The United States has a long history of classifying people based upon the color of their skin, their gender, and their religion. These tendencies were factors that led to the creation of many diversity policies in the United States. œDiversity has become so instilled in American culture that equalization measures have been woven into every fabric of societyespecially the business environment. However, recent research suggests that an organization’s stringent diversity policies actually damage America’s global partnerships and foreign subsidiaries. To examine this, consider the following quote:
œWhen in Rome, do as the Romans do as the famous saying goes. But, while we may espouse that belief, Americans are often not culturally sophisticated or humble enough to really do as the Romans do. More often, we will work hard to convince the Romans that they have got it all wrong. We are a powerhouse of a nation, ready to show the rest of the world how business and human rights should work. Yet we often do so without a full understanding of the beliefs underlying our behaviors(Digh, 2001).
Simply put, what America deems as œdiverse is not comparable to that of other cultures. In fact, each country and/or culture has their own definitions and perceptions for other terms such as œimmigrant and œrace. As technology brings global trade to an all-time high, many U.S.-centric organizations are realizing that their diversity initiatives fail to apply directly to their international counterparts. For example, America’s strong push for gender diversity and women’s rights does not exist in countries like Saudi Arabia, where œjust 5% of the workforce is female and the law requires segregating women workers from men (Raskin, Brettle, & Dowling, 2010). Furthermore, studies in the United States are proving that today’s definition of diversity is beginning to encompass many more dimensions than the three categories of race, gender, and ethnicity.
For diversity efforts to be successful in today’s global enterprises, HR leaders must work with top executives to reframe the operating definition of and emphasis placed on diversity. Instead of using diversity measures to equalize an American-based work environment, such measures can be used to expand cultural competencies and highlight the unique talents, interests, and values of each employee.
To better evaluate how each employee’s personal culture consists of a multitude of dimensions, review the article presented in this week’s Learning Resources entitled, Why culture matters: Leveraging cultural differences to create a business advantage. Specifically, examine the diversity wheel to assess how the term œdiversity as used in the United States presents too narrow a focus in today’s globally competitive world. In addition, review the article entitled, œGlobal Diversity: Managing and Leveraging Diversity in a Global Workforce to analyze how an awareness of cultural differences can increase an organization’s sustainable competitive advantage.
To complete this Assignment, respond to the following in a 3- to 4-page paper:
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Evaluate the organizational impact of diversity in today’s global market.
â—¦Describe at least two ways in which an organization’s foreign subsidiaries and/or global partners might be negatively impacted by U.S.-centric diversity policies.
â– How might this affect an organization’s products, services, and/or reputation?
â– Why might U.S.-centric diversity policies fail to meet the needs of other countries and cultures?
â—¦Describe at least two ways in which a culture’s motivations and incentives can impact the sustainable competitive advantage of an organization.
â– How might a U.S.-centric view on policies such as benefits, incentives, motivations, and work ethic/expectations misalign with other countries?
â– Why might the global and mobile nature of America’s current workforce misalign with past, Western-based reward systems?
â– Identify at least two ways that these misaligned incentives can decrease an organization’s global profits.
Analyze cultural competence as a means to leverage an organization’s sustainable competitive advantage.
â—¦For a global organization, describe at least three cultural competency initiatives HR could implement to globalize its diversity policies.
â– How can HR translate cultural competencies into a diversity program that aligns with today’s global market?
â– How can HR leverage these competencies to survive in today’s highly competitive industries?
â—¦Describe at least two ways in which an organization’s products, services, and/or reputation can be positively impacted by an awareness of cultural competencies.
â– How can organizations capitalize on the diversity of its workers?
References:
Digh, P. (2001). Diversity Goes Global. MOSIACS (SHRM). Retrieved from http://www.asaecenter.org/Resources/whitepaperdetail.cfm?itemnumber=12154
Raskin, K. A., Brettle, O., Dowling, D. C., Jr. (2010). Global HR Hot Topic: Global Diversity Initiatives. White & Case. Retrieved from http://www.whitecase.com/files/Publication/82b88c6d-df6b-458f-9151-8b9411048cec/Presentation/PublicationAttachment/5f0f0121-bce8-4540-a269-9508dd8d7e72/Global_HR_Hot_Topic_04_10_v4.pdf
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