SECTION 1: IMPLEMENT DIVERSITY POLICY

Activity 1

  1. Use the internet to research the recruitment and selection policy for an organisation of your choice. Review the policy for compliance with relevant legislation and quality of information including reliability, accuracy and currency. Prepare a brief report on the effectiveness of the policy and include recommendations for improvements where appropriate.
  2. compliance with relevant legislation
  3. Relevance
  4. Reliability
  5. currency

Activity 2

  1. What is a diversity strategy?

  2. A diversity strategy is an expression of what the organisation intends to do to utilise diversity as a productive resource in order to maximise effectiveness and efficiency. A strategy sets standards for performance and accountability in relation to diversity and provides methodologies to encourage and improve in all areas of people management.

  3. Why are objectives an important part of a diversity strategy?

  4. The selection of specific diversity objectives should not be taken lightly, as they will form, in conjunction with the other two principles, the drivers of the strategy and will cascade down to result in activities and actions that will attract additional resources and effort. They also provide a tangible and concrete face to the policy and as such, become the reality as opposed to what is written in a policy document.

  5. Identify three key results areas relating to an organisation’s diversity strategy and explain how the organisation might establish whether the result is being achieved.

  6. An example might be that legislative requirements of an employer ensuring a discrimination free workplace might be measured by considering the number and type of harassment complaints.

  7. Use the internet to research the equal opportunity policy of an organisation of your choice. Determine specific ways in which components of the policy could be applied in the workplace.

  8. reporting of incidents

  9. Investigations

  10. Confidentiality

  11. Breaches

  12. Responsibilities

  13. For example, a component of the policy might be confidentiality. Practical application of this component might include that only people directly involved in a complaint, or in resolving it, will have access to information about it. Written information about complaints would be stored in a secure area with restricted access.

Activity 3

  1. List three reasons why an organisation should communicate their diversity strategy.
  2. raise awareness of the strategy
  3. gain support for the strategy
  4. provide details of specific initiatives
  5. fulfil organisational or legal requirements
  6. What method/s could managers use to communicate their organisation’s diversity strategy to new employees? Explain why you would recommend these methods.
  7. The diversity strategy should be introduced to new employees as part of induction training so that workers know from day one what the organisation’s strategy principles and goals are and how they will be expected to uphold them. This would best be delivered by instructor led training so that participants have the opportunity to question the facilitator. To determine new employees’ understanding of the strategy, the facilitator could conduct learning level evaluations or participants could complete an online activity.
  8. New employees could also be asked to read a paper-based or online copy of the diversity strategy document and sign a document to say they have understood the intent of the policy and their responsibilities. New employees can then refer back to the documented strategy at a later stage if they need to.
  9. You work for an organisation whose workforce has traditionally been males between the ages of 30–50 of Anglo–Saxon descent. The organisation realises the need to create and implement a diversity strategy and they have created a guide to communicate the organisation’s new diversity strategy. You have read the guide and found that whilst it is informative it does not promote the strategy. What would you say/ do?
  10. I would demonstrate an understanding that promotion is embedded in the concept of communicating the strategy. That is, the idea that the communication should aim to encourage stakeholders of the organisation to embrace the strategy, not simply understand it.
  11. Promoting the diversity strategy is where the emphasis is placed on conveying the benefits of adopting the strategy as opposed to merely conveying the components of the strategy. Promotion is concerned with changing people’s attitudes and behaviours, whilst pure communication is concerned with the transfer of knowledge. Consequently, promoting a strategy can be a complex and challenging task. The keys to successful promotions include:
  12. appealing to the individual person—the what is in it for me factor
  13. providing examples of how the strategy can have a positive impact
  14. using well respected people within the organisation as champions
  15. creating and maintaining a high level of positive energy around the strategy

