Managing Diversity at Spencer Owens Essay

The definition of diversity The concept of diversity encompasses bridal and respect. It means understanding that to separately unriv tot onlyyed individual is unique, and recognizing our individual differences. These can be along the dimensions of washables, ethnicity, sexual urge, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, age, strong-arm abilities, religious beliefs, political beliefs, or other ideologies. It is the exploration of these differences in a safe, positive, and nurturing environment. It is about understanding each other and moving beyond simple tolerance to embracing and celebrating the rich dimensions of diversity contained within each individual.1Two corporations who digest implemented diversity efforts and behave dealt with the benefits and challenges of these efforts atomic number 18 Spencer Owens & Co. and Cityside pecuniary serve. When examining two diversity efforts, it is significant to understand how hearty each party has through with(p) with p revious and nonplus efforts, the problems the companies are facing outright and the group causes of these problems. While these companies have implemented their own efforts to diversify their lag, it is important to examine the similarities and differences in dateaging diversity.Spencer Owens & Co.How well has Spencer Owens done in its diversity efforts?Spencer Owens recent past shows a great deal of effort puzzle into diversifying their serveforce. In the mid-1980s, Spencer Owens & Co. initiated a strategy to diversify the social clubs employees from entry-level to executive ranks. Prior to this start date, the beau monde had an all- polish executive anthropoid aggroup. From the start of this initiative, Spencer Owens did very well on its diversity efforts to hire nation on their merits and for their capacities to do what is expected or required of them. To implementthe plan, the company set hiring goals, communicating them to all employees and creating accountabili ty. all over the beside ten years, this in turn created opportwholeies for women and people of color to become part of the team and induce career paths for them to be future leaders in various departments of the company.Following the start of this program (1985-1995), Spencer Owens was considered the close to various(a) staff in its industry accounting for 50% of the levels 150 managers and professionals were women, and 30% were people of color. Additionally, during this period, people of color that were hired into entry-level positions had been promoted and moved up into managerial positions. Four out of the12 extremity executive team were women and three were people of color. Extensive involvement in the efforts to attract, recruit and retain minorities and women in becoming managers, professional staff and directors were a key priority to the firm. Spencer Owens to a fault knew that a key to privileged diversity was to ensure the companys policies and overall commission to an equitable workplace by instituting plausive action goals, along with, combative hiring and advancement practices that set high qualification and performance hurdles.2The team at Spencer Owens was proud of their companys commitment to clean-livingness and equality and to encourage the employees to be colorblind to gender and ethnic differences. Along with this strategy, the firm also initiated sensitivity training and held follow-up discussions. Multiple employees commented, Everyone is the same and set the same. With feedback from these trainings and discussions, the firm went a step further to create ne cardinalrking groups for women and people of color.How well are they doing straight? why is the firm now having trouble?Recently, Spencer Owens diversity efforts have witnessed great changes while also encountering many issues and problems. In 2000, the firm hired Agnes Richards, their first woman executive in 45 years. Over the course of the next three years, Richards n oticed that the diversity efforts were slowly unraveling and affecting the productivity of the company. Forexample, Richards noticed friction among race relations, people of color were bringing charges of racism against the uncontaminating workers, and there were new complaints made by the dickens net working(a) groups. unrivalled of the first steps that Richards and her leading team took was to reinstate the sensitivity trainings. However, it was noticed that there was poor attending among the racial and ethnic minorities. In attachment to these issues, Richards fired an black female manager due to tardiness issues and for limning a bad attitude. At that point, employees became angry and frustrated.Due to the firms problems, Richards hired consultants to moot the firms race and gender relations. The interviews revealed the following Employees have concerns about the favourable action initiative. White employees step that the diversity program is adversely affecting the quality of the firms work. It is seed that white male managers are opposed to new methods brought forth by newer employees. People of color are critical of positive action program, including superficial results and feel that they are tolerated and not accepted. People of color feel their ideas are slowly dismissed. Perception that the network groups defend the minorities of the company. Overall sapidity of retaliation and fear of being called a racist.What is the root cause (or causes)?Spencer Owenss discrimination-and-fairness paradigm, which measures progress in diversity by how well the company achieves its recruitment and holding goals rather than by the degree to which conditions in the company allow employees to draw on their personal assets