Diversity and Its Impact on Training within an Organizational Environment - Essay Example

Diversity and its impact on training within an organizational environment Table of Contents I. Introduction ……………………………………………………………………… 3 II. Diversity and training – modes of interaction ………………………………… 5 Design of a training program – the managerial aspect ………………….. 6 III. Application of diversity in training – effects and outcomes The role of trainer and participants in applying diversity on a training program …………………………………………………………………….. 8 Content of a training program and its impact on the successful application of diversity …………………………………………………….. 9 IV. Recommendation …………………………………………………………….. 10 V. Conclusion …………………………………………………………………….. 11 References Appendix I. Introduction One of the most significant characteristics of modern workplace environment is the diversity among the employees. In this context, an important issue has been arisen for the human resources managers in most organizations: the achievement of an integrated working environment where all employees should cooperate and work mutually for the enhancement of the firm’s performance. Moreover, according to Haines (1997, 95) many companies ‘view their human resources as an expense rather than an asset -- an element that is expendable and perhaps discarded when the skills possessed becomes obsolete; When human resources are viewed as an asset, companies enhance individual value through training and human development and ensure continued contribution to the organization; This not only decreases employee turnover, it also increases productivity and market share’. It should be noticed that in order to be more successful ‘the managing-diversity strategy should focus on individual as well as organizational change; It requires a top-down as well as bottom-up commitment and involvement; To enhance the probability of success, the process should be founded on a vision for diversity that is shared by executives, managers, supervisors, and front-line employees; All players must understand how their personal contributions to work goals will influence the success of the organization’ (Coleman, 1994, 13). One of the most common strategies for managing diversity is the introduction and application of a training program through which employees with different cultural, social, educational, racial or other differences will learn to co-exist and cooperate within a specific organization. However, the planning and the application process of such a strategy can be proved a challenging task for the human resources management team. It has to be noticed that in accordance with a relevant survey of 2002 (National Statistics of UK) ‘nine out of ten employers (90 per cent) had provided any job-related training (either off- or on-the-job training) to their employees in the 12 months prior to the interview. This is consistent with the findings of previous years’. The results of the above survey also revealed that ‘the provision of job-related training increases with increasing size of employer; 57 per cent of employers with 5-24 employees provided off-the-job training compared with 93 per cent of employers with 500 or more employees’. Diversity has been described through a series of definitions. Moreover, it seems that in an organizational environment, the term may be slightly differentiated in accordance with the firm’s particular characteristics, culture and targets. From a general point of view, Miller (1994, 17) stated that diversity is ‘a highly complex and multi-faceted concept; Yet frequently when the term is given voice within an organization it is reduced to a simplistic, unidimensional, euphemism for issues such as "minority/majority" interface, an identified group of social and political isolates within the organization, or in extreme cases diversity takes on a pejorative meaning and is viewed by some as an issue or group to be temporarily tolerated until the next fad appears or the organization regresses to the original status quo’. Moreover, Karp et al. (2000, 451) refer to the study of Nobile (1997) according to whom ‘diversity is one of the greatest concern and one of the top ten legal issues that face HR professionals today’. The description of diversity, as attempted above, is characterized by the existence of differences among the particular organizations in all commercial areas. This is a sign that the training programs which are going to be applied in any organizational environment have to be structured according to the needs of each specific organization (Verlander, 1992) taking into account not only current problems among the staff but also the future outcomes from the application of any relevant scheme. In the above context, Wentling (2006) came to the conclusion that ‘definitions of "diversity" range from narrow to very broad; Narrow definitions tend to reflect Equal Employment Opportunity law, and define diversity in terms of race, gender, ethnicity, age, national origin, religion, and disability; Broad definitions may include sexual/affectional orientation, values, personality characteristics, education, language, physical appearance, marital status, lifestyle, beliefs, and background characteristics (such as geographic origin, tenure with the organization, and economic status)’. On the other hand, as Coleman (1994, 11) stated ‘managing diversity is defined as creating and maintaining an environment in which each person is respected because of his or her differences, and where all can contribute and be rewarded based on their results; In managing diversity, the organization must address the relationship between individual and work-team behaviour and performance success; The organization also must address its ability to create and maintain an environment that empowers employees and associates to better serve its racially, socially, and ethnically diverse customer base’. The description of diversity cannot be accurate not because of the existence of differences among its elements but mostly due to the extended differentiations among the