WORKPLACE DIVERSITY

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MGF1010: Introduction to Management
Week 10:
CHALLENGES OF MANAGING IN A MODERN WORLD:
DIVERSITY

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Objectives
• Understand the concepts of workforce diversity and
multicultural organisations
• Investigate the social dilemmas of organisational,
managerial, and individual participation for firms seeking to
attain and maintain workforce diversity
• Analyse how workforce diversity both influences and is
influenced by the management functions of POLC
• Explore the various challenges experienced by minority
groups and women in contemporary organisations
• Investigate the impact of globalisation on women’s
employment and working conditions.

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Discuss
What is meant by workforce diversity? Is diversity
management important for contemporary
organisations? Why? Use real-life examples in
your answer.
Workplace Diversity: Age, gender, experience,
religious beliefs, educational experience, culture,
Nationalities.
Source of competitive advantage: Talents and
perspectives
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YzqNgyqUYso

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Multicultural Organization
• Inclusiveness and respect for diversity
• Pluralism
• Structured integration
• Informal Network integration
• Absence of prejudice and discrimination
• Minimum intergroup conflict

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Functional Category
Diversity
Membership based on
functional characteristics
e.g. differences in
knowledge, skills and
abilities.
Benefits: Solve complex
Problems, Access to outside
information, Specialised
division of labour
Social Category
Diversity
Membership in a group
based on shared social
characteristic e.g. age,
ethnicity.
Benefits: Workplace is
highly diverse due to
diverse demographics,
miss out, has a positive
impact on functional
diversity

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Barriers to Organizational Diversity
• Advantageous of Homogenous teams
• Employee Turnover
• Short term versus long term profits dilemma

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Social dilemmas of workforce diversity
– Individual participation: resistance by
individual employees, exclusion from
informal networks
– Managerial participation: Temporal Trap
for managers: short term harmony or short
term disruption
– Organisational participation: Diversity
created problems: trust, conflict

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Solutions
Two-tier (i.e. level) solution suggested by
Schneider and Northcraft (1999):
• Management Problem
• Individual and organizational dilemmas
• Change individual incentives to enhance cooperation
• Create interdependent goals
• Group Size
• Public Policy Problem
• Legislation e.g. EEO

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Globalization and Diversity
Have modern levels of globalisation benefitted women and
other minority groups? Discuss with the use of real life
examples.
Access to employment (i.e. labour force participation),
career development and advancement, and rewards should
be based on merit, not on whether an individual belongs to a
‘majority’ (e.g. men) or ‘minority’ (e.g. women) subgroup)
• Ongoing debate on whether globalisation has benefitted
women
Requires a ‘gendered’ consideration of:
• – Access to employment
• – Conditions of employment
• – Wages and income
• – Time spent in care activities vs. time available for
leisure

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Exam
• Worth 50% - marked out of a 100 prior to converting to a score out of 50
• Format exactly the same as the practice exam.
– Two Sections:
> Short Answer Section (answer 8 out of 12 questions – work 7.5
marks each)
> Essay Section (answer 2 out of 3 questions – worth 20 marks each)
• Two hours plus 10 minute reading time.
• Prior exam papers are not available.
• A practice exam is available on the MGF1010 Moodle site.
• More specific details will be outlined in the week 12 lecture, and
included in the lecture overheads.

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PART 1: Answer any 8
• Questions 1 & 2: Introduction to Managers, Management
and Organizations (Week 2)
• Questions 3 & 4: Functions of Management (P): Planning
and Decision Making (Week 5)
• Questions 5 & 6: Functions of Management (O): Organising
(Week 6)
• Questions 7 & 8: Functions of Management (C): Controlling
(Week 9)
• Questions 9 & 10: POLC in a Changing Environment (Week
10)
• Questions 11 & 12: Challenges of Managing in a Modern
World: Diversity (Week 11)

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Part 2: Any 2
• Question 1: Evolution of Management Thought I & II (Weeks 3 &
4)
• Question 2: Functions of Management (L): Leading (Week 7)
• Question 3: Motivating Employees (Week 8)

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Discuss
• . Discuss.