Managing Diversity

How to handling differences of background, culture, religion, nationality, sexual tendencies, etc. in an organization?

And was very illustrated the activity that my classmates did about a gay man that was going to a cocktail in the company he worked at, so the case went around if he should bring his partner and reveal his likes, or go alone to prevent problems with his conservative boss. After talking and giving our opinion, the point of consensus was that he should go with his couple. Is that opinion related to what we, young people are perceiving life in a more opened way?

The term "managing diversity" introducted by Kandola and Fullerton in the USA in 1987, has several aspects that shouldn't be forgotten in an organization.
Those are:

• Cost of implementing new strategies to integrate its personnel.
• Resource-Acquisition, when people identify that company because its non discrimination policies, and best reputation of managing diversity.
• Marketing argument, to it will be easier to sell themselves to other countries and regions because of their people sensivity.
• Creativity cause will be more perspectives, less attached to old norms and listen others experiences and ideas.
• Problem-Solving, people with different background may think dissimilar what would help in more solutions for something.
• System flexibility, less standardised and more comprehensive.

In summary, a well managed diversity will contribute a lot to an organization, existing more comprehension, acceptances, acculturation, in order to develop cross cultural capabilities, improve results and efficiency, avoiding conflict, more innovation and extra perceptions that will build a more precise view of what costumer need.

In Colombia, and I like to talk always about our country cause I think is necessary to analyze how this is been managed here, cultural organization is more focus for the market and costumer's benefit than for the same employees. Or in other cases as Compañía Nacional de Chocolates, to differentiate from other companies for their inside treatment, there salutation is a very important culture practice and helps for a more comfortable work environment aswell. But I think many times our regionalism do not let us to be more opened to others. For example, in the company where I did my internship, there was a guy from Czech Republic in the international area, and he wasn't understood all the time. He was quiet, calm and didn't talked to much, birthdays weren't a special date for him so he didn't celebrated it with others as we do so his mates talked that he was very apart and serious, and that he didn't like to go out for lunch with all of them, he just liked to be by himself. So that's when is important to read more about the other's culture to know if is not his culture but his personality. At the same time we can't stereotype Czechs just because we knew one.

Value Chain Activity

According to the activity of Managing diversity, here are our two activities proposed for Socio economic status and nationalism

Bibliography

• Organizations and cultures. III Managing diversity presentation. Maria Alejandra González Pérez.
• Hacia la construcción de un modelo de cultura organizacional orientada al mercado. Dagoberto Páramo Morales. Junio 2001. editorial.unab.edu.co/revistas/rcmarketing/pdfs/r22_art5_c.pdf. Accessed on February, 2009.