particular workplaces. II. Diversity and training – modes of interaction The relation between diversity and human resources development in an organizational environment is close. More specifically, according to Sims (2002, 165) ‘organizations today are increasingly recognizing the importance of developing their human resources; The training function, now popularly referred to as human resources development (HRD), coordinates the organization’s efforts to provide training and development experiences for its employees; Although training is often used in conjunction with development, the terms are not synonymous; Employee training can be defined as a planned attempt to facilitate employee learning of job-related knowledge, skills, and behaviors or helping them correct deficiencies in their performance; In contrast, development is an effort to provide employees with the skills needed for both present and future jobs’ The design and the application of any training program is a challenge for any human resources department. In this context, Clemons et al. (2004, 39) state that ‘for many employers there is a serious gap in their employment training programs; That gap is caused by the absence of a well-designed diversity training program that actually ties together and completes the equal employment training repertoire and addresses diversity issues in the workplace; most employers do not recognize the need for such training until it is too late’. The view of the above researchers is supported by the one of Hopkins et al. (1994, 433) who have found that ‘personnel directors, more than anyone else in organizations, are in a position to know what is needed to facilitate the transition to a more highly diverse work force’. Furthermore, from the responses given to a survey made by Hopkins et al., it can be derived that ‘diversity training is the key minimizing any disruptions which may be associated with significant increases in work force diversity’ (Hopkins et al., 1994, 433). Design of a training program – the managerial aspect The role of managers in the procedures of planning and applying a training program cannot be denied. There are cases however, like the expatriate programs, where the managers should focus on specific issues when handling a training program and for this reason their knowledge on the specific firm’s demands could be valuable for the creation of an effective and appropriate training program (Oddou, 1991). Towards that direction, Harrison (1994, 18) found that ‘expatriate success requires that managers not only understand the culture to which they are assigned, but also be able to apply that knowledge to the company, co-workers, and environment through their leadership and communication practices; Therefore, the last step towards effective skills training focuses on teaching managers specific behaviours that are useful in the workplace’. Moreover, according to a research made by the Office of Personnel Management (2006) the ‘managements goals for diversity training may include: Increasing employee awareness of equal employment opportunity laws; Increasing employee understanding of how diverse perspectives can improve organizational performance; Preventing illegal discrimination or harassment in the workplace; Improving workplace relations; Building more effective work teams; Improving organizational problem-solving; and Improving service to customers’. The success of the HR manager’s efforts regarding the design and the application of a training program cannot be always considered as absolute. Management Issues News (2006) refers to a study made by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP. According to this study ‘over 500 chief executives, finance directors and HR directors found many business leaders are failing to practise what they preach’. Moreover, ‘despite the fact that more than half of companies believed they offered their people challenging job opportunities and 32 per cent felt they had effective reward arrangements in place, lack of career progression and salary considerations were cited as the two main reasons people leave’. It should be mentioned however that the presentation of a series of targets set by managers regarding the application of diversity in an organizational environment is just indicative. In fact, diversity in workplace can include many issues in accordance with the area of business activation, the structure of the firm and its targets mainly on a long term basis. III. Application of diversity in training – effects and outcomes The role of trainer and participants in applying diversity on a training program Diversity has a significant impact on the design and the application of any training program within an organizational environment. As Cross (2000, 143) stated ‘around sensitive issues such as race, gender, abilities and sexual orientation it is also vital that the learning process is guided by a highly qualified and experienced trainer who is well versed in principles of group dynamics’. Moreover, according to Karp et al. (2000, 152) ‘in designing and delivering diversity training almost, if not all, programs focus on making changes in the awareness and the attitudes of the participants; The strategy is to create changes that will have a long term positive impact on the organizational culture, with the objective of creating a safer and more productive working environment for all organizational members’. The views of the above researchers can be explained through the empirical evidence gathered by Bendick et al. (2001, 10) who found – after a relevant survey of training providers – that ‘contemporary workplace training about employment discrimination and workforce diversity encompasses a variety of approaches as many training programs focus on individual attitudes and appear to have only modest effects; to the extent that training more comprehensively addresses individual behaviour, organizational systems, and employer performance goals, their effectiveness appears to increase’. Content of a training program and its impact on the successful