Diversity Training is widely prevalent in the U.S. Whether it is legal awareness
ID: 411627 • Letter: D
Question
Diversity Training is widely prevalent in the U.S. Whether it is legal awareness, cultural awareness, or sensitivity training, many organizations require some form of diversity training. However, there is no clear evidence that diversity training works – it may even create animosity toward diverse groups. Some organizations see diversity training as necessary to “cover their assets” – to demonstrate they are doing their due diligence even if the trainings are not effective.
Discuss diversity training from a strategic perspective. Suggest 1-2 ways to make diversity trainings more effective
Explanation / Answer
From a strategic point of view, diversity can be or should be perceived as an ingredient to the competitive advantage of a firm. The more the diverse the organizational workforce, and the more effectively the diversity is managed, higher the chance that the firm gets a competitive edge. There are several reasons behind this proposition. First, with a diverse workforce, the firm is able to anticipate the changes in the market and can start acting proactively in altering its theory of business. Second, once it faces a challenge in either operation or from the market, the diverse workforce becomes always equipped with skills and competence to resolve the issues. Finally, the diversity of the workforce represents the diversity of the market as well. Considering all these, diversity can be a real strategic advantage for a firm.
In order to organize and deliver a successful diversity training, an organization should take several steps. We have discussed the following two steps among them -
1. The policies and procedures that improve the climate for diversity can only be effective when they are designed to acknowledge the perspectives of all the employees in the organization. For this reason, the comprehensive diversity programs which address the climate for diversity at multiple levels cutting through every layer of the organization considering the personality of the groups will be successful than the one-shot diversity training sessions which only considers the perspectives of few selected employees in a classroom environment.
2. Another way to deliver training is to use the concept of goal-setting. This strategy can be successfully adapted by asking the training participants to set specific, measurable, challenging, and attainable goals related to diversity in the workplace. The goal setting of diversity training leads to more pro-diversity behaviors even long terms after diversity training and before the next session of training can be planned. Usually, the retention period is more than nine months.