Activity 4

  1. Describe how you could monitor a diversity strategy that was implemented in an organisation to increase the number of women in management positions.
  2. Diversity strategies should have specific KPIs associated with them and the monitoring process and timing must reflect the nature of those KPIs. For example, if a KPI is to achieve 40% of women in management positions by July 2013, an appropriate monitoring strategy would be to count the total number of management positions and determine which are held by males and females. If this is monitored each quarter, it provides enough time to take corrective action if it looks like the target will not be reached in time.
  3. You have evaluated the progress of diversity strategies within an organisation relating to the number of employees with an intellectual disability the organisation hires. You find that the organisation has not met its goals. What would you do to determine why these goals were not met? When reviewing the performance of the organisation, ask:
  4. What affected the ability of the organisation to fail to meet the target?
  5. What affected the ability of the organisation to fail to meet the target in the allocated time period?
  6. How did the organisation perform holistically, ie across all targets?
  7. What are the areas of strength for the organisation?
  8. Where do efforts need to be concentrated in order to improve performance?
  9. Are there new factors that have arisen since the targets were set that account for the performance? When reviewing the measure, ask: Was what was measured appropriate? Did the measure tell you what you thought it would? Was the measure skewed by other factors? Was the target appropriate? Could it have been tougher or was it too much of a stretch? Was the time frame for the target realistic? Did you need longer to reach the target?
  10. You have been asked to review your organisation’s diversity strategy for its impact on the overall effectiveness of the organisation. What would you do?
  11. Managers responsible for the monitoring and review should ask:
  12. What was accomplished?
  13. What was not achieved?
  14. What was achieved faster?
  15. What was achieved to a higher/ better standard?
  16. What was achieved that could not have been achieved previously?
  17. What was reduced or eliminated?
  18. Did the diversity strategy directly contribute to the achievements? If so, how did it contribute?
  19. Were there any unintended outcomes that positively impacted on effectiveness?
  20. Were there any unintended outcomes that negatively impacted on effectiveness?
  21. After reviewing the organisation’s diversity strategy you believe that there are some enhancements that could be made to it. Management has asked you to submit a report outlining the enhancements. What would you include in the report?
  22. When making any recommendations it is essential to clearly document:
  23. the facts/ data on which the recommendation is based
  24. any additional factors that should be known/ taken into consideration
  25. what is being recommended
  26. why it is being recommended
  27. the resource implications of the recommendation
  28. the time implications of the recommendation
  29. the benefits of adopting the recommendation

SECTION 2: FOSTER RESPECT FOR DIVERSITY IN THE WORK TEAM

Activity 5

  1. What is respect for diversity?
  2. Respect for diversity in the workplace is the recognition and exercising of acceptance of the different qualities, skills, qualifications, experiences and attitudes of people. Valuing and seeing the advantages in diversity can improve the workplace for staff, and service for customers, in addition to enhancing the overall performance of the organisation.
  3. You are applying for a job as a manager in an organisation that has an extremely diverse workforce. What would you tell the selection panel about your leadership style and how you would employ it to facilitate intercultural management and to manage diverse teams?
  4. I demonstrate learner’s knowledge and understanding of the learning material. Applicants might suggest that leaders can show commitment to diversity by:
  5. setting an example through personal and professional behaviour
  6. demonstrating inclusive attitudes
  7. ensuring fair and equitable treatment of all staff
  8. identifying and challenging stereotypes, understanding their cause and dealing promptly with them
  9. clearly communicating these behaviours and consistently setting expectations of them within the team
  10. taking time to learn about the skills, knowledge and backgrounds of the people they work with
  11. recognising and being informed about the range of religious holidays and other cultural issues that are appropriate to staff
  12. finding both differences and similarities in the cultural values of staff and building on those differences for the productive benefit of the team
  13. encouraging staff to serve on committees that address EEO issues and to participate in discussions, EEO awareness training and events that promote diversity
  14. being alert to signs that can affect group performance and checking for issues such as aggressive comments, a sense of silence, lack of contribution, or an unexplained loss of productivity
  15. developing a clear and transparent process for resolving conflicts
  16. agreeing with the team on a clear decision-making process
  17. ensuring that everyone in the team understands the organisation’s values
  18. showcasing examples where language and cultural knowledge have brought benefit to the organisation’s core business
  19. encouraging staff to participate in workplace social activities and using these informal forums to develop cultural and personal understandings

