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TPM
18,7/8 Managing the diversified team:
challenges and strategies for
improving performance
384
Vidhi Agrawal
Ajay Kumar Garg Institute of Management, Ghaziabad, India

Abstract
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to highlight the important factors which need to be taken into
consideration to manage a diversified team. It also aims to provide business managers and executives
with a framework of how to best utilize and implement teams in the workplace so as to maximize both
internal and external diversified skill sets and capabilities in team members.
Design/methodology/approach – An extensive review of existing literature was done to form the
views of the authors on the issue. A strengths, weaknesses, oppositions, threats (SWOT) analysis of
diversified teams was done with the help of secondary research. The concept is based on the author’s
own practical experience. A combination of primary and secondary research was used to highlight and
strengthen the author views and opinions. The original ideas and basic concepts are based on the
author’s own experiences.
Findings – The study found the maximum benefits of a diversified team. The findings show that
effective teamwork requires members to recognize the team as a unit with common goals, values, and
norms. The more that team members identify with each other, the more likely they are to believe they
hold similar goals.
Research limitations/implications – The paper is an attempt to express the real organizational
scenario which is based on a sample of 20 corporate executives who dealt with a similar issue. The
industries selected were in Delhi – NCR. There is reason to believe that if study had to be done in some
other parts of the county, results may have been different. The sample taken was not very big, and was
also non-random. A large sample may have different results.
Practical implications – The study includes an extensive analysis of the organizational diversity
and its impact on the performance of the organizations. This may help business practitioners to
encourage diversity in the workplace while improving teamwork, communication and cooperation
among team members.
Originality/value – The paper highlights the different attributes of a diversified team. With the help
of primary research and well-supported secondary research, a good attempt is made to trace the four
corners of leading a diversified team. It can help future managers to guide a diversified team for good
team performance.
Keywords Team performance, Diversity, SWOT analysis, Skills, India
Paper type Research paper

Team Performance Management
Vol. 18 No. 7/8, 2012
pp. 384-400
q Emerald Group Publishing Limited
1352-7592
DOI 10.1108/13527591211281129
Introduction
Global diversity is changing the way the world is populated and the way we view the
world. Whether a company is global or not, global diversity is evident and it impacts
all of us either directly or indirectly. Cross-cultural teamwork and collaboration are
essential for an organization to succeed. If people are to function productively, they
must learn to see their differences as assets, rather than as liabilities (Black Enterprise,
2001). The labels we apply are far less important than what they represent. Diversity
management, while based on cultural change, is a pragmatic business strategy that
focuses on maximizing the productivity, creativity, and commitment of the workforce, Managing the
while meeting the needs of diverse consumer groups (Black Enterprise, 2001). diversified team
Affirmative Action focuses on getting people into an organization rather than
changing organizational culture (Black Enterprise, 2001).
As we entered in the twenty-first century, more companies are formally linking
diversity to their strategic business plans. They were developing diversity strategic
plans that addressed both short-term and long-term diversity issues, more diversity 385
accountability guidelines for managers were established; quantitative and qualitative
diversity performance measures were developed; numbers of women and people of
color in management positions increased; diversity strategies were approached in the
same way as other business strategies; and diversity mission statements were
established.
“For successful businesses, diversity is much more than a buzzword or the ‘right
thing to do.’ In thriving companies throughout the world, diversity is an essential tool
that creates a competitive edge in today’s marketplace” (www.DiversityInc.com,
January 2001, USA).
In simple terms, diversity is “otherness,” or those human qualities that are different
from our own and outside the groups in which we belong (University of Southern
California, 2004). There are various qualities that differentiate one individual from the
next. (Stoller and Gibson (as cited in University of Southern California, 2004) Webster’s
Dictionary defines diversity as: differing from one another and having distinct or
unlike elements or qualities (Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, n.d.). In the
workplace, this means the diversity among people related to such factors as age,
culture, education, employee status, family status, gender, national origin, physical
appearance, race, regional origin, religion, sexual orientation, and thinking style
(ASME, n.d.).
Tomervik, as quoted in Wentling (2001, p. 3) identified four basic themes related to
the definition of diversity:
(1) The diversity concept includes a broad range of differences in the work force:
age, disability, education levels, ethnicity, family structure, function,
geographic location, race, religion, sexual orientation, style, and values.
Definitions are extremely broad and all inclusive.
(2) The meaningful aspects of diversity are how it affects the individual and the
organization.
(3) The broadened definition of diversity requires a culture change within
organizations. Work force diversity necessitates changes in management styles,
human resource systems, philosophies, and approaches.
(4) There is an emphasis on communicating a concept of diversity as more than
race, gender, affirmative action and equal employment opportunity.

Importance of diversity management for the organization

In thriving companies throughout the world, diversity is an essential tool that creates a
competitive edge in today’s marketplace. As previously discussed, organizations enjoy
numerous benefits when employing diversity management. Working at a place where
human resources are equally treated, persons have high motivation to work and are
TPM likely to live longer, which ultimately reduces costs, such as training and development.
18,7/8 It encourages the organization to have the manpower recruited more liberally.
The introduction of different voices with different perspectives, backgrounds,
priorities and orientations helps companies identify business opportunities and help
them succeed in new markets as well. There have been many reasons which are cited
as contributing to the surfacing of Diversity Management in organizations. A few of
386 them are: Demographic changes in the labor force, a turn to social conservatism,
globalization and restructuring of work. For successful businesses, diversity is much
more than a buzzword or the “right thing to do.” Opinions of a culturally diverse
workforce can lead to higher quality decisions (Cox, 1994; McLeod et al., 1996). Diverse
teams can boost performance because they are more likely to have access to the
breadth of information necessary to solve complex problems (Leonard et al., 2004).
Companies which incorporate employees’ diverse perspectives to rethink primary
tasks and redefine markets, products, strategies, missions, business practices, and
even cultures are tapping diversity’s true benefits by making more creative and better
decisions (Jackson, 1992; Thomas and Ely, 1996).

Motivation of study and research questions

Over the past 15 years, “diversity management” has gradually become an established
part of the world of business in India, especially among a small, but growing, group of
large Indian companies.. With “diversity management”, CEOs usually declare their
commitment to diversity and establish “diversity development centers”. The managers
and support staff of these centers are forming study groups, such as CDG (Culturally
Diverse Groups), where they are learning from each other in social environments about
the various ways to implement “diversity initiatives”. These organizations have set up
working groups to look into diversity management.
Symposiums, hosted by organizations and management associations, have
encouraged wider discussion about diversity and what it means for companies in
India. Some non-profit organizations and business consultants are working with
companies to help set up diversity initiatives and also to help with educating
employees about the diversity. Finally, both businesses and mass media are reporting
about corporate diversity activities and are conducting an ongoing series of interviews
with diversity managers to report on their experiences.
Although we can read and hear about the gradual diffusion of diversity
management in India, there is a dearth of analytical investigation of what is taking
place in the field. The motivation for my study comes from wanting to gain a more
critical sense of diversity management in India. It means wanting to try to understand
how diversity managers and other agents are conceptualizing diversity management
and its relation to how diversity initiatives are being implemented and the “take” of
outcomes of such activities in two different sectors – Manufacturing and Services.
Author believes that there are different needs of diversity management in these two
sectors.
It is an attempt to work from the ground up; taking the literature review from the
different studies conducted and highlighting the same issues. It is to build an analytical
model of how the managers construct their reality or meaning of diversity
management and its implementation.
Guiding this analytical investigation are two main questions:
 (1) How do Indian’s top company managers and diversity managers conceptualize Managing the
diversity management? diversified team
(2) How is diversity management being implemented and what are the outcomes of
such efforts?

