INTRODUCTION

Today, at the beginning of the 21st century, the world is submerged in a wide range
of demographic trends which have the potential to radically change the
demographic, cultural and ethical mixture of the population in many countries
within just a few decades.
Top managers often say that their company's people are its most important asset. In
a tight job maret and a global economy a company that puts people !rst "
regardless of their race, religion, gender, age, sexual preference, or physical
disability " wins.
#ompanies, especially big multinational players which have to deal with these
changes, are growingly forced to react. $mployees, once a homogenous group in
many countries, are increasingly diverse and need to be integrated within and into
woring environments. %iversity can present an immense source of opportunities
but it can also mean the opposite, a big threat.
%iversity management is a managerial approach in response to these trends and
can help companies to e&ectively and e'ciently manage their personnel diversity,
i.e. personnel made up of diverse and multifaceted people. The text argues that a
diverse worforce can be regarded as an instrument of sales promotion, a
mareting tool to induce customers to buy certain products or services.
To be successful at creating worforce diversity program involves attracting and
retaining the highest (uality individuals in the talent pool. )or the *+ professional it
means looing beyond obvious recruitment methods and venues for good people,
then learning how to manage human potential sensitively. It re(uires an ever"
increasing awareness of how people from di&erent bacgrounds deal with authority,
communication, overall business eti(uette, and relate to their communities of
a'liation.
,romoting worforce diversity is a process that taes place in many stages and on
many levels. It re(uires *+ professionals !rst to recruit a competent and (uali!ed
sta&, then to accommodate individual needs within the context of the wor team
and the organi-ation.
In today's world of cultural diversity, our business can't thrive unless we implement
a worforce diversity initiative. .esides tapping into the uni(ue abilities and talents
of people from di&erent bacgrounds, we can improve our image in the community
by opening up a place of business to anyone regardless of race, color, gender,
ethnicity, sexual orientation and disability.
In trying to understand just exactly what "diversity management" is, consider the following set of
assumptions and belief systems about diversity that have more to do with human behavior than
they do race, gender or age. These underlying principles are inherent to diversity work:
. !iversity is about each person coming to terms with his or her attitudes, beliefs, and
expectations about others and gaining comfort with differentness.
". !iversity is big enough to include everyone#young and old, homeless and affluent,
immigrant and native, white and black#.and goes beyond race and gender.
$. %o one is or should be the target for blame for current or past ine&uities. 'll human
beings have been sociali(ed to behave in certain ways, and all of us are at times both
perpetrators and victims of discrimination and stereotypes.
). *uman beings are ethnocentric + they see the world through their own narrow view and
judge the world by what is familiar to them.
,. The human species resists change, continually striving for a state of homeostasis. This
makes the constant adaptation re&uired for diversity difficult for people already
overwhelmed by staggering transitions in today-s organi(ations
.. *uman beings find comfort and trust in likeness. There is a tendency to seek the
company of those most similar to ourselves.
/. It is difficult for people to share power0 history shows that it is rarely done voluntarily
and without a reason that will somehow benefit those dominating the pool of wealth