Managing Diversity in the Workplace: Past, Present, and Future - Prof. Christopher P. Neck, Study notes of Introduction to Business Management

Download Managing Diversity in the Workplace: Past, Present, and Future - Prof. Christopher P. Neck and more Study notes Introduction to Business Management in PDF only on Docsity! Chapter 8: Managing a Diverse Workforce i. Diversity: Past, Present, and Future a. Managing Diversity- managing a culturally diverse workforce by recognizing the characteristics common to specific groups of employees while dealing with such employees while dealing with such employees as individuals and supporting, nurturing, and utilizing their differences to the organization’s advantage b. Diversity shaped America’s past i. Immigrants come to US in late 1800s and early 1900s ii. They struggled to find work and were looked at as outsiders iii. Women, too, struggled to gain acceptance in the workplace iv. The most difficult struggle has been for nonwhite minorites 1. with the passing of Brown v. Board of Education, desegregation was unconstitutional c. Diversity is growing in today’s workforce i. Nearly half of the US workforce consists of women ii. Glass ceiling- metaphor for an invisible barrier that makes it difficult for women and minorities to rise above a certain level in an organization iii. Sexual Harassment- conduct of a sexual nature that has negative consequences for employment 1. Quid pro quo harassment- employment decisions are made based on a submission to or rejection of sexual conduct 2. Hostile environment- when unwelcome sexual conduct “has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with job performance.” May include persistent or pervasive displays of pornography, lewd or suggestive remarks, and demeaning taunts or jokes. 3. Both categories of harassment violate Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 4. Prevention (managerially) a. Develop comprehensive organizationwide policy on sexual harassment and present to all employees b. Hold training sessions to explain Title VII requirements c. Establish formal complaint procedure so employees can discuss problems without fear of retaliation] d. Act immediately when employees complain of sexual harassment e. When an investigation supports employee charges, discipline the offender at once f. Follow up on all cases to ensure a satisfactory resolution of the problem iv. Minorities and Immigrants 1. Black, Asian, and Hispanic workers hold more than 1 in every 4 US jobs 2. Asian and Hispanic workforces are growing the fastest in the US, followed by African Americans 3. 3 in 10 college enrollees are people of color 4. Foreign born workers make up more than 15% of the US workforce v. Mentally and Physically Disable People 1. These people make up the largest unemployed minority a. The share of the population with a disability is growing as the average worker is getting older and heavier b. 18% of the population has some degree of disability vi. Education Levels 1. More and more often now, jobs are requiring a college education 2. The share of workers with a college education has doubled since 1970 vii. Age Groups 1. 4 out of 10 workers are 45 or older d. Tomorrow’s workers will be more varied than ever i. 80% of US workers are white and more than half of them are male ii. 1 out of 3 residents in the US is a racial or ethnic minority 1. Largest and fastest growing minority is Hispanics, followed closely by African Americans iii. Employers are using new strategies to retain and attract skilled and knowledgeable older workers 1. Phased retirement plans allow older workers to work fewer hours per week 2. Adapting the workplace to help older workers cope with the physical problems they experience as they age, such as poorer vision, hearing, and mobility a. Benefit packages targeted toward older employees b. Educating managers about ways to utilize older employees c. Skill training for older employees ii. Managing Diversity versus Affirmative Action a. Affirmative Action- Special efforts to recruit and hire qualified members of groups that have been discriminated against in the past i. Affirmative action and diversity are complimentary, not the same b. Well-managed diversity and inclusion can become competitive advantage i. How do companies use diversity to boost performance? 1. to increase innovation 61% 2. to recruit new workers 59% 3. integrating diversity into the business strategy 53% a. Expatriates- parent-company nationals who are sent to work at a foreign subsidiary b. Host-country nationals- natives of the country where an overseas subsidiary is located c. Third-country nationals-natives of country other than the home country or the host country of an overseas subsidiary d. Inpatriates- a foreign national brought in to work at the parent company e. Global Managers need cross-country skills i. Traits for success in a global environment 1. sensitivity to cultural differences 2. business knowledge 3. courage to take a stand 4. bringing out the best in people 5. integrity 6. insightfulness 7. commitment to success 8. risk taking 9. use of feedback 10. cultural adventurousness 11. desire for opportunities to learn 12. openness to criticism 13. desire for feedback 14. flexibility ii. measures to prevent global assignments from failing 1. structure assignments clearly 2. create clear job objectives 3. develop performance measurements based on objectives 4. use effective, validated selection and screening criteria 5. prepare expatriates and families for assignments 6. create a vehicle for ongoing communication 7. anticipate repatriation to facilitate reentry when they come back home 8. consider developing a mentor program that will help monitor and intervene in case of trouble f. National cultures shape values and business practices i. Ethnocentrism- the tendency to judge others by the standards of one’s group or culture, which is seen as superior ii. Culture shock- disorientation and stress associated with being in a foreign environment iii. Cross-cultural research 1. Geert Hofstede gives us 4 dimensions managers in multinational corporations tend to view cultural differences a. Power distance- the extent society accepts that power is distributed in organizations unequally b. Individualism/collectivism- the extent to which people act on their own or as part of a group c. Uncertainty avoidance- the extent to which people in a society feel threatened by uncertain and ambiguous situations d. Masculinity/femininity- the extent to which a society values quantity of life (accomplishments, money) over quality of life (compassion, beauty) 2. Foreign nationals will encounter a number of work-related differences in the US a. Meetings- Americans and workers from other countries may have different views on the purpose of meetings and their length b. Work(aholic) schedules- workers with strong labor organizations get more weeks of vacation then American workers i. Europeans may balk at working on weekends c. E-mail- parts of the world have not yet embraced email and voicemail like the US has d. Fast-trackers- US companies may put young people in positions of power. In many other cultures, experience earns promotions e. Feedback- everyone likes praise but Americans are much more lavish about praise than others iv. International management introduces complex ethical challenges 1. the use of bribes is widely accepted in many other countries a. bribes have been illegal in the US since 1977 2. While there are many differences, there are 5 core values that, regardless of nationality or religion, are standard a. Compassion b. Fairness c. Honesty d. Responsibility e. Respect for others