Introduction
An interview was conducted with David Hui who works as the Human Resource Manager in Bossini International Holdings Limited being the respondent. The company is based in Hong Kong and deals on clothes and home furnishings. The interview was done over the phone. David Hui was interviewed for his experience in the management of a huge workforce with employees ranging from female to male, young adults to middle-aged, and Black to White. Bossini International Holdings Limited upholds diversity and has plans to open up more branches across the globe.
Summary of Responses
Question 1: What is your understanding of diversity in the workplace?
It is the existence of differences amid the people in a company and harmonizing them for enhanced success.
Question 2: How important is workplace diversity for your company?
Workplace diversity raises the company’s competitiveness in the market due to effective customer service offered by skilled employees who identify with the society. In this regard, there is positive business reputation, and employees benefit from job promotion and retention.
Question 3: In regard to diversity, what issues (discrimination, prejudice, micro-aggressions, or others) have you or co-workers faced in your profession?
There is some discrimination as White people get managerial positions while Blacks do not. Moreover, female employees get lower salaries and less frequent promotions than their male counterparts.
Question 4: Do you feel your workplace values support diversity?
The company recognizes skills and experiences in the employees and places them in positions that they can perform in the best possible manner irrespective of their cultural backgrounds and origin. Employment is done on the basis of merit, and only the most talented candidates qualify for recruitment.
Question 5: What professional development or training does your workplace provide to better inform employees of the importance of being culturally relevant?
As a way of notifying employees of the importance of being culturally significant, the managers are trained on skills to enhance teamwork, communication, and inclusivity. They are qualified on how to curb discrimination and avoid making decisions based on personal views.
Aspects of the Interview
The aspects that stood out in the interview relate to the gains of workplace diversity to the company and employees, the issues they have encountered on diversity, and the kind of training they undertake to enhance the productivity of workers irrespective of cultural alignments. These could be the points that have led to the company attaining competitiveness in the few years of its operation and the foreseeable promise of better performance in the future as it plans to extend to other continents. The nature of the workforce in the company can only be improved if both the managers and the employees appreciate diversity and accommodate it for productivity.
Workplace diversity is not only the understanding that differences exist between people with respect to their place of origin, sexual orientation, age, and physical incapacities, but also entails accommodating and valuing each other. The variances are also noted in the character, talents, capabilities, and the knowledge possessed by different people.
Professional diversity in the workplace has become a crucial tool to any organization in the wake of high competition due to the onset of information technology and global markets. It needs to be incorporated since it may bring about more productivity through employees’ contributions thus promoting business. Bossini realized the need to place people in positions that they are well-suited depending on skills and experiences hence accommodating diversity.
There is a need for organizations to hire employees from all kinds of backgrounds that can guarantee a position in the global market due to their competence based on the proficiency and experiences earned. To attract various types of employees that can help in acquiring competitive benefit, companies must create a policy that gives opportunities to the most excellent candidates. This would mean that talented job seekers can note the value a company places on diversity and make a determination to join the workforce.
This will play a crucial role in enabling a professional outlook where employees are encouraged to perform irrespective of their different upbringings. In this regard, the company is guaranteed of hiring the right professionals since skilled job seekers will be willing to work for a company that needs what they possess.
Workplace diversity is not only the understanding that differences exist between people with respect to their place of origin, sexual orientation, age, and physical incapacities, but accommodating and valuing each other. These include unqualified perceptions and biases about the way one thinks of another as informed by their color, gender, or age. Organizational managers should repress discrimination by ensuring that every competent employee stands an equal opportunity of being hired or promoted to the available position irrespective of their cultural backgrounds. Discrimination impacts negatively on businesses since the employees’ productivity declines as relationships amongst stakeholders are strained. Ensuring equal opportunities for employees is vital in enhancing diversity.
Diversity issues in the workplace are beneficial to businesses and the employees; for instance, Bossini has attained competitive benefit and earns a good standing in the society for upholding value for diversity. The employees show respect for each other even as they work in different styles as presented in various cultures and age groups. They are in a position of settling arguments in a way that does not result in court cases thus maintaining good relationships with fellow personnel and the managers. The employees benefit from job promotion and retention if the business is competing favorably in the global market and domestically.
Managers need to be trained on skills that they can use to manage diverse personnel without the influence of their cultural preferences or misconceptions of how discrimination can impact negatively. They should use relevant skills in promoting teamwork and enhancing inclusivity. Communication amongst all stakeholders should be given sufficient room by scheduling business meetings and encouraging shared gatherings.
The aspect of issues faced in Bosinni was uncomfortable as it was revealed that female workers were greatly discriminated against unlike their male counterparts through, for instance, being paid lower salaries. Moreover, Black people were not elevated to managerial positions. This explains why discrimination has been outlawed in most states and the need for availing equal opportunities well-articulated.
Conclusion
The two major aspects of this paper are the management of workplace diversity and facilitation of organizational success (Bucher, 2015). Just as discussed in the course materials, the key insights developed are that diversity in the workplace is becoming a requirement in business alongside information technology and global market. The most significant thing learned is that if well managed, diversity results in business achievements that include high productivity and competitive benefit while gains to employees include job retention, promotion, and exposure.
This is relevant to the discussion of diversity in class in that there are issues in a diverse workforce such as discrimination that require the management’s input to curb them since they affect inclusivity and equal opportunities which in turn affect the image of the business.
Reference
Bucher, R. D. (2015). Diversity consciousness: Opening our minds to people, cultures, and opportunities (4th ed.). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall.