It means many things for many people. A lot of people have used diversity as a means to promote or further their personal or group agenda. I don't mean to distract from those agendas. Others have deliberately excluded themselves from the conversation assuming "it" is not for them. I don't want to assign any meaning or motive to that decision. I merely want to offer a perspective based on years of involvement as a practitioner in the field. The original intent of the movement called diversity management was to create an environment that allows all people to maximize their contribution. Diversity is here to stay, it is not going to disappear; it will be here for good, so let's get used to it and celebrate diversity.
Many people equate diversity with cultural differences or affirmative action. But diversity is not so simply defined. Diversity is more than simply "us vs. them" - it is the understanding that we are all unique in various ways. For example, diversity is more than just culture - it is the changing demographics of our population. It's also about the various beliefs and attitudes held by each individual, and the influence of one's identity and the groups with whom one interacts. Diversity is not just affirmative action either-it is the elimination of stereotypes and discrimination that affects our ability to understand each other and work together productively. In business, diversity increases profitability by bringing in fresh new ideas and methods; in schools it means greater learning and understanding; in relationships, diversity can mean personal growth. Diversity should not be seen as a detriment, but rather an asset, a celebration of our individuality as well as our commonalities.
Dimensions of Diversity
There are primary and secondary dimensions of diversity. Primary dimensions of diversity, which consist of characteristics we cannot change, include race, ethnicity, age, gender, sexual preferences, and mental/physical abilities or characteristics. Secondary dimensions, which are aspects of ourselves that are less visible, can be acquired, modified, and sometimes discarded. These aspects include education, communication style, primary language, religion, income level, work style, work/military experience, family status, organization role/level, geographic location, group affiliations, and political preferences, among a few.
Advantages of Workplace Diversity:
The stats; Canada predicts that 40 percent of the Canadian labor force will be comprised of minorities by 2010. More importantly, it estimates that from 1998 to 2010 some 45 percent of the people entering the Canadian workforce will be minorities. In the United States 85% of the new workforce in the next decade will be women, Hispanics, Asians and Afro-Americans, only 15% of them will be white men.
Most companies in North America recognize that there are significant advantages to integrating workers from culturally diverse backgrounds into their workforce. However, many firms don't understand the full importance of doing this. Diversity needs to be seen as the business plan, essential to successful products and increased sales. This is especially true in today's global marketplace, as companies interact with different cultures and clients.
Among the advantages of a well-integrated company are: increased creativity, increased productivity, new attitudes, new language skills, global understanding, new processes, and new solutions to difficult problems.
About David McLauren, Ph.D.
David is a diversity specialist who speaks five languages. He brings a wealth of education and expertise to businesses and brilliantly helps companies increase their profits and productivity through diversity. A highly sought-after keynote speaker, facilitator, and expert on diversity, inclusion, and multi-cultural issues, David consistently energizes, educates, and empowers his audiences.
Call today to book him for your next conference! 888.897.4224
Helping you maximize diversity through connector,
David McLauren, Ph.D.
david@davidmclauren.com
888.897.4224 (toll free)
604.897.4224 (voice)
604.557.0246 (fax)
For more information, please go to www.davidmclauren.com
As the multicultural population in North America explodes, so does the market potential and multicultural customers/workforce. Companies and entrepreneurs often miss market penetration because of the failure to understand the target group's cultural values and customs. Cultural and ethnic diversity is challenging the way we do business with multicultural communities.
What is Diversity?
It is a new word emerged into our vocabulary. Diversity is not a new flavor of the month rather it will be a regular feature on the United States and Canadian HR menu. It means many things for many people. A lot of people have used diversity as a means to promote or further their personal or group agenda. I don't mean to distract from those agendas. Others have deliberately excluded themselves from the conversation assuming "it" is not for them. I don't want to assign any meaning or motive to that decision. I merely want to offer a perspective based on years of involvement as a practitioner in the field. The original intent of the movement called diversity management was to create an environment that allows all people to maximize their contribution. Diversity is here to stay, it is not going to disappear; it will be here for good, so let's get used to it and celebrate diversity.
Many people equate diversity with cultural differences or affirmative action. But diversity is not so simply defined. Diversity is more than simply "us vs. them" - it is the understanding that we are all unique in various ways. For example, diversity is more than just culture - it is the changing demographics of our population. It's also about the various beliefs and attitudes held by each individual, and the influence of one's identity and the groups with whom one interacts. Diversity is not just affirmative action either-it is the elimination of stereotypes and discrimination that affects our ability to understand each other and work together productively. In business, diversity increases profitability by bringing in fresh new ideas and methods; in schools it means greater learning and understanding; in relationships, diversity can mean personal growth. Diversity should not be seen as a detriment, but rather an asset, a celebration of our individuality as well as our commonalities.
Dimensions of Diversity
There are primary and secondary dimensions of diversity. Primary dimensions of diversity, which consist of characteristics we cannot change, include race, ethnicity, age, gender, sexual preferences, and mental/physical abilities or characteristics. Secondary dimensions, which are aspects of ourselves that are less visible, can be acquired, modified, and sometimes discarded. These aspects include education, communication style, primary language, religion, income level, work style, work/military experience, family status, organization role/level, geographic location, group affiliations, and political preferences, among a few.
Advantages of Workplace Diversity:
The stats; Canada predicts that 40 percent of the Canadian labor force will be comprised of minorities by 2010. More importantly, it estimates that from 1998 to 2010 some 45 percent of the people entering the Canadian workforce will be minorities. In the United States 85% of the new workforce in the next decade will be women, Hispanics, Asians and Afro-Americans, only 15% of them will be white men.
Most companies in North America recognize that there are significant advantages to integrating workers from culturally diverse backgrounds into their workforce. However, many firms don't understand the full importance of doing this. Diversity needs to be seen as the business plan, essential to successful products and increased sales. This is especially true in today's global marketplace, as companies interact with different cultures and clients.
Among the advantages of a well-integrated company are: increased creativity, increased productivity, new attitudes, new language skills, global understanding, new processes, and new solutions to difficult problems.
About David McLauren, Ph.D.
David is a diversity specialist who speaks five languages. He brings a wealth of education and expertise to businesses and brilliantly helps companies increase their profits and productivity through diversity. A highly sought-after keynote speaker, facilitator, and expert on diversity, inclusion, and multi-cultural issues, David consistently energizes, educates, and empowers his audiences.
Call today to book him for your next conference! 888.897.4224
Helping you maximize diversity through connector,
David McLauren, Ph.D.
david@davidmclauren.com
888.897.4224 (toll free)
604.897.4224 (voice)
604.557.0246 (fax)
For more information, please go to www.davidmclauren.com
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