and perspectives to do their work more than effectively, had created a cognitive blind spot. As a result, the companys leadership could not frame the problem accurately or solve it effectively.10 Instead, the company geted a ethnic shift it needed to grasp what to do with its diversity once it had achieved the numbers. Because of senior managers resistance to a heathen transformation, Spencer Owens continues to struggle with the tensions rising from the diversity of its workforce.10The root causes of these problems is that the employees need to feel that the ways they may be various are understood and accepted.3 With the de-emphasis of sensitivity trainings and follow-up discussions, the team became isolated in their views on diversity versus affirmative action goals. The misunderstandings became apparent with the original mission to consider people on their merits and for their capacities to do what is expected or required of them. Many minority employees separate they gain a sense of belonging in the workplace when their employers create opportunities for workers with diverse backgrounds to interact with others and to become involved as apart of a group.3The networks were a great idea for employ ees to feel connected to the company however, the execution was not done properly. These diversity programs could have protagonisted employees of different backgrounds by communicating feelings and projects about climbing the corporate ladder or breaking by means of the glass celiling.3 However, these network groups became defenders for women and the other minorities due to the perception of treatment, opportunities, mis talk between the minorities and the white employees.Additional root causes for the present problems include employees wanting fair treatment, a sense of belonging, understanding and acceptance, and a feeling that they are contri unlessing.Cityside Financial ServicesHow well has Cityside Financial Services done in its diversity efforts?Cityside Financial Services has done well in diversity efforts. In 1999, after 69 years of being in business, the company had become very much diversified with half of the employees in the company being females and 90% of the compo rt staff was African American. In addition, 53% of middle managers, 42% of senior managers, and 25% executives were African American. Cityside operated as two units in their Sales Division Retail Operationsand outside(a) Deposits. The retail operations unit was filled with mostly African American employees. The external deposits unit was made up of mostly white college graduates. Nearly equal numbers of managerial positions existed in each unit, giving whites and blacks similar advancement opportunities. lingo employees agreed that, If you did your job well, youll be recognized and promoted for it. 4 As stated in the article, Over the years, Cityside blaspheme developed a reputation for being a high-functioning, multicultural governing body.While the bank itself was deemed to be a multicultural organization, the two sales units were founded on two separate and distinct models that it was described by one executive as two different banks. While the bank was diversified as a whole , these two units were very much specialized to their distinct client base. This separation of duties and ethnicities has led to some of the problems that the company without delay is facing. While the international Deposit team was described as white, smart, dedicated and loyal workaholics, it was also give tongue to that its not the perfect job for black staff that need a salary, may be hard-working, but not at that level.In addition, some of the other red flags to the present problems included smashed individuals complaining about the limited services being offered to them, other clients in Retail Operations feeling overshadowed by wealthier clients in External Deposits (and were leaving the bank), and the lack of understanding (no clear guidelines) by Retail and External as the best way to handle the new market segment. This lack of coordination compromised the banks strength and created trust issues between these two departments as to the best way to help clients.How well are they doing now? Why is the firm now having trouble?While the company continues to primary(prenominal)tain an overall diversified work staff, they are now encountering significant issues in their diversity efforts. One of the main causes of the problems that Cityside is now facing is that they have sectionalized the company with African American employeesworking in the Retail Operations department and the white employees working in the External Deposits department. Per the head of External Deposits, she commented that the problem is what is expected of senior management here has a cultural bias towards whites. Its not to say that African Americans arent also able to do all that. But because of historical racial issues, they have been limited. According to one black officer in Retail, he commented that white workers would not be able to handle the demands of the Retail unit. He continued to say that (whites) wouldnt know what to do with people in this neighborhood.This bias ties into ethnocentrism, which represents the feelings that ones cultural rules and norms are superior or more appropriate than the rules and norms of other socialisation.5 In addition, poor career planning shows another problem that African Americans have faced as potential candidates in the External Deposit unit.When Ron Wilkens, one of the investors of the bank, wanted to learn more about how the black workforce viewed its career prospects, it was observe that the root problem was how they (African Americans) were perceive by the whites. Was he