Activity 6

  1. Develop a guide for managers involved in the recruitment and selection process that outlines how to conduct a culturally inclusive recruitment and selection process.
  2. Guides should include information about how to:
  3. advertise vacancies in a culturally inclusive way conduct interviews, eg:
  4. consider qualification gained overseas
  5. select a representative panel
  6. include recognition of prior learning in staff training
  7. provide training in diversity and anti-discrimination issues
  8. select against the criteria
  9. avoid the requirement of organisational knowledge
  10. assess language skills
  11. avoid bias toward accent
  12. develop questions that are free of jargon or cultural bias
  13. consider cultural impact in answers to questions
  14. You are a member of a selection panel interviewing candidates for a position as an accounts payable officer for the organisation. The person who is recruited will be responsible for payments of invoices to respective suppliers, monthly and weekly reconciliations, responding to simple queries and end of month reconciliations. You have narrowed the candidates down to two. The panel agrees that one of these workers has more experience; however, they speak with a very strong Indian accent. One of the panel members says that for this reason the other candidate should be hired. What would you tell them?
  15. I would demonstrate an understanding the worker does not need strong language skills for this position and that it is necessary to take care to prevent possible bias toward accent. The person who is most qualified for the job should be recruited and the candidate’s accent should have no bearing on this.

Activity 7

  1. Give an example for each of the following elements of diversity training:
  2. Awareness raising.
  3. Preventative training programs.
  4. Legal compliance programs.
  5. Intervention training.
  6. Counselling.
  7. Specific culture training. Examples includeAwareness raising—rollout of a new strategy to all employees. Preventative training programs—training provided on merit selection procedures. Legal compliance programs—training provided on anti-discrimination legislation. Intervention training—group dynamics training for a team comprising people from diverse backgrounds. Counselling—counselling of an employee who has been found to have discriminated against a client. Specific culture training—training in Japanese culture for staff of a hospitality venue who will be hosting a large number of Japanese delegates at a conference.
  8. An organisation has employed its first group of Indigenous employees. Some of these workers are going to be involved in administration duties and others will work in the housekeeping department. None of the current employees in the organisation have ever worked with Indigenous people. What type of diversity training or awareness programs should the organisation provide? Explain.
  9. The organisation should provide specific cultural training. This is used when a person or group of people are required to interact with a group that they have not previously had much to do with. The training provides a background to the culture with a focus on highlighting the positive aspects but also on preparing the employees for potential challenges.
  10. What should diversity training focus on?
  11. To produce constructive results, diversity training should focus on the commonalities shared by people, rather than reinforcing differences between individuals which will further distance and separate the workplace. Avoid tiptoeing around issues such as how to relate to people of different cultures and instead provide strategies for people to learn to communicate with other people and truly understand one another.
  12. Having a clear aim and objectives helps to ensure that diversity training remains on track and focused on what the organisation wishes to achieve, rather than being side-tracked by interesting but not relevant discussions or hijacked by persons with an agenda.
  13. Use the internet to research training providers specialising in diversity training. Select one provider and prepare an overview of their areas of expertise, training methodologies, etc.
  14. Cultural Transitions is a training provider based in Queensland that specialises in cultural diversity training and cultural transitions management across Australia, tailored for specific clients and contexts. Amongst other things, Cultural Transitions develops and provides cultural diversity training for teams to maximise the effectiveness and productivity of employees and teams in the Australian workplace to maximise the benefits of diversity and to effectively support the integration of new employees from a range of cultural backgrounds.
  15. Programs range from three hours to two days and can be provided on-site at major and remote locations throughout Australia. Programs include: introduction to diversity ,understanding culture and cultural diversity issue managing communication effectively maximising team performance supervision and management processes maximising the benefits of cultural diversity Cultural Transitions also provide cultural management and awareness skills for managers and supervisors as individual coaching or group training sessions that enables managers to maximise the performance of new recruits and minimise communication challenges in the early transition phase. (Cultural Transitions nd)

