My personnal characteristics dictate that I am probably 3 standard deviations from those of the Mean reservoir engineer working in the UKCS. So its only to be expected that I have some insight into the issue of Diversity. I am not however an expert observer of Diversity Management in the workplace. The commentary given here originates from the book "Diversity in Action" by Rajvinder Knadola and Johanna Fullerton published by The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development.
As a word the meaning of the word Diversity is simplistic - 'difference from what is expected'*. However, describing it and its management in the context of the workplace is not a trival task. And a myriad of views do exist. In "Diversity in Action" the authors provide a robust attempt and I found little that was contrary to my own thinking on the subject.
* Please note I have avoided the use of the term 'normal' ......that really would open up a 'can of worms'!
Visitors to this web page, who are not directly involved in Diversity strategy, may find the following extracts interesting. Hopefully I have not fallen foul of quoting out of context. (Those involved in Diversity strategy should already be familiar with this information)
"The basic concept of managing diversity accepts that the workforce consists of a diverse populationof people. The diversity consists of visible and non-visible differences which will include factors such as Sex, age, background, race, disabilit, personality and workstyle. It is founded on the premiss that harnessing these differences will create a productive environment in whih everybody feels, where their talents are beng fully utilised and in which organisational goals are met." p 8
Diversity |
Equal Opportunity |
Internal initiated |
Externally initiated |
Buisness needs driven |
Legally Driven |
Qualitative focus (ie improving the environment) |
Quantitative focus (ie improving numbers) |
Opportunity focussed |
Problem focussed |
Assumes pluralism |
Assumes assimilation |
Proactive |
Reactive |
|
6 Diversity strands; Race, Age, Disability, Gender, Sexual Orientation,Race |
p13
So, Diversity Management is not a 21st Century re-branding of Equal Opportunity
From a survey of UK corporations the listed proven benefits are;
Access to talent
-making it easier to recruit scarce labour
-reducing costs assocated with excessive turnover and absenteeism
Flexibility- enhancing orgaisational flexibility
Table 4.2 p 35
(Debatable and indirect benefits are also listed)
Again, based on a survey of UK corporations
It is interesting to note that a high proportion of these (least successful) initiatives could be seen as focussed on particular groups. For example;
- setting targets for the composition of the workforce
- using positive action in recruitment
- contributing to recruitment fairs for underrepresented groups
- providing work experience for underrepresented groups
p 61
Commenting on the findings of their survey of corporations the authors write;
In short too many organisations have what can best be described as initiative led strategies; in other words, they have taken action for the sake of taking actions.
p63
The authors write;
Thestigma associated with affirmative action can fuel rather than debunk stereotypical thinking and prejudiced attitudes (Helman 1994:164). Finally, she states that;
Providing women access to jobs traditionally reserved for men in our society does not necessarily further their cause. Access does not signify acceptance and access most certainly does not guarantee advancement. In fact, as long as affirmative action is associated with an absence of quality standards, it seems as likely to stimulate problems for women in work settings as it is to remedy them. The hidden costs of affirmative action can be very expensive indeed.
(Heilman 1995,164)
The aurthors comment that many organisations provide assertativeness training for women. They discuss the issues involved on p 132-133. I concur with their view that focussing assertaiveness training on women;