deemed as a decision maker and mortal that understands the customer where his thoughts are taken seriously or is he someone that is viewed as good at operationally making things work? His black officer commented that he is respected by white colleagues, but questioned the value of his contribution to the firm seen by his white colleagues.While there is diversity in the company as a whole, there needs to be more diversity in each variablen ess to ensure that each employee is given an equal chance to grow and that customers are offered the best goods and services as possible.What do these cases have in common?There are some significant similarities between the two cases. First, both companies originally had an all-white staff. Both companies instituted programs to diversify their teams. For example, Spencer Owens adopted anaffirmative action plan while Cityside initiated an aggressive minority program. After these programs were implemented, both companies had double-digit percentages of their workforce made up of women and African Americans. It was noted in both cases that these companies were recognized in their industries as greatly achieving a multicultural organization. With that, both firms committed to a fair approach for advancing all employees.It was also noted that as the diverse programs were in action, both companies began to experience compromised efficiency as the staff began to have problems working toget her. At Spencer Owens, the affirmative action movement go forth some employees feeling alienated and unappreciated. The article states, Many non-white professionals reported having their ideas routinely disregarded. Furthermore, a Latino coder staffer explained, Until white people discover an idea, until they express it with their own words in their style, its as if it doesnt exist.This comment is similar to the quote made by one employee at Cityside who stated, When a white man disagrees, hes being strong. Hes taken with respect. When a black man disagrees, hes being negative and whiny, militant and kind of like Malcolm X. Both quotes show that while the companies made strides as far as diversifying their employee base, there is still a great difference in the way the ideas and contributions of white and minority employees are perceived.With this comparison summary, in both cases, the working environment involves how employees perceive one another. This is labeled as social cogni tion and social information processing. Social cognition is the study of how people make sense of other people and themselves. The perception process influences a host of managerial activities, organizational processes, and quality of life issues.5Additionally, stereotyping employees is also seen in both these case studies. At Cityside, African-American employees in the Retail Operations unit are deemed to be able to better relate to the topical anaesthetic community, which is predominately African American. At Spencer Owens, there is a stereotype threat in which white managers are in fear of supervising people of color inthat any constructive feedback could be perceived as being criticized and subsequently being called a racist. Lastly, both companies conducted interviews and developed surveys to better understand the opinions of the staff in order to get to the root cause(s) of why tensions were on the rise.What differences do these two cases have?The main difference in the two c ases is the approach the companies took to diversity. As previously stated, Spencer Owens utilize the discrimination and fairness paradigm, which has a focus on equal opportunity, fair treatment, recruitment, and compliance with federal Equal Employment Opportunity requirements. 10 This approach can make employees feel equal, but it can also lead to feelings of alienation and a loss of identity to the employees. This may be what led to the elimination of sensitivity training. In a sense, if we are all equal and are basically the same type of person, then there is no need to be sensitive to our differences, since this approach aims to eliminate the differences entirely. This approach is what led to the problems now being seen in Spencer Owens.Cityside utilize an approach called the Access and Legitimacy Paradigm. Supporters of this approach believed that you need access to and legitimacy with-a more diverse byplay by matching the demographics of the organization to those of crit ical consumer or constituent groups. 10 Cityside put African-American employees in retail because they would be dealing with mostly clients of the same race and burnish and this would give the company legitimacy in the community and amplify sales. Where this approach went wrong is that it alienated African-American employees and clients. While the discrimination-and-fairness paradigm used by Spencer Owens aims to make all employees equal and the same, access-and-legitimacy, takes the opposite approach and separates employees by race, not allowing the two to work together or grow in their roles in the company.What approach to diversity might have been more effective in each of these cases?Diversity and Affirmative Action DifferenceAffirmative action is selective in mandating changes that benefit previously disadvantaged groups. It is an outgrowth of Equal Employment Opportunity legislation.5 Diversity is inclusive, cover everyone in the workplace. It seeks to create a working envi ronment in which everyone and every group fits, feels accepted, has value, and contributes.6 Managing diversity, while base on cultural change, is a pragmatic business strategy that focuses on maximizing the productivity, creativity and commitment of the workforce while meeting the needs of diverse groups.7Approaches to diversity that might have been more effective in these casesManaging diversity entails recognition of the unique contribution every employee can make.5 Managing diversity also moves beyond valuing diversity in that it is a way in which to do business and should be adjust with other organizational strategic plans.6 Diverse employees offer an extraordinarily wide range of proficiencies for doing business in any marketplace. The following are different approaches that Wilkens and Richards could have taken to be more effective in their efforts (see footnote 8)1. To attract young, new hires, college career fairs allow an employer to target people of color and women who may be good potential employees. 