by Wanda Roos, Research Psychologist and Associate Consultant Member of the Phelekeza Team

September is the month during which South Africans celebrate our fascinating and colourful heritage by means of activities that build cohesion such as music, poetry, dance, food and special presentations that reflect myriad perspectives on our history and on our present, extremely diverse society. It is therefore perhaps appropriate to reflect on the experience and impact of this diversity in our working environments.

Defining the concept of cultural diversity

For an actual definition of this concept it is useful to turn to The Oxford Dictionary, where cultural diversity is described as ‘the existence of a variety of cultural or ethnic groups within a society’. In other words, it may be thought of as a population where all differences are represented. From an organisational business perspective, we may therefore think of an environment where business objectives are achieved through the contributions of a huge array of different people – for instance, people from different races and socio-economic backgrounds, and people with different genders, religions, sexual orientations, appearances and languages. Pretty much like a large extended family…. Or a team of oxen pulling a wagon….

Making it work

Given that the ‘family members’ may have very different ideas about doing things, some severe challenges in terms of actually achieving those business goals and objectives may emerge. Indeed, for the first time in history the modern workplace features five very different thinking and doing generations. There are the ‘Traditionals’ who value workplaces that are conservative and hierarchical, with a clear chain of command and top-down management structure. The ‘Baby Boomers’ look for flat hierarchies, democratic cultures, humane values, equal opportunities, and warm and friendly work surroundings. ‘Generation X’ employees thrive in environments that offer a sense of fun, efficiency, flexibility and an informal approach to leadership and information dissemination. Being the offspring of Generation X, ‘Millennials’ also enjoy a positive and fun oriented working environment, yet bring their best contribution when they are exposed to a collaborative, creative and achievement oriented culture that produces frequent performance feedback. ‘Generation Z’, born after 1996, seems to be more focused on security, independence, and competitive and entrepreneurial pursuits in a highly digital and multi-tasking type of workplace.

Clearly, achieving the organisation’s goals and objectives through the efforts of so many profoundly different perspectives, offerings and expectations is no easy task. And it is certainly not achieved without considerable and sustained effort on the part of not only management, but also each and every employee associated with it.

Creating a space for everyone to thrive and perform

It seems logical that in order to create a well-functioning cohesive body aligned to the same end outputs requires something that everyone in that body values and nurtures. A culture of shared values, beliefs, desires and expectations needs to be established and maintained in order for everyone to whole-heartedly support the strategic direction of the enterprise, and the way in which it is pursued. This means that a core that binds and motivates the workforce, but that still allows them to represent and live their broad diversity within the organisation, needs to be formed and continually adapted and enhanced. Whilst this is indeed an immense task and responsibility, there are several principles that can guide management in this regard.

A key principle of maintaining a truly culturally diverse working environment is sincerity. With sincerity comes accountability, which means that a specific person or unit needs to be tasked with driving and consistently monitoring meaningful cultural diversity across the enterprise. There must be a serious belief on the part of management in the value of a diverse work population with respect to achieving the objectives of the organisation. Superficial lip service and window dressing may work for a short while, but is guaranteed to become very transparent and fall flat within a very short period of time. With that may come serious and long-lasting brand damage. On the basis of a serious commitment towards building a culturally diverse work environment a number of well-considered and practically achievable policies, procedures and protocols should be concretised. These prescripts should be visibly and consistently lived by the organisation via frequent training of its personnel, and focused driving of initiatives to understand and effectively manage differences amongst staff. The ultimate objective should be for everyone in the organisation to thrive and capitalise on the gift of its array of talents, perspectives and abilities.  Such environments acknowledge and respect, but do not dwell on difference – instead, they look for the advantages that are the be derived from diversity.

Challenges abound

There are many, many challenges that organisations often contend with in their efforts to establish and maintain effective work environments made up of considerably different personnel corps. For instance, political prescripts from governmental corners can introduce significant artificiality and pressure on workplace operations. Die-hard traditional managerial attitudes may block a sufficiently open and courageous approach towards cultural diversity. Inadequate understanding of the depth of the concept will prohibit successful roll-out of a culturally diverse workforce that consistently achieves bottom-line expectations of the enterprise. A lack of well-considered and appropriate organisational structures and protocols that reflect appreciation of the internal and external environments impacting the organisation’s performance and operations would guarantee the same cul de sac.

The rewards

Despite the considerable challenges associated with establishing and maintaining a fully functional culturally diverse working environment, enlightened organisations recognise the huge rewards to be reaped from diverting the time, energy and money in this direction. Indeed, research shows that the most diverse corporate organisations are consistently more profitable and successful than less diverse enterprises. Their superior performance may be derived from several ways in which culturally diverse organisations benefit.

It stands to reason that culturally diverse organisations have the opportunity to develop and maximise the skill sets of their personnel corps. People exhibit different skills and behaviours, and learn from each other. Furthermore, they tend to enjoy a far higher level of employee engagement and collaboration, simply because people are motivated by feeling appreciated and celebrated for their contribution towards the ultimate business objectives. Given the diversity of their talent, knowledge, experiential and perspective mix, enhanced levels of creativity and innovation are applied towards addressing the problems and challenges of the organisation.

Companies that celebrate cultural diversity in a sincere and authentic way quickly become known locally and globally for that aspect of their business, and it brings considerable rewards in terms of brand reputation. And with a positive brand reputation comes reduced staff turnover, and the ability to attract and retain talent of the required calibre. From a broader business perspective, an appealing brand also makes it much easier to attract investment and community support.

The competitive edge

Considering the huge business advantage to be gained from investing in meaningful, sincere and authentic workplace cultural diversity, the dedicated and long-term effort that it demands may seem like a small price to pay. Patience, persistence and allowing the process to grow organically seems like a good way to go!