Based on the content presented in the articles Rethinking Diversity in Public Organizations for the 21st Century: Moving Toward a Multicultural Model and The Ideal of Diversity in Organizations, I have stood a chance to identify two outstanding democratic principles: transparency and team spirit. The paper discusses about the two in relation to workplace diversity.
Transparency refers to the openness of an organizational culture. When the executives in an organization are free with critical information concerning the organization’s daily running of affairs, then the organization is transparent. It is being aware of the “everyone ultimately discovers everything” theory, and therefore engaging a book communication policy (Carr-Ruffino, 1996, p. 56).
This brings in a situation whereby information such as interviewing procedure, promotion criteria, and other career information is freely shared with the workers so that they feel included in the running of the organization. Team spirit, as a democratic principle too simply refers to the establishment of a collective intelligence pool.
This happens when different people come together to contribute and/or participate in the sharing of ideas for decision-making (Hellriegel, & Slocum, 2007, p. 89). At this stage, differences such as educational level, work and life experiences, marital status, gender, ethnicity, socio-economic backgrounds and even personalities are exploited to solve the problem at hand.
People nurture unity despite the differences actually using the differences as a means to a common end. A case when those with a wealthy work experience in a certain field provide mentorship for the less seasoned members of staff provides a good illustration of team spirit.
In a further analysis of the aforementioned principles, one should note how instrumental diversity is, in the workplace, based on the application of the two democratic processes. It is also important to state here that diversity in itself does, not only promote the principles, but also provides an ambient environment for their manifestation in a workplace scenario (Denhardt, Vinzant, & Aristigueta, 2002, p. 98).
It stands out as the fabric where optimal profitability is woven, using the democratic principles as the weaving tool. Diversity demands the provision of an equal consideration as well as opportunities during employment processes for women and other minority groups including different races and people with disabilities.
It also requires an organization to provide equal opportunities for its entire staff to climb the corporate ladder in direct proportion to their efforts (Denhardt, Vinzant, & Aristigueta, 2002, p. 109). When an organization acquires diversity, there is enough variety among its staff to constitute comprehensive teams.
Such a case will equip all the people with all types of information, ideas, practices and other insightful aspects necessary for the smooth running of work. Diversity also implies a less room for employees to form counterproductive ‘cliques’ among themselves, as all admitting the joy behind diversity thereby creating a need to befriend somebody new at work (Carr-Ruffino, 1996, p. 67).
Concerning openness, a diversified workplace consists of very different individuals who freely share ideas and insights freely presenting their perspectives on various agendas. When this is the case, one will expect executives to be forthright with information. They stand a chance to give comprehensive information on various business deals, recruitment outcomes, and career-oriented data.
This is only possible if there are people who can courageously request such information. However, one cannot expect such from ‘allied associates’ who have similar interests with the bosses. Diversity counters this situation by destroying the ‘comfort zone’ many executives tend to develop when they surround themselves with familiar friendly faces. Overall transparency is therefore demanded, and maintained when a workplace is diversified.
In conclusion, based on this analysis, diversity is important in any workplace if one or a society wishes to manifest results, in terms of profitability, and loyalty of employees. In its presence, the democratic principles mentioned above will flourish in an organization.
When transparency prevails, employees trust the decisions and strategies made by the management. thereby boosting their willingness to comply with the rules and regulations (Hellriegel, & Slocum, 2007, p. 99).
This follows because these employees remain involved in decision-making processes where they scoop a chance to claim ownership of the outcomes. Delegation of authority is also common in such an organization. It results to an optimum production of programs, services, and quality products with minimalist management.
References
Carr-Ruffino, N. (1996). Managing diversity: people skills for a multicultural workplace. Cincinnati, Ohio: Thomson Executive Press.
Denhardt, B., Vinzant, J., & Aristigueta, M. (2002). Managing human behavior in public & nonprofit organizations. Chicago: SAGE.
Hellriegel, D., & Slocum, W. (2007). Organizational behavior. New York: Cengage Learning.