2. Employee referral programs good employees typically associate with other good potential friends and associates. By implementing a program where employees refer other good candidates, employers can identify and reach out to others of the same race or background. 3. Recruitment enlightened employers know that they need to take a hard look at their own tactics for generating diverse job candidates. These organizations take a serious look at their inner(a) assessment around recruiting. With this, employers target key groups of employees and then mentor them so that they are able to aviate the system successfully.4. Education/trainings a successful diversity program will also educate all of a companys employees to understand the business rationale behind their efforts. That way, the employees who dont immediately benefit from a companys diversity effortsunderstand that they still have a billet in the programs success. In addition, encouraging emplo yees to participate in skills-based volunteer projects can help unleash targeted skills.5 5. Mentoring programs It is important to understand that a company cannot expect to change in corporate culture unless you get your full employee base involved. Partnering lower level employees with senior level employees, including diverse and promising professionals of color mentor-mentee sponsorships, may help facilitate the understanding of working together.6. Merit systems performance standards should be based on a thorough job analysis. Standards should be periodically updated. It is also suggested that the standards not be based on traits and personality factors focus should be on behavior or performance what the employee does.9 7. Company philosophy want out practices that emphasize equality and teamwork in compensation and decision-making.What should Wilkens/Richards do to turn things around?In addition to considering the above seven items, Wilkens and Richards should contemplate the following actions1. Reinstate sensitivity trainings this needs to be mandatory for all employees to improve the negative relationships between the teams diversity as a workgroup, to help with dispute management and interpersonal dynamics.5 This training will help to encourage collaborative behavior and improve communication efforts amongst the groups. a. Diversity should be understood as the varied perspectives and approaches to work that members of different identity groups bring.102. Take steps to reduce negative effects of unconscious stereotyping and increase the use of group goals in heterogeneous groups. recognise groups to accomplish group goals might encourage group members to focus on their common objectives rather than on demographic faultiness that are unrelated to performance. a. The leadership team must(prenominal) understand that a diverse workforce will embody different perspectives and approaches to work, and must truly value variety of opinion and insight.3. The leadership team must recognize both the learning opportunities and the challenges that the expression of differentperspectives presents for an organization.104. The organizational culture must create an expectation of high standards from everyone.10 5. The organizational culture must stimulate personal development.10 6. The organizational culture must encourage openness and make workers feel valued.10 7. The organization must have a well-articulated and astray understood mission.10ConclusionWilkens and Richards must realize that increasing demographic variation does not in itself increase organizational effectiveness. They need to realize that it is how a company defines diversity and what it does with the experiences of being a diverse organization that delivers on the promise.10These companies should develop an outlook on diversity that enables them to incorporate employees perspectives into the main work of the organization and to kick upstairs work by rethinking primary task s and redefining markets, products, strategies, missions, business practices, and even cultures. By instituting this learning-and-effectiveness paradigm for managing diversity, Wilkens and Richards will tap into accredited diversity benefits.10References1. http//gladstone.uoregon.edu/asuomca/diversityinit/definition.html 2. Ely, Robin. (April 17, 2006). Managing Diversity at Spencer Owens & Co. 3. Grensing-Pophal, Lin, (May 2002). Reaching for Diversity Efforts in the Workplace. 4. Ely, Robin. (April 17, 2006). Managing Diversity at Cityside Financial Services 5. Kreitner, Robert & Knicki, Angelo. (9th Edition/2010). Organizational Behavior 6. Stonybrook University. Diversity and Affirmative Action Difference 7. www.business-marketing.com/store/affirmvsdiv.html8. www.boston.com/jobs/diversity. (May 9, 2004). DiversityWorks How allEmployees Benefit. 9. Hodge, John. (June 1, 1993). family relationship between managing diversity and merit-based systems. 10. Thomas, David A. and Ely, Robin A. (September/October 1996). Making Differences Matter A New Paradigm for Managing Diversity.