1. iversity (business)
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The "business case for diversity" stems from the progression of the models of
diversity within the workplace since the 1960's. The original model for diversity
was situated around affirmative action drawing strength from the law and a need
to comply with equal employment opportunity objectives. This compliance based
model gave rise to the idea that tokenism was the reason an individual was hired
into a company when they differed from the dominant group. This primarily
included race, ethnicity, and gender. Although affirmative action is the law, in
most cases, US employers are prohibited by federal and state laws from giving
race or ethnicity any consideration in hiring or assigning employees,[1] including
hiring to fill diversity quotas. However, the US Supreme Court has upheld the use
of limited preferences based on race, ethnicity, and sex, when there is a “manifest
imbalance” in a “traditionally segregated job category.”[2][3] The social justice
model evolved next and extended the idea that individuals outside of the dominant
group should be given opportunities within the workplace, not only because it was
the law, but because it was the right thing to do. This model still revolved around
the idea of tokenism, but it also brought in the notion of hiring based on a "good
fit". From social justice developed the model of representation and diversity
acceptance where the scope of diversity expanded beyond gender, race and
ethnicity to include age, sexual orientation, and physical ability. Today, the
diversity model is one of inclusion which reflects a globalized economy and
multicultural work force where value is placed on diversity of thought, and the
perspectives shared from individual standpoints are seen to benefit organizations

2. that are savvy enough to capitalize on them. [4] The business case for diversity
theorizes that, in a global marketplace, a company that employs a diverse
workforce, is better able to understand the demographics of the marketplace it
serves and is thus better equipped to thrive in that marketplace than
a company that has a more limited range of employee demographics.
Beyond having a workforce that mirrors the changing demographics of the global
consumer market and the ability to better understand their desires and preferences,
productivity and costs can be analyzed to assist in building the business case for
diversity. In the deficit model, organizations that do not have a strong diversity
inclusion culture will invite lower productivity, higher absenteeism, and higher
turnover which will result in higher costs to the company. [5] On the other hand, a
company choosing to foster an inclusive environment for increased productivity,
better problem solving capabilities, and increased market share is applying the
investment model, or value-added model to diversity inclusion strategies. Either
model, however, requires an intentional implementation from top leadership
within the organization for the culture to truly be one of inclusion and acceptance.
Contents
[hide]
1 Workplace diversity
o 1.1 Leadership
o 1.2 Benefits
o 1.3 Challenges
2 Diversity inclusion as a strategic initiative
o 2.1 Liberal change
o 2.2 Radical changes
o 2.3 Transformational change
3 Implementation
4 See also
5 References
[edit]Workplace diversity
In a journal article entitled The multicultural organization by Taylor Cox, Jr., Cox
talks about three organization types which focus on the development of cultural
diversity. The three organization types are: the monolithic organization, the plural

3. organization, and the multicultural organization. In the monolithic organization,
the amount of structural integration (the presence of persons from different
cultural groups in a single organization) is minimal and white male privilege is
very tangible. This type of organization may have women and marginalized
members within the workforce, but not in positions of leadership and
power. [6] The plural organization has a more heterogeneous membership than the
monolithic organization and takes steps to be more inclusive of persons from
cultural backgrounds that differ from the dominant group. This type of
organization seeks to empower those from a marginalize standpoint to encourage
opportunities for promotion and positions of leadership. [6] The multicultural
organization not only contains many different cultural groups, but it values this
diversity. It encourages healthy conflict as a source of avoiding groupthink. [7]
[edit]Leadership
The culture of an organization is reflective of the leadership. Exploring
organizations that have experienced dramatic culture shifts, such as NASA from
the height and success of the Apollo era to the demise of the Challenger and
Columbia days, it is evident that the culture was in large part affected by the top
leaders. [8] A study of successful multicultural organizations as opposed to
monolithic and plural organizations can be understood by applying theories of
leadership which have evolved over time. Trait leadership theory suggests that
leadership is dependent on physical and social attributes of the individual and
greatly based on European cultures. [9] Theories that deal with power and
authority will include the autocratic, democratic and laissez-faire leadership styles
which reference the management and subordinate relationship to distributing and
sharing power. These can overlap and lend themselves to situational leadership
which Paul Hersey and Kenneth Blanchard suggested depends the combination of
the relationship behavior and the tasks at hand. [10] The last types of leadership
which underscore those of the multicultural organizations are transformational
and discursive leadership. Transformational leadership focuses on change agents
and those with a competency to see the vision for the future and communicate it
to others. Discursive leadership takes a closer examination of a leaders ability to
shape the organizational talk, meaning and resulting interpretations from all
discursive acts, symbols and vocabulary. [9] The combination of these last two
leadership styles creates a culture that allows and encourages mid-level managers
to use diversity as an influential resource in order to enhance organizational

