MGT 321

Diversity in Organizations

Stereotypes & Mirror Image Fallacy

• Stereotype presumes that some person possesses certain individual characteristics based on their sex or membership in a racial, ethnic, or age group.– Barack Husain Obama– Lawsuit against Wal-Mart for discriminating

against women• In Mirror Image Fallacy, one presumes that all

other people are “just like me.”

Individual Differences

• Homogeneity in workforce – utopia or reality?• Heterogeneity – competitive advantage• research on how firms gain sustainable

competitive advantage consistently identifies selectivity in hiring and an emphasis on training as two central characteristics of successful companies.

• Selective to ensure heterogeneous workforce

Discrimination

• Discriminatory policy and practices• Sexual Harassment• Intimidation• Mockery or insult• Exclusion• Incivility

Levels of Diversity

• Surface level diversity: the observable demographic and other overt differences in people, such as their race, ethnicity, gender, age, and physical capabilities (McShane & Glinow, 2010)

• Deep level diversity: Differences in the psychological characteristics of employees, including personalities, beliefs, values, and attitudes.

Diversity Dimensions

• Biographical• Ability • Personality – We will focus on it later

Biographical DimensionAge

Biographical DimensionAge

Source: US Census Bureau

Biographical Dimension

• Age– Why is age becoming an issue for workforce?– Age & turnover ratio– Age & absenteeism– Age & productivity– Age & job satisfaction

• Sex– Male & Female Roles– Work schedules, absence and turnover rate– Discrimination and stress

HR Managers

Financial Managers

CIS Managers

Marketing & Sales Managers

CEOs

$0 $500 $1,000 $1,500 $2,000 $2,500

$1,488

$1,504

$1,595

$1,660

$2,122

$1,280

$933

$1,547

$1,129

$1,464

Approximate median weekly pay per occupation (2011)

FemaleMale

Source: Robbins, S.P. & Judge, T.A. (2015). Organizational Behavior, 16th edition, Pearson.

Biographical Dimension

• Race & ethnicity– Racial discrimination in workplace– Promotion decisions, evaluation– How can we relate it to Bangladesh context?

• Disability– Physical and mental disability– What is the situation in Bangladesh?

Biographical Dimension

• Tenure / Seniority– Seniority and job performance, absence,

productivity

• Religion• Sexual orientation & gender identity

Ability

• Physical abilities– Strength factors: Muscular strength– Flexibility factors: Movement quality – Other factors: Endurance, balance etc.

• Intellectual or cognitive abilities– Verbal ability– Quantitative ability– Reasoning ability– Emotional intelligence– Cultural intelligence

General cognitive/mental abilities

Contemporary cognitive abilities

Why are GMAs important for organizations?

• Research has shown that, in virtually any job where planning, judgment, and memory are used in day-to-day performance, individuals high in general cognitive ability will generally outperform those who are low in this ability

• Individuals who are high in general cognitive ability will learn the job more quickly than their low-ability counterparts

• Workers who are high in cognitive ability show much lower on-the-job accident rates

• Individuals who are high in cognitive ability have also been found to engage in less counterproductive behaviors at work, including destruction of property and engaging in violent acts on the job

Contemporary Cognitive Abilities

• Emotional Intelligence– Set of abilities, both verbal and non-verbal, that

enable a person to generate, recognize, express, understand, and evaluate their own and others’ emotions in order to successfully cope with social demands and pressures

– Leaders and managers who score high on this ability tend to be perceived as more effective by their subordinates, peers, and supervisors

Contemporary Cognitive Abilities

• Cultural Intelligence– the ability to observe, interpret, and act upon

unfamiliar social and cultural cues and function effectively in new and foreign environments

– Cultural intelligence is a critical individual difference for organizations that are trying to move into global product markets

• Correlation between intelligence and job satisfaction is about zero

DiversityLegal & Political Aspects

• A recent study that sent out identical résumés of hypothetical job applicants showed that those that came from people with “white-sounding” names, such as Neil, Brett, Emily, or Anne, were 50 percent more likely to be asked for an interview relative to those that came from people with “blacksounding” names, such as Ebony, Tamika, Rasheed, or Khirese

• Discrimination lawsuit• Discrimination in Bangladesh – What are the dimensions?

Diversity Management

• Recruiting and selection policy• Training and development practices– Legal framework for equal employment opportunity– Competitive advantage of diverse workforce

• Do these programs work? – Research suggests one-shot training sessions do not

ensure effective results– Long term strategies to ensure representation to

diverse groups