application of diversity The research on the issues that should be examined while designing and applying a training program cannot produce an exclusive or generally applied rule. More specifically, any training program – always referring to an organizational context – will have to be in accordance with the needs and the culture of the specific organization. However, the level of diversity (as well as its particular elements) should also be taken into account in order for any training program to be successful. On the other hand, it has been found that organizations ‘provide training for many reasons: to orient new hires to the organization or teach them how to perform in their initial job assignment, to improve the current performance of employees who may not be working as effectively as desired, or to prepare employees for future promotions or for upcoming changes in design, processes, or technology in their present jobs’ (Sims, 2002, 166). For this reason, Comb (2000, 1) stated that ‘the current processes for managing diversity continue to be necessary but are not sufficient to result in effective outcomes in 21st century organizational environments; Diversity training remains the primary method used to facilitate behaviour change’. The above view which refers to current trends regarding the evaluation of diversity in any organizational environment could refer more analytically to the characteristics of diversity training of modern era to the level that they differentiate from the ones of traditional organizational contexts. Moreover, if taking into account the fact that in current commercial markets there are many organizations which retain their traditional character and structure, the applicability of the above assumption could be doubted. IV. Recommendation The application of training programs within an organizational environment according to the data and the views presented above is a rather extended phenomenon. However, it seems that in many cases the above programs have not being carefully designed and as a result, the firms that apply them can suffer significant financial losses. Paton (2006) refers to a study made by Said Business School according to which ‘61 per cent of organisations developed their senior staff through commissioning individually tailored courses, a market estimated to be worth around £120m a year; But only 35 per cent of HR directors and 21 per cent of other executives believed that their current training and development programmes were meeting corporate strategic objectives’ On the other hand, the existence and the application of training programs are absolutely necessary for the growth of any organization mainly because to the continuous changes of the local and the global commercial markets, of which every employee has to be aware. According to Bagshaw (2004, 154) ‘Workforce diversity – from customer service personnel through to the board of directors – is a critical dimension for those companies seeking to establish themselves as global enterprises’. However, the activation in the global market should not be considered as a necessary requirement for the design and the application of a training program within an organization. The needs of the firm and its targets for the future are the main elements on which a training program should be based (see Appendix, Table 1). A fact that should be taken into account is the existence of many variables – as presented above - that can influence the effectiveness of a training program in a specific organization. For this reason the appropriate preparation, the careful examination of the firm’s needs and the extensive research on the employees’ strengths and weaknesses should be the main criteria for the design and the formulation of such a program within an organization. V. Conclusion The use of diversity as the criterion for the design and the application of a training program has been proved to be a common practice in any human resources sector. However, the above activity should be followed by the adoption and the application of the appropriate techniques in order to evaluate the effectiveness of the program applied. In this context, Clemons et al. (2004, 43) have presented a series of appropriate ‘measures’ for the accomplishment of the above task. More specifically, they stated that the relevant measures should be qualitative and quantitative, and their roles should be distributed as follows: ‘Qualitative measures include soliciting feedback from participants on the training process; comparing the number of EEO complaints received before and after the training; reviewing retention, promotion, and hiring figures of women and minorities; and conducting exit interviews while quantitative measures include conducting a diversity scan after training; contrasting the number of women and minorities before and after training; and surveying employee attitudes toward diversity before and after the plan’ (Clemons et al., 2004, 43). The above criteria stated by Clemons regarding the examination and the evaluation of a diversity training program can be considered as valuable as they are not connected with a specific organizational activity or culture. Moreover, the application of these criteria in practice does not seem to require specific knowledge making them particularly important for the multinational corporations where any corporate plan has to be designed and applied in very tight time limits. It should also be noticed that although ‘the priorities and methods used in implementing strategies to meet present and future challenges will be unique to each agency, some basic human resource principles persist: Do an exceptional job of recruiting and selecting, continuously upgrade and improve employees skill levels through training and development and make organizations places employees will want to begin and end their careers’ (Braun et al., 1995, 92) Furthermore, as Henderson (1994, 136) notices ‘certainly, employees can develop attitudes independently of their relatives and friends, but their relatives and friends are the