1. MANAGING DIVERSITY
Diverse workforce has become a reality as more and
more firms move from domestic strategies as truly global
firms. It is the co-existence of people from various socio-
cultural backgrounds within the company. The
companies need to:
 Completely reshape the organisation to accommodate
broader viewpoints.
 Learn form people they serve.
 Enable employees from different backgrounds to
pursue their career with freedom.
 Redefine their missions and practices to meet the needs
of diverse body of individuals.

2. Diverse workforce has the following benefits:
 Hiring minorities helps them to tap these niche markets
 it is a social and moral imperative
 enhances creativity and innovation
 helps to better decisions through wider perspectives
 helps to enter international arena
 adds flexibility and rapid response to change

3. Diverse workforce has the following drawbacks:
 Difficulty in communication
 increases complexity and confusion
 difficulty in taking decisions
 difficulty in concluding unanimously
 difficulty in developing overall procedures

4. Hofstede’s dimensions of difference:
• Individualism/collectivism: It implies a loosely knit
network where people focus primarily on themselves
and their immediate family only. Collectivism refers to
tendency of people to belong to groups and to look
after each other. Such people have less support for
individual initiative.
• Power Distance: It refers to the extent to which less
powerful employees accept an unequal distribution of
power. High power distance people accept the
centralization of decision making authority whereas low
power distance people tend to bypass the hierarchy
and the decision making is decentralised.

5. •Uncertainty avoidance: It refers to the extent to
which managers and employees feel threatened by
ambiguity and avoid such situations. They prefer
greater career stability, establishing more formal rules.
•Masculinity/feminity: Values in masculine societies
are money and things whereas the feminist societies
value people, have concern for others and quality of life.

6. STRATEGIES FOR MANAGING
DIVERSITY
Ignore cultural differences: Managers follow a
parochial approach. They believe that “our way is the
only way”. They do not see an impact of cultural
diversity on managing organisations.
Minimise differences: Managers follow an
ethnocentric approach. They believe that “ our way is
the best way”. They consider other’s way inferior to their
way. They do not try to benefit from the advantages of
other culturals. They generally prefer culturally
homogeneous workforce.

7.  Managing differences: They follow a synergistic
approach. They believe in “our way and their way differ,
but neither is superior to the other”. They give complete
freedom to other cultures. They encash the advantages
of others by applying other’s techniques to their business.

8. Importance of managing diversity:
 Enhances efficiency and lowers cost
 Better staffing
 Marketing advantage
 easy solutions to problem