What exactly is “diversity”?

In its broadest sense, diversity is about recognising and valuing differences. In an organisational sense it is about creating a working culture and practices that recognise, respect, value and harness difference for the benefit of the individual and the organisation.

What is the difference between diversity and equal opportunities?

Diversity and Equal Opportunities both centre on making the idea of equality real in our organisations. They are closely related, and I would add entirely dependent on the other to be truly successful. However, there are some important differences.

Equal Opportunities aims to identify and protect groups who are regularly or historically denied equal rights, based on race, sex, or physical ability for example, by focusing on removing bias, prejudice and stereotyping in the workplace. Organisations must comply with legislation and amend their policies as and when new legislation is passed (e.g. the Sexual Orientation Regulations and the Religion or Belief Regulations that came into effect in December 2003) and so must REACT to outside influences.

Diversity embraces visible and invisible differences from the start, without outside intervention. It is about recognising and valuing that each individual has their own appearance, identity, abilities and history without needing to be identified as part of a group. As a holistic strategy, it also does not need to be constantly re-worked.

It is really a question of approach. The legal implications of equal opportunities are invaluable - diversity should not be a watering down of what has been fought hard for.  However, it allows organisations to adjust to thinking about creating a work environment that is mindful and sensitive to the needs and rights of all individuals.

"Benefiting from diversity is the ‘end’ and equal opportunity policies and processes are one of the ‘means’." - Linbert Spencer, Diversity UK

But is diversity really necessary?

The UK population is changing fast. “Social Trends” published every year by The Stationary Office, suggest the following: -

• People are living longer
• the number of people over pensionable age is projected to increase from 10.7 million in 1998 to 11.9 million in 2011, and will rise to 12.2 million by 2021.
• We are an increasingly ethnically diverse society
• the  ethnic minority population will be 10% of the population by 2030, and is currently 6%.
• the number of employed people has increased - and women will account for 1.3 million of the projected increase of 1.6 million in the UK workforce by 2006.
• the number of people getting married is falling -  almost 30% of households are made up of one person living alone, and one quarter of all families are one-parent families.
• Increasing recognition of differences in sexuality - commercial studies estimate up to 12% of the population is gay or lesbian, and transsexualism affects an estimated 5,000 people in the UK.
• The UK is increasingly a multi-faith society - membership of Christian churches continues to fall, while other religions are increasing, most notably the Muslim religious community has more than doubled in size to 1.2 million people since 1980.

These key facts give reason and cause to valuing diversity. Indeed the driving force behind introducing diversity management policies is seen as the ‘business case’. If the ‘public face’ of an organisation reflects that diverse public, then individuals will more easily identify with it. This applies equally to social and commercial enterprises: In a marketplace where knowledge and intellectual capital cannot be bounded by factors that exclude potential employees, customers and stakeholders diversity cannot be ignored. The model suggests that “A diverse workforce will result in more focused marketing, greater creativity and decision making and happier staff who stay longer and benefit from organisational opportunities."

"The whole diversity movement is about becoming better equipped to deal with today’s business challenges: getting close to customers, picking the best talent in the most objective way, acting in a way that is socially responsible and making organisational cultures more inclusive” - ‘It takes all sorts’, Human Resources, March 1999

DIVERISTY IN PRACTICE

How does diversity translate to the workplace?

Some guiding principles could be:-

• Expect to be respected and valued in the workplace   for who you are and what you contribute because of your age, disability, gender, race, religion, sexual orientation - in fact regardless of anything to do with what you look like, what your background is or how  you operate. 
• All that is important is the contribution that you make.
• Everyone should be valued as in individual and not as  a member of a group.
• Everyone should be themselves and seek to be successful as themselves rather than conforming to a mould.
• A truly diverse team or workforce is one where every  member of staff, whatever they look like and however they operate, maximise their potential and value.

If we accept then, that diversity is the ideal, how do we go about putting it into practice?

If diversity is to become a business issue, organisations must have a clear vision of what it intends to achieve and why their vision is important in the management of a Diversity Culture. Therefore, developing a diversity strategy specific to your organisation is the first vital step. It should ideally include: 

• the specific organisational context for diversity,
• the strategic aims and objectives,
• suitable measures for evaluation.

Effective management of diversity cannot be achieved by one off training sessions, or focusing on single issues, it has to be embraced and owned by the whole organisation. It is also not simply a human resources issue. Diversity challenges us to look at not only who we do business for, but how and why we do that business.

“Without any doubt diversity is a leadership matter. When it comes to managing peoplle it depends upon the ethos , values and objectives the head of a business or public servant departnment wishes to uphold and promote. Leadership priorities [become] workers priorities” - Elaine Sihera, Managing the Diversity Maze, 2002