Activity 8

  1. Research the culture of Indigenous Australians. What possible areas of tension or conflict might occur in the workplace due to cultural misunderstandings and how can these be avoided?
  2. Research might include: In traditional Aboriginal society the name of a deceased person may not be mentioned for a long period after that person’s death. To mention the name of a deceased person shows a lack of respect for the deceased and for the deceased’s close family. Indirect references such as a reference to X’s mother may be appropriate
  3. For Indigenous Australians, family consists of the extended family, often including quite distant family members. Family concerns are of primary importance, and the greater part of a person’s life and social activities may be conducted closely within the family group. This might result in absences from the workplace to deal with family matters.
  4. Indigenous Australians respect inner privacy, such as personal thoughts and feelings. Only particular people may be entitled to ask or to know certain matters of a personal nature. Hints and invitations to volunteer information are preferred to direct questioning.
  5. What role do effective communication skills play in managing tension and encouraging collaboration and respect between staff who struggle to work effectively with diversity?
  6. Constructive and open communication in conflict resolution situations can be achieved by: asking each team member to state what the problem is from their perspective not allowing the other party to interrupt as each person voices their opinion remaining impartial focusing on gathering facts encouraging each party to talk about the positive aspects of their working relationship with each other asking each person what they need from the other to maintain a good working relationship
  7. Managers involved in managing tensions and encouraging collaboration and respect between staff must be good communicators as they will often need to communicate complex information in an emotionally charged environment. Verbal communication with team members should be concise, complete and accurate.
  8. Managers should be able to express themselves clearly and positively, both verbally and in writing. They need to be able to convey information to people clearly and simply, in a way that means information is understood. This requires them to ask questions, listen actively, clarify and confirm information, and convey information confidently. Being a confident and friendly speaker establishes trust with team members.
  9. Speaking well also requires adapting speech to suit each team member. This means changing the word choice and tone for different situations. Managers have to be flexible to communicate effectively and use language that is appropriate and understandable to team members from diverse backgrounds.
  10. They must also be able to read the behaviour of other people, compromise to reach agreement, and avoid and resolve conflict. Negative reactions from team members should be acknowledged and handled with empathy. Reinforcing what can be done to assist them regarding resolving the conflict might help them to accept the information more positively.
  11. Good body language such as open hands, good eye contact, plenty of smiling, good posture, and respect for the personal space of others are all part of good communication. Good body language helps to demonstrate a positive attitude and helps portray managers as reliable and open. It is a way to establish trust and rapport and often means team members will not only have more confidence in them, but will want to listen to them.
 

Activity 9

  1. Conduct research on the benefits of diversity in support of this statement: ‘Companies perform better when they have genuine diversity in their brains trust: people from different backgrounds providing fresh perspectives, insights and expertise. Diversity isn’t about ticking boxes or being politically correct – it’s about building an organisation that avoids a herd mentality and delivers better business outcomes.’ (Mercer 2012) Produce a brief information session for operational staff in an industry of your choice to assist them to see that working effectively with difference is a strength that can improve the organisation’s products, services and customer relations. Upload your answer for assessment.
  2. I include information on the concept of diversity being based on individual acceptance and respect and includes race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, culture, age, physical ability and religious, political and other beliefs. I would expand on the benefits of a diverse workforce to improve the organisation’s products, services and customer relations including: the breaking down of prejudices and avoiding stereotyping improved productivity increased morale and commitment to the organisation improved communication and sharing of ideas a greater appreciation of different ways of working greater skills base and increased use of skills greater recognition of skills, talents and abilities good working relationships between people safer and more healthy work environment fair and equitable recruitment and selection processes lateral thinking and flexibility improved customer service increased creativity and innovation more flexible and motivated workforce diverse language and cultural skills reduction in skills shortages access to overseas markets
Activity 10
  1. Use the internet to research harassment and discrimination policies and procedures for two Australian organisations. Identify commonalities between the two organisations with regard to how complaints are managed. Are formal and informal procedures available? Are there options for external resolution? What is the legislative framework for the policy/ procedure?
  2. I include comparison of: intent of policy/ procedure Contents internal and external complaint handling procedures possible outcomes review of decisions recordkeeping The legislative framework should list the federal and state/ territory legislation relevant to the organisation such as age or sex discrimination legislation.
  3. How can managers facilitate the resolution of allegations of harassment in the workplace?
  4. Managers can facilitate the resolution of allegations of harassment by demonstrating leadership behaviours that complement the formal and informal complaint procedures. Behaviours include, but are not limited to: being aware that individuals who approach managers about harassment can feel a range of emotions—anger, distress, vulnerable, intimidated, frustrated, powerless, etc supporting the complainant by reassuring them that they have taken the appropriate action by seeking assistance using effective communication skills such as listening, questioning, clarifying and confirming remaining non-judgemental having a sound knowledge of the organisation’s policy and procedures clarifying acceptable and unacceptable behaviour seeking advice and/or assistance from personnel on how to handle the situation, if necessary monitoring and ensuring behaviour does not recur and that the complainant is not victimised keeping simple diary note record discussing continuing, serious and/or difficult problems with management or employee relations/ personnel as soon as possible—it might not be possible for the complainant to resolve the issue alone and management might need to take formal investigatory action

