Appunti di organizational behaviour

Diversity challenges of diversity

Similarity-attraction phenomenon

The similarity-attraction phenomenon is the tendency to be more attracted to individuals who are similar to us.

Surface level diversity

Surface level diversity refers to traits that are highly visible to us and those around us, such as race, gender, and age. Researchers believe that people pay attention to surface diversity because they are assumed to be related to deep level diversity, which includes values, beliefs, and attitudes. We want to interact with those who share our values and attitudes, and we tend to use surface level traits, because we don’t know people when we just meet them, instead of deep level traits.

Faultline

A faultline is an attribute along which a group is split into subgroups and has less cohesiveness. If we put together women over 50 years and male members younger than 25, the team will be divided, less creative, and may make less effective decisions. Faultlines are more likely to emerge in diverse teams. Even groups that have strong faultlines can perform well if they establish certain norms.

Stereotypes

Stereotypes are generalizations about a particular group of people (Men: assertive, active. Women: Relationship-oriented, passive). Those stereotypes about different groups could lead to unfair and inaccurate decision-making.

Discrimination

There is still discrimination in our society which negatively affects diverse individuals working together. This is both a challenge and an opportunity for your generation.

Challenges of diversity OB toolbox: dealing with being different

Specific diversity issues

• Sexual orientation diversity: There is no current federal law for lesbian, bisexual, gay, and transgender (LGBT) individuals, but as of 2008, 20 states had laws prohibiting this discrimination. LGBT individuals are afraid to disclose their sexual orientation.
• Gender diversity: Two pieces of legislation prohibit gender discrimination at work: “The Equal Pay Act (1963)” for pay and “Title VII of the Civil Rights Act (1964)” for discrimination in all employment decisions based on gender. Women earn 79% of what men earn working full-time due to 1. children, 2. family, and they 3. don’t pursue high-paying occupations such as engineering and business (they value more good hours, easy commute, interpersonal relationships, and helping others, than men). They achieve less favorable outcomes in negotiations. The glass ceiling is the situation where some qualified employees are prevented from advancing to higher-level positions due to factors such as discrimination. This is often encountered by women and minorities. There is an absence of women in leadership, as they are less likely to be seen in higher management and executive roles.
• Race diversity: “Title VII of the Civil Rights Act (1964)” prohibits race discrimination in all employment-related decisions. African Americans and Hispanics are three times more likely to experience discrimination. Ethnic minorities experience both an earning gap and a glass ceiling.
• Employees with disabilities: “The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA 1990)” reported 19,000 cases of discrimination with EEOC. The Act covers impairments like hearing impairment, manic-depressive disorder, and orthopedic impairments.
• Religious diversity: Companies have to relax their dress code or understand some days that are not recognized as holidays in the US.
• Age diversity: The “Age Discrimination in Employment Act (1967)” states that those who are 55 and older are estimated to constitute 20% of the workforce in the US. The largest group is those between 40 and 44 years old. Older employees tend to be reliable and committed employees who often perform at comparable or higher levels than younger workers. However, their performance declines with age, and if they are dissatisfied, they don’t want to quit the job. Teams with age diversity can lead to higher performances.

Managing cultural diversity

• Build a culture of respecting diversity: Respect everybody and the company.
• Managers accountable for diversity: Diversity metrics are carefully tracked.
• Diversity training programs
• Review recruitment practices: By targeting a pool that is more diverse.
• Affirmative action programs: Policies designed to recruit, promote, train, and retain employees belonging to a protected class, which include:
  • Simple elimination of discrimination
  • Targeted recruitment
  • Tie-breaker (preference given to the minority)
  • Preferential treatment (less qualified minority)

Understanding culture in the workplace

Diversity is the way in which people are similar or different from each other. Culture refers to values, beliefs, and customs that exist in a society. In the US, the workforce is becoming increasingly multicultural (16% employees born outside the country), and the world of work is becoming international with China, India, and Brazil as emerging players. International business provides access to raw materials, resources, and customer bases. Understanding the role of national culture may provide a competitive advantage. An expatriate is someone who is temporarily assigned to a position in a foreign country.

Hofstede’s culture framework

Hofstede’s culture framework is a useful tool to understand the differences across cultures.

Case study: Venezuela

Amy is a manager in an American freight company. She describes her job as “finding creative solutions.” She is self-directed as her company lacks formal structures and the company culture expects employees to be creative problem solvers who think quickly. Her current task is to find solutions for new shipping procedures with her Venezuelan partners. She is frustrated because she spends half her time waiting for answers. Why are the Venezuelans so slow?

Individualism vs. collectivism

• Cultures in which people define themselves as individuals and form looser ties with their groups.
• Cultures where people have stronger bonds to their groups and group membership forms their self-identity.
• People prefer to take individual initiative and focus on themselves.
• They act cooperatively and establish group goals, determining their identity through group affiliation.
• They judge people based on individual traits and make decisions as a group.
• They put individuals before the team and put the team before the individual.
• They are non-conformist when necessary and conform to social norms.
• They move in and out of groups as needed, keeping group memberships for life.

Countries with individualistic cultures include the USA, Australia, UK, Canada, and Hungary, while collectivist cultures include Guatemala, Ecuador, Indonesia, Pakistan, and China. You can place different cultures on a scale that reflects the general position of a country on the attributes of individualism and collectivism. The scale is a generalization for the average citizen based on cultural preferences for the attributes on the scale. You will find some Venezuelans that are more individualistic than some Americans, but the scale reflects a general view of the culture.

Case study: India

Mark, a recently arrived American manager in India, was complaining to an American associate, “I’ve been finding that I need to give much more detailed, specific instructions to Indian employees than I would to Americans in order to get even the simplest things done. The Indian employees don’t seem to take the initiative to do anything other than what is clearly outlined in advance. I know they are smart... I’ve seen a lot of innovative work. I feel that they just want me to tell them what to do. What am I doing wrong?”

Low power distance vs. high power distance

• A society that views an unequal distribution of power as relatively unacceptable.
• A society that views an unequal distribution of power as relatively acceptable.
• People are self-directed and have flexibility in their roles in a company or team.
• They take direction from those above and have strong limitations about appropriate behavior for certain roles.
• They have the freedom to challenge the openness of those in power and enforce regulations and guidelines.
• They trust men and women in basically the same way.
• They expect men and women to behave differently and be treated differently.

Countries with low power distance include Austria, Denmark, Israel, Ireland, and New Zealand, while high power distance countries include Malaysia, Slovakia, Philippines, Russia, and Mexico.

Case study: Eastern Europe

Mike, an American in charge of developing new markets in Eastern Europe for the building sector, is frustrated with the slow progress. “These people want to see every last detail worked out before they can even think of moving forward.” Sometimes it’s an administrative...