4. effectiveness. In the Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, C.L. Walck defines
managing diversity in the workplace as "Negotiating interaction across culturally
diverse groups, and contriving to get along in an environment characterized by
cultural diversity".[11]
[edit]Benefits
Diversity is beneficial to both the organization and the members as noted above.
Diversity brings substantial potential benefits such as better decision making and
improved problem solving, greater creativity and innovation, which leads to
enhanced product development, and more successful marketing to different types
of customers.[6] [4] Diversity provides organizations with the ability to compete in
global markets.[12]Simply recognizing diversity in a corporation helps link the
variety of talents within the organization.[13] The act of recognizing diversity also
allows for those employees with these talents to feel needed and have a sense of
belonging, which in turn increases their commitment to the company and allows
each of them to contribute in a unique way.[14] Standpoint theory suggests that
marginalized groups bring a different perspective to an organization that
challenges the status quo since their socially constructed world view will differ
from that of the dominant group.[15] Although the standpoint of the dominant
group will often carry more weight, a transformational leader will encourage
conflicting standpoints to coexist within an organization which will create a
forum for sanctioned conflict to ensue. Conflict stems from challenging the way
things have always been done, and/or ideas and problems that have not been
explored from multiple perspectives. Standpoint theory gives a voice to those in a
position to see patterns of behavior that those immersed in the culture have
difficulty acknowledging.[16] These unique and varying standpoints help to
eradicate groupthink which can develop within a homogenous group.[4] Scott
Page‟s (2007) [17]mathematical modeling research of team work reflects this view.
His models demonstrated that heterogeneous teams consistently out-performed
homogeneous teams on a variety of tasks. Page points out, however, that diversity
in teamwork is not always simple and that there are many challenges to fostering
an inclusive environment in the workplace for diversity of thought and ideas.
[edit]Challenges
One of the greatest challenges an organization has when trying to adopt a more
inclusive environment is assimilation for any member outside of the dominant

5. group. A number of scholars have studied the interplay between power, ideology
and discursive acts which serve to reinforce the hegemonic structure of
organizations.[18] Everything from organizational symbols, rituals, and stories
serve to maintain the position of power held by the dominant group.[18] Extending
this concept to diversity inclusion where organizations seek to hire or promote
individuals that are not part of this dominant group into management positions, a
difficult tension develops between the socially constructed organizational norm
and acceptance of cultural diversity. Often these individuals are mentored and
coached to adopt the necessary traits for inclusion into the privileged group as
opposed to being embraced for their differences. [4][19] According to the journal
article Cultural Diversity in the Workplace: The State of the Field, Marlene G.
Fine explains that "those who assimilate are denied the ability to express their
genuine selves in the workplace; they are forced to repress significant parts of
their lives within a social context that frames a large part of their daily encounters
with other people." Fine goes on to mention that "People who spend significant
amounts of energy coping with an alien environment have less energy left to do
their jobs. Assimilation does not just create a situation in which people who are
different are likely to fail, it also decreases the productivity of organizations".[12]
Another challenge faced by organizations striving to foster a more diverse
workforce is the management of a diverse population. Managing diversity is more
than simply acknowledging differences in people.[20] A number of organizational
theorists have suggested that work-teams which are highly diverse can be difficult
to motivate and manage for a variety of reasons. A major challenge is
miscommunication within an organization. There are competencies, however,
which help to develop effective communication in diverse organizational
environments. These skills include self-monitoring, empathy, and strategic
decision-making. Self-monitoring refers to a communicator's awareness of how
his/her behavior affects another person along with his/her willingness to modify
this behavior based on knowledge of its impact. Empathy enables the receiver to
go beyond the literal meaning of a message and consider the communicator's
feelings, values, assumptions, and needs. Strategic decision-making implies that
the communication sources and channels used to reach organization members, as
well as the substance of the messages conveyed, are mindfully selected.[21]In her
article entitled Developing Receiver-Centered Communication in Diverse
Organizations, Judi Brownell explains that a message meaning can never be