SECTION 3: PROMOTE THE BENEFITS OF DIVERSITY

Activity 11

  1. What are the benefits of a diverse workforce in an organisation that services a community that is very multicultural?
  2. A workplace that reflects the Australian community will understand its clients better, which will lead to improved service. A diverse workplace will have good communication with its clients based on a deep understanding of the needs of the community.
  3. Use the internet to research an organisation’s workplace diversity plan or strategy. Identify how that organisation plans to promote its workforce diversity in internal and external forums to enhance the organisation’s image and reputation.
  4. An example I thought of is: NSW Department of Education and Communities. To attract a high quality diverse workforce, the department will promote itself as a workforce diversity employer of choice. It will encourage innovative approaches to attract people from diverse backgrounds and perspectives into our workforce and strengthen partnerships with agencies, other organisations and local communities to improve employment outcomes and support for people from underrepresented groups. To develop and retain a high quality diverse workforce, it will promote pathways for staff from underrepresented groups to progress their careers. To ensure that workforce diversity is part of the way the department does business, it will: utilise the diversity of its workforce to engage with communities across NSW promote an inclusive culture whereby workforce diversity is valued, nurtured and celebrate develop the capabilities of leaders and managers in cross-cultural management and communication to maximise individual and team effectiveness continue to promote strategies which foster inclusive work practice. NSW Department of Education and Communities nd)

Activity 12

  1. How can managers foster collaborative relationships that capture ideas and information from the diversity in the workforce and contribute to competitive advantage?
  2. I include information on effective teams and leadership techniques and behaviours; for example: let the team take ownership—do not micro manage allow for mistakes listen to the contributions of team members acknowledge the expertise of others create a climate of trust share information create shared goals structure projects to promote joint effort establish clear roles and expectations for team members
  3. One way managers can support organisational efforts to value diversity is by supporting employees seeking work/ life balance. What could managers do to demonstrate this support? What implications does supporting employees to achieve work/ life balance have for the business?
  4. Work/ life balance is a comfortable state of balance achieved between an employee’s primary priorities of their employment position and their private lifestyle. The right balance for one person might differ from the next. Managers can support employees to achieve work/ life balance by approving flexible working arrangements such as job sharing, part-time work, flexible hours, working from home, etc. Managers might need to liaise with HR and payroll staff to provide employees with information on their entitlements and responsibilities with regard to flexible working arrangements. Implications of supporting employees to achieve work/ life balance for a business include the need to ensure that: the day-to-day operations of the business can proceed without disruption job roles and functions are covered the process for approval of flexible working arrangements is fair and equitable the perception by some employees of favouritism towards others is avoided any costs incurred by flexible working arrangements are not detrimental to the business

