Diversity Training

1. Definition of Diversity Training

Nowadays every organization is facing differences issues : cultural, religious, gender, sexual orientations issues, age problems. Employees must be prepared to face this kind of issue and that’s what is meant by “diversity training”. Everything that has an impact on differences must be treated in diversity training programs. There is not ONE SPECIFIC program concerning “diversity training” i.e. many actions can be done to avoid discrimination and to understand other cultures.

2. The diversity training model : Why, What, How

a. The diversity training model

 See Appendix 1

b. The explanation of this model

WHY

- moral imperative

Multiculturalism is part of a business daily life : you can’t run your business effectively if your staff is working individually and doesn’t take into account differences. Nowadays it is imperative to understand and adapt to every culture.

- legal / social pressures

Sometimes discrimination can lead to lawsuits and some actions must be done to avoid discrimination: Affirmative Action, Quotas, addressing sexual harassment, bullying harassment, accession to people who have disabilities…Your business must respect those actions.

- business success and competitiveness

This aspect is related to the fact that understanding customers and suppliers leads a company to success. And, as customers, partners and/or suppliers can be international, the whole company must understand them. This is due to globalization and if your firm is doing diversity training programs it will be an advantage compared to competitors: it can increase productivity and capacity to deal with changes.

WHAT

As there are several kinds of situations concerning diversity inside a company, diversity programs differ from one to another. For instance companies would like to:

- improve outreach with emerging markets

- design an employee diversity training program for a very large client with a unique organizational culture

- increase sales through an involvement of every employees

So the company has to focus on: orientation, level of change (is it for individuals, for the whole company, for managers only,…), objectives and positioning.

HOW

There are specific methods of training depending on individuals, nationality, company culture and targets, the trainer, the duration.

Examples:

From the cultural relativity of training techniques: in Venezuela, people prefer lecture as a way to train people; meanwhile in Argentina there are more discussion groups; in Israel, they prefer role plays, etc.

Cingular Wireless (an American company counting 25,000+ employees) has implemented, thanks to experts, an e-learning program accessible on demand 24-7 by individuals, groups or a whole department.

3. Pro’s and Con’s of Diversity Training Programs

ADVANTAGES

For the company

• To avoid every kind of lawsuits and discrimination

• Motivates employees

• Better knowledge of employees