6. completely shared because no two individuals experience events in exactly the
same way. Even when native and non-native speakers are exposed to the same
messages, they may interpret the information differently.[21]Each interprets
messages and discerns meanings based on their unique standpoint, and without a
willingness to accept differing standpoints, an environment is created where the
marginalized groups have no voice.[22]
This is an additional challenge that diverse organizations face, maintaining a
culture which supports the idea of employee voice especially for marginalized
group members. When the organizational environment is not supportive of
dissenting viewpoints, employees may choose to remain silent for fear of
repercussions, [23] or they may seek alternative safe avenues to express their
concerns and frustrations such as on-line forums and affinity group
meetings.[24] By finding opportunities such as these to express dissent, individuals
can begin to gather collective support and generate collective sense-making which
creates a voice for the marginalized members so they can have a collective voice
to trigger change.[25]
[edit]Diversity inclusion as a strategic initiative
Managing diversity goes far beyond the limits of equal employment opportunity
and affirmative action. Chief Diversity Officers (CDO) recognize that strategic
planning is necessary for creating a productive, diverse workforce. They seek out
continuous learning opportunities and ongoing diversity sensitivity training for
organizational managers and staff. Managers must be willing to work towards
changing the organization in order to create a culture of diversity and
inclusion that follows the mission, vision, and values set forth by the leadership.
Three approaches towards corporate diversity management can be distinguished:
Liberal Change, Radical Change, and Transformational Change.[26]
[edit]Liberal change
The liberal concept recognizes equality of opportunity in practice when all
individuals are enabled freely and equally to compete for social rewards. The aim
of the liberal change model is to have a fair labor market from which the best
person is chosen for a job position based solely on performance. To support this
concept, a framework of formal rules has been created and policy makers are
responsible for ensuring that these rules are enforced on all so none shall be
discriminated against. One weakness of the liberal view is that the formal rules

7. cannot cover every aspect of work life, as there is almost always an informal
aspect to work such as affinity groups, hidden transcripts, and alternative informal
communication channels.[27][28] The liberal change approach centers on law,
compliance, and legal penalties for non-compliance. Title VII of the Civil Rights
Act of 1964 protects employees and job applicants in the US from discrimination
by employers. In Europe, the Treaties of Rome 1957 establish the right to equal
pay for women and men. Recently, the European Parliament and the Council
passed EU directives concerning equal opportunities at work. Directive
2000/78/EC establishes a framework for equal treatment in employment and
occupation. Directive 2006/54/EC deals with the implementation of the principle
of equal opportunities and equal treatment of men and women in matters of
employment and occupation. These anti-discrimination laws uphold affirmative
action and ensures equal treatment for job applicants and employers regardless of
their gender, race, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation, physical ability,or belief
structure.
[edit]Radical changes
In contrast to the liberal approach, radical change seeks to intervene directly in the
workplace practices in order to achieve balanced workforces (in regard to all
diversity dimensions), as well as a fair distribution of rewards among employees.
The radical approach is thus more outcome focused than focused on the forming
the rules to ensure equal treatment.[28] One major tool of radical change is quotas
which are set by companies or national institutions with the aim to regulate
diversity of the workforce and equal opportunities. Quota systems are critically
discussed concerning their effectiveness. Arguments for and against quota
systems in companies or public institutions include contrasting ideas such as:
quotas compensate for actual barriers that prevent marginalized members from
attaining their fair share of managerial positions to quotas are against equal
opportunity for all and imply that a marginalized member only got the position to
fill the quota. [29] Sweden‟s quota system for parliamentary positions is a positive
case for radical change through quota setting.[30] A quota system was introduced
at the Swedish parliament with the aim of ensuring that women constitute at least
a „critical minority‟ of 30 or 40 percent of all parliament seats. Since the
introduction of the system, women representation in parliament has risen
dramatically even above the defined quota. Today, 47.3 percent of parliamentary

