The True Importance of Diversity at the Workplace

What is Diversity at the Workplace?

“Diversity can be defined as acknowledging, understanding, accepting, and valuing differences among people with respect to age, class, race, ethnicity, gender, disabilities, etc.” – Etsy et al. (1995)

As globalization continues to grow rapidly, an increasing number of firms need to understand and accept the existence of a more diverse workplace. Today, it is essential for a business to create and nurture diversity in their environment to remain competitive and successful.

More importantly, organizations need to take measures that help the workforce embrace diversity with open arms. The key is to ensure that employees comprehend and respect the differences among them. Additionally, the differences in employee characteristics also bring uniqueness to the company and add value to the firm as a whole.

Why is Diversity Important for the Office?

Here are just a few reasons explaining the significance of diversity in the workplace:

– Creates a Large and Authentic Pool of Talent: Each individual contributes to the productivity of the firm in their unique manner and varied sets of knowledge and awareness, simply because of their cultural, ethnic and linguistic backgrounds.

– Increases Profitability: According to a report by McKinsey & Company, gender-diverse and ethnically-diverse businesses are 15% and 35% more likely to outperform their competitors, respectively.

– Helps Attract a Bigger Customer Base: A diverse workforce is an accurate representation of a multicultural clientele and, therefore, is able to connect and communicate with them in the native language(s).

– Reduces Employee Turnover: Employees feel comfortable and happy in an environment that is accepting of their backgrounds and welcoming of their capabilities.

Embrace diversity at the workplace and make friends anew! Start communicating with your foreign colleagues by learning their native language now.