foremost determinants of the initial diversity attitudes; The tendency of most employees to hold the same attitudes toward cultural diversity as their significant others is so consistent as to make independent acquisition unlikely; The key concept is "significant others." In order for diversity to be embraced, managers and supervisors promoting it must be perceived by subordinates as the most significant others in that activity’. In accordance with the above view, the ‘cultivation’ of specific views and ideas in employees regarding diversity is not an easy task. Moreover, although a training program can help towards the enhancement of cooperation in an organizational environment, there are many issues that can influence the achievement of the desired target. More specifically, the existence of strong and continuous willingness from the organizational side or the realization of a series of initiatives cannot guarantee that diversity will be eliminated in the workplace. However, it can offer the employees the chance to develop their way of thinking (at least on certain issues) and their aspects on diversity could also be influenced. The general strategy adopted by the company regarding its employees (level of wages, benefits and other provisions) could be very helpful towards this direction. References Anderson J. A. (1993). Thinking about diversity. Training & Development, 47:59-60 Bagshaw, M. (2004). Is diversity divisive? A positive training approach. Industrial and Commercial Training 36(4): 153-157 Bendick, M., Egan, M. L., Lofhjelm, S. M. (2001). ‘Workforce Diversity Training: From Anti-Discrimination Compliance to Organizational Development’ Human Resource Planning 24(2): 10-23 Braun, P., Mckinney, A. (1995). Facing Tomorrow Today - Diversity and Staff Development in Corrections. Corrections Today 57(3): 92-93 Clemons, L., Mdaughlin, J. (2004). ‘Diversity Training: The Often-Forgotten but Necessary Ingredient of Any Employment Training Program’ Public Management 86(5): 32-47 Coleman, T. (1994). Managing Diversity: Keeping It in Focus. Public Management 76(10): 10-15 Combs, G. M. (2002). ‘Meeting the Leadership Challenge of a Diverse and Pluralistic Workplace: Implications of Self-Efficacy for Diversity’ Training Journal of Leadership Studies 8(4): 1-9 Cross, E. Y. (2000). Managing Diversity--The Courage to Lead Westport, CT. Quorum Books Garrick, J., Jakupec, V. (2000). Flexible Learning, Human Resource, and Organisational Development: Putting Theory to Work. Routledge. London Haines, R. (1997). Discrimination, Harassment, and the Failure of Diversity Training: What to Do Now. Quorum Books. Westport, CT Harrison, K. (1994). ‘Developing Successful Expatriate Managers: A Framework for the Structural Design and Strategic Alignment of Cross-Cultural Training Programs’ Human Resource Planning 17(3): 17-22 Henderson, G. (1994). Cultural Diversity in the Workplace: Issues and Strategies. Praeger. Westport, CT Hopkins, S., Hopkins, W., Sterkel-Powell, K. (1994). ‘Training Priorities for a Diverse Work Force’ Public Personnel Management 23(3): 429-434 Karp, H., Sammour, H. (2000). ‘Workforce Diversity: Choices in Diversity Training Programs & Dealing with Resistance to Diversity’ College Student Journal 34(3): 451-467 Managers failing on training, succession planning and communication. (2006). Management Issues News, available at http://www.management-issues.com/display_page.asp?section=research&id=3148 Mcgloldrick, J., Stewart, J., Watson, S. (2002). Understanding Human Resource Development: A Research-Based Approach. Routledge. London Miller, E. K. (1994). ‘Diversity and Its Management: Training Managers for Cultural Competence within the Organization’ Management Quarterly 35(2): 17-25 National Statistics, UK, Learning and Training at Work, 2002, available at http://www.dfes.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000378/v4sfr02-2003.pdf Oddou, G. R. (1991). ‘Managing your expatriates: What the successful firms do’ Human Resource Planning 14(4): 301-308 Office of Personnel Management, Training and Development Policy, available at http://www.opm.gov/hrd/lead/policy/divers97.asp Paton, N. (2006). UK wastes £75m a year on bad management training. Training and Development, available at http://www.management-issues.com/display_page.asp?section=research&id=3206 Sims, R. Organizational Success through Effective Human Resources Management. Quorum Books. Westport, CT. Publication Year: 2002. Page Number: 165 Verlander, E. G. (1992). ‘Executive education for managing complex organizational learning’ Human Resource Planning 15(2): 1-18 Wentling, R. (2006). Diversity Training at the Workplace. University of Illinois, available at http://vocserve.berkeley.edu/CW73/WIPIL.html Appendix Table 1 Northern State Power - A model diversity plan for businesses (as presented by Wentling, 2006) Main activities initiated within a diversity training program: creating employment policies and practices that support the companys commitment to diversity-career planning and counseling systems, training and development strategies, performance potential, diverse career tracks with appropriate resources, and leading-edge flexible-benefit packages integrating work-force diversity goals with all organizational design activities creating an organizational structure to support the companys commitment to diversity establishing a link between diversity goals and performance review and reward systems establishing shared values throughout the organization to support the companys vision of diversity developing a diverse mix of qualified candidates to ensure that the workforce of the company mirrors the communities which it serves providing employees with the skills needed to perform in a culturally diverse environment creating an atmosphere in which all employees take ownership of the diversity problems and recognize they are part of the problem as well as of the solution creating an organizational culture where racist, ethnocentric, and sexist language is totally absent. 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