Written / Oral Questions

  1. Why is it important to suspend your own cultural assumptions when working with diversity?
  2. Different groups of people have distinctive world views, behaviour and belief patterns, languages and ways of existing and interacting with their environments. They might be diametrically opposed to your own world views. Yet they have as much right to hold those views as you do to hold your own views. Failure to suspend your own cultural assumptions can lead to misunderstandings, conflicts and prejudicial responses. Valuing and seeing the advantages in diversity can improve the workplace for staff and clients, in addition to enhancing the overall performance of the organisation. Managers have a duty and a responsibility to work cooperatively and responsibly with diverse groups of people.
  3. What is the relationship between legislation and workplace policies and procedures? How do policies and procedures contribute to managing regulatory compliance?
  4. Legislation is the act or process of making laws. Organisations develop policies and procedures for a variety of reasons; for example, to comply with legislation or in response to concerns from stakeholders or to change workplace behaviour. A policy is a guiding principle used to set direction in an organisation. It should be used to guide and facilitate decision-making within the framework of the objectives, goals and management philosophies of a business. Policies can range from broad philosophies to specific rules. Policies must comply with legal requirements. A procedure details the action to be taken to address the policy. It should be designed as a series of steps to be followed as a consistent and repetitive approach or cycle to accomplish an end result. Procedures are specific, factual, succinct and to the point. Policies and procedures are important because they: are a legal requirement under various workplace legislation identify and minimise risks establish the business as a professional and effective organisation enable consistent practice to support staff and customers provide information for staff and customers to prevent uncertainty about how particular situations are handled in the business support staff to understand their role and responsibilities in the organisation which leads to more efficient and effective service delivery provide ongoing working documents to guide high quality practice across all aspects of service
  5. Choose three pieces of legislation that relate to diversity in the workplace. Summarise each piece of legislation including the objects of each Act and explain what an organisation can do to comply with the legislation. Upload your answer for assessment.
  6. I would choose the most recent amendment to the legislation.I include in my example: 1. Age Discrimination Act 2004 The Age Discrimination Act 2004 helps to ensure that people are not treated less favourably on the ground of age in various areas of public life including: employment provision of goods and services education administration of Commonwealth laws and programs
  7. The Act also provides for positive discrimination—that is, actions which assist people of a particular age who experience a disadvantage because of their age. It also provides for exemptions in the following areas: Superannuation migration, taxation and social security laws state laws and other Commonwealth laws some health programs
  8. Racial Discrimination Act 1975
  9. The Racial Discrimination Act 1975 gives effect to Australia’s obligations under the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. Its major objectives are to: promote equality before the law for all persons, regardless of their race, colour or national or ethnic origin, and make discrimination against people on the basis of their race, colour, descent or national or ethnic origin unlawful
  10. Sex Discrimination Act 1984
  11. The Sex Discrimination Act 1984 gives effect to Australia’s obligations under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women and certain aspects of the International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention 156. Its major objectives are to: promote equality between men and women eliminate discrimination on the basis of sex, marital status or pregnancy and, with respect to dismissals, family responsibilities, and eliminate sexual harassment at work, in educational institutions, in the provision of goods and services, in the provision of accommodation and the delivery of Commonwealth programs Australian Human Rights Commission 2010)
  12. Explain the fundamental differences between formal and informal complaint procedures. Upload your answer for assessment.
  13. Informal processes focus on resolution rather than factual proof or substantiation of a complaint while formal processes focus on complaint substantiation or bringing the parties together to try and reach a satisfactory outcome. Informal processes are appropriate where: the allegations are of a less serious nature the individual subjected to the behaviour requests an informal resolution, possibly to maintain a working relationship with the alleged harasser Formal processes are appropriate where: informal attempts at resolution have failed the person alleging discrimination or harassment has been victimised the complaint involves serious allegations of misconduct and informal resolution could compromise the rights of the parties the complaint is against a more senior staff member the allegations are denied and the person who claims to have been harassed wishes to proceed the person alleging discrimination or harassment wishes to make a formal complaint from the outset Informal complaint procedures can involve the individual who has been discriminated against or harassed seeking advice only from their supervisor/ specialist officer as they wish to deal with the situation themselves or asking their supervisor to speak to the alleged harasser on their behalf. Alternately, a supervisor or manager could observe inappropriate behaviour occurring and take action even though no complaint has been made. The supervisor or manager should calmly and sensitively discuss the individual’s concerns with the alleged harasser and reinforce the organisation’s policies on appropriate workplace behaviours. This discussion should be conducted privately to ensure the matter remains between the two parties only. Investigation is not required if the alleged harasser admits the behaviour. The complaint can then be resolved through conciliation or counselling. Formal complaint procedures usually involve: investigation of the allegations application of the principles of natural justice making a finding as to whether the discrimination or harassment occurred, or whether it is likely it occurred submitting a report with a recommended course of action to the appropriate decision-maker (senior management) implementation of an appropriate outcome Investigation of the allegations involves the complainant being interviewed and their allegations documented. The alleged harasser is then advised of the allegations and given the opportunity to respond to these. Other witnesses might be interviewed to gather relevant evidence. Parties interviewed during the investigation are able to attend interviews and meetings with a union official or advocate to support them through the process. If the investigation reveals that the complaint has substance, a report documenting the investigation process, the evidence, the finding and the recommended outcome must be submitted to the appropriate decision-maker who is generally a member of senior management. The decision-maker endorses the recommended outcome/s or decides on an alternative course of actions.