8. representatives are women, a number which stands out compared to the global
average of 19%.
[edit]Transformational change
Transformational change covers an equal opportunity agenda for both the
immediate need as well as long term solutions.[31] For this reason, it has been
considered a combination of the liberal and radical approach. For the short-term it
implements new measures to minimize bias in procedures such as recruitment or
promotion. The long-term, however, is seen as a project of transformation for
organizations. This approach acknowledges the existence of power systems and
seeks to contest and challenge the existing hegemony through implementation of
equality values throughout all levels of the organization. An illustrative case for
transformational change is ageing management.[32] Younger employees are seen
as more innovative and flexible, while older employees are associated with higher
costs of salary, benefits, and healthcare needs.[33] Therefore companies may prefer
young workers to older staff. Through application of the transformational concept
an immediate intervention provides needed relief while the long range culture
shift occurs. For the short-term solution an organization can set up legislation to
prevent discrimination regarding age (e.g. Age Discrimination in Employment
Act). However, for the long-term solution, negative stereotypes of older
employees needs to be replaced with the positive realization that older employees
can add value to the workplace through their experience and knowledge
base. [34] To balance this idea with the benefit of innovation and flexibility that
comes with youth, a mixture of ages in the workforce is ideal.[35] Through
transformational change, the short term solution affords the organization the time
necessary to enact deep rooted culture changes leading to a more inclusive
environment.
[edit]Implementation
Diversity issues change over time, depending on local historical and dynamic
conditions. Intentional "diversity programs" can assist schools, government
agencies, and businesses facing rapid demographic changes in their local
consumer market and labor pool by helping people work and understand each
other better.[4] Resources exist through best practice cases of organizations that
have successfully created inclusive environments supporting and championing
diversity. An example of a company involved with creating diversity in the

9. workplace is MentorNet,[36] a non-profit online mentoring organization that
focuses on women and underrepresented minorities in the STEM (Science,
Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) fields. MentorNet has used an
algorithm to match over 30,000 mentor relationships since 1997. The organization
is unique because gives students, especially women and underrepresented
minorities, the chance to seek mentors to discuss how to overcome diversity
obstacles in their fields and eventually their workplace.
Implementing diversity inclusion initiatives must start with the commitment from
the top. Hegemony refers to the dominant structure where one group is benefitting
over others; however, the dominant group isn't 'doing' this to the other
marginalized groups, all members are a part of actively participating and
maintaining the dominant structure.[37] Max Weber used a web metaphor to
explain that we live in a socially constructed web of meaning which we ourselves
create and which we cannot live outside of.[18] Individuals therefore have agency
to create the structure and influence it through communication discourse
practices, yet they are simultaneously constrained by what they create. When
practical consciousness, which Gidden's refers to as taken for granted knowledge
and behavior as a naturalized 'way it is', is interrupted, then intentional change to
the hegemonic system can occur.[18] For this reason, with a commitment from top
leaders in an organization to change the existing culture to one of diversity
inclusion, the diversity change management process can succeed. This process
includes analyzing where the organization is currently at through a diversity audit,
creating a strategic action plan, gaining support by seeking stakeholder input, and
holding individuals accountable through measurable results.[4]