How Great Leadership can Synergize Culturally or Generationally Diverse Workplaces

Employees from different religions, genders, backgrounds, and ages could be viewed as a hindrance to growth by some. But, having a multigenerational and cross-cultural workforce could have distinct advantages. Managing a diverse workplace starts with strong policies of uniformity from within the organization.

Why is it crucial for diversity in the workplace?
Diversity can help employees excel by the sharing of knowledge and ideas from a wide range of people; thus bringing in better ideas and newer ways of thinking. It also encourages mutual respect amongst the employees.

1. A diverse workplace increases productivity: A diverse workplace can lead to greater productivity. Diversity brings many different talents together. The employees from various backgrounds will get to learn from their co-worker’s experiences.  This will help the teams to think out of the box and give birth to fresh ideas for the project.
2. Innovation & creativeness: If you have a workforce that includes people with diverse backgrounds, experiences, and skills, results will show themselves in ingenious ways. The creative innovations from diverse teams are invaluable. This can affect the company’s bottom-line for the better.
3. Building a reputation for the company: The more diverse a company, the more it understands and empathizes with its customers. Leading to an increase in profitability while creating opportunities for employees. That being said, the organization that hires employees from different backgrounds develops a reputation for being a good employer. The clients also get the feeling of being respected and valued.
4. More exposure to employees from different cultures: A diverse workplace gives increased exposure to the employees from different backgrounds and cultures. The employees learn from their co-workers whose work styles differ and whose attitudes about the work differs from their own.
5. Helps in finding a perfect employee: The acceptance of diversity helps in seeking out talented candidates. If candidates are recruited with a rigid mindset, then the organization will lose out on brilliant candidates.
6. Boosts creativity of the employees: The organization which recruits employees with different qualifications and experiences will be able to come up with solutions in challenging situations. Every individual will put their creative thought processes to work and come up with an easy solution to make a final decision.
7. Benefits from language diversity: The organizations which intend to carve a niche for themselves into the global markets benefit from language diversity.

How can leaders support workplace diversity?

1. Be responsible for designing the organization’s policy on diversity: It is the duty of those in leadership positions to design the organization’s policy based on the concept of diversity. When a leader of the organization designs a policy based on diversity, the workforce sees diversity as an important point to be included amongst other policies of the workplace. It creates a sense of mutual respect and values between the management and the employees.
2. Develop a strategic plan: The leader should design a strategic plan to set the base for constructing a diverse workplace. The strategic plan should help in shaping the objectives of higher management. This will also help in putting the strategy into action.
3. Motivate employees: The leader must motivate their employees. This can be achieved by hosting various cross-cultural events and conducting training and workshops.
4. Convince employees to change mindsets about diversity:  The leader must inspire employees to change their mindsets about diversity and have a positive attitude towards the same.

A diverse workplace brings workforces from different experiences, backgrounds and cultures together. They work together towards creating a productive environment.  Encouraging diversity in a workplace helps in building a liberal and global company culture. This also helps your organization in understanding their clients, co-workers, and customers around the world. More than chasing the latest technology look for what works to synergize the workplace, starting with respecting and understanding each employee.

Vrutika Dawda
Director, IdeateLabs

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Entrepreneur India : https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/316168