Project

  1. You are in an organisation with a diverse workforce and client base. What actions could you take to encourage respect, deal with problems arising from diversity and assist in using diversity as an asset to your workplace?
  2. I include in my example:include some of the following: Remind staff that they should not assume that everyone is an imitation of themselves. By pointing out the advantages of working in a diverse workplace, you can reassure staff that differences are non-threatening and not always difficult to accommodate. Explain that accepting differences does not compel staff to agree with alternative world views and traditions, but that staff should accept and respect that such views are important to the other person. When accommodating diversity and cultural difference you should encourage staff to: challenge and strip away stereotypes—realise that they prevent you from seeing people as they really are build significant relationships with people who are different from themselves do not make assumptions about people look for commonalities and build a sense of shared purpose value inclusive behaviour and language at work, provide opportunities for others to lead and to learn encourage others to accept the collective mix of people set the example draw on multiple perspectives, experiences, strengths and potentials for mutual benefit look for similarities and differences at the same time break down the barriers that restrict communication throw away the fear factor—prejudice stems from fear Where difficult situations occur, or if you feel that misunderstandings are eventuating between staff and customers, it will be necessary to intervene. You could provide consultation or training opportunities to staff on how to resolve conflict and prevent misunderstandings with other colleagues and customers. You might need to reacquaint staff with the workplace diversity plan for strategies to deal with cross-cultural barriers. Actions could include using own behaviour as a role model, promoting diversity as an asset, use coaching and mentoring to assist colleagues to accept diversity, organise diversity training, assist with implementing a workplace diversity plan, etc.
  3. How can managers facilitate the successful implementation of diversity policy? Upload your answer for assessment.
  4. I expand on each of the steps involved in implementing diversity policies including: ensuring policy complies with legislation, is relevant, accurate, current and does not conflict with any other policies linking policies to the specific work context instituting actions to ensure that the policy is understood and implemented by relevant parties providing feedback and suggestions for improvement to ensure currency and efficacy of diversity policy
  5. How can managers use workforce diversity to enhance products and services and contribute to competitive advantage?
  6. Managers need to create a diverse participative culture where employee’s ideas, knowledge, perspectives, approaches and styles are sought and included where possible. Managers should engage employees so they become active contributors of ideas and information. Innovation can result from inclusion so businesses that are proactive about intentionally capturing as many diverse viewpoints as possible can gain a competitive advantage. Collaboration refers to individuals or organisations working together to address problems and deliver outcomes that are not easily or effectively achieved by working alone. Collaborative relationships are advantageous for organisations because the interactions realised by combining effort and expertise produce benefits greater than those achieved through individual effort. The superior benefits created by combined effort are known as collaborative advantage. A critical element of gathering ideas and information is the ability to collaborate. Managers can establish continuous improvement processes, suggestion systems and team based activities to capture ideas and information.