Diversity in the organizational context – SWOT analysis 387

Several scholars claim that diversity as a topic of organizational studies first emerged
in the US (e.g. Ashkanasy et al., 2002; Ivancevich and Gilbert, 2000; Janssens and
Zanoni, 2005; Kelly and Dobbin, 1998; Lorbiecki and Jack, 2000; Lorbiecki, 2001; Lynch,
1997; Nkomo and Cox, 1996; Prasad and Mills, 1997; Pringle and Scowcroft, 1996;
Zanoni and Janssens, 2004).
Diversity brings thoughts, feelings and cultural knowledge that can benefit
operations, decision making, marketing, culture-building, hiring, firing and just about
everything that a business does.
According to Cox and Blake, retrieved from Wentling (2001, pp. 45-56), companies
that learn how to manage diversity acquire a competitive advantage over companies
that do not know how to deal with diversity. Triandis et al. (1994) found that sound
management of diversity has a positive effect on organizational strategic goals,
objectives and bottom line.
In the globalised organizational scenario, it is very common to have diversified
manpower in terms of culture, language, knowledge, nationality, etc. As a primary
source of production and performance impact, our economy has shifted from physical
to intellectual capital which comes in all colors, backgrounds, genders, orientations,
thinking styles, and so on and as a result senior diversity managers are increasingly
coming under fire to demonstrate exactly how they are helping the organization
organize, utilize and document their critically significant organizational asset to create
performance and value (Hubbard, 2004).
Diversity is one of the aspects which extend the benefits of diversity’s exposure to
organizations; on the other hand diversity is in the shape of challenges managers have
to face in controlling and directing the team members. The concept of diversity has
multiple dimensions (McGrath et al., 1995). Executives and other organizational
personnel are now beginning to realize the importance and benefits of calculating the
impact of perceived intangible human assets in today’s marketplace (Von Eron, 1995).
Businesses today need to better understand other cultures and varied ages, genders,
and lifestyles. As individuals, we also need to be acutely aware of possible offenses
against others. Valuing diversity shows what creates racial, cultural, sexual, physical,
mental, and verbal misunderstandings and gives us the tools to prevent these
misunderstandings
Gordon (1992) reports that 82 percent of companies with 100 or more employees use
teams. Lawler et al. (1995) found that there was more than a doubling between 1987
and 1993 in the percentage of Fortune 1000 companies reporting the use of
self-managing teams (from 28 percent to 68 percent). The premise motivating the
growing use of teams is that they provide an efficient and flexible way to coordinate
production requiring a diversity of skills, talents, and information.
An increasingly common feature of the workplace is the degree of diversity in the
workforce. The concept of diversity has multiple dimensions (McGrath et al., 1995).
TPM Strength
18,7/8 Diversity is essential for companies to survive and thrive in today’s competitive
business environment. The introduction of different voices with different perspectives,
backgrounds, priorities and orientations, helps companies identify opportunities and
succeed in new markets. Workplace diversity is no longer only about
anti-discrimination compliance. It now focuses on both inclusion and the impact on
388 the company’s bottom line. Leveraging workplace diversity is now seen as a critical
strategic resource for establishing a competitive advantage. Companies are beginning
to link workplace diversity to both their long-range and immediate strategic goals and
objectives and they are holding management accountable for the results (Lockwood,
2005).
Many reasons can be given for the value of diversity within corporations. Because
most multinational corporations must adopt a polycentric or geocentric approach for
breaking through the formidable cultural barriers of, for example, the Asian, Arabian
and/or Latin American worlds, having representatives from the targeted countries on
their business team is critical. How can companies market to overseas countries if they
do not have representatives from those countries on their planning teams? Further, an
appreciation of different cultures, ages, genders, nationalities and lifestyles creates a
more supportive work environment.
Diversification provides an increased awareness of global opportunities, a more
cogent approach to problem identification/solution and a check on the insidious effects
of “groupthink” (Esser, 1998; Larkey, 1996; Milliken and Martins, 1996; Moorhead et al.,
1998; Watson et al., 1996).
If the team, in addition to the essential elements, has members with diverse
backgrounds and skill sets, an even higher level of performance can be achieved and
the likelihood of producing breakthrough innovations increases. Due to differences in
skills and backgrounds, the team members are more likely to look at a project or
problem from different points of view. This will lead to more out of the box thinking,
which in turn will lead to breakthrough innovations. In a study on more than 17,000
patents, Fleming (2004) shows that breakthrough innovations are more likely to arise
out of teams made up of people from very diverse disciplines.
Organizations want a wider range of leadership skills, work styles, perspectives,
and expertise. Opinions of a culturally diverse workforce can lead to higher quality
decisions (Cox, 1994; McLeod et al., 1996). Diverse teams can boost performance
because they are more likely to have access to the breadth of information necessary to
solve complex problems (Leonard et al., 2004). In groups with high levels of cultural
heterogeneity, casual social contacts and communication are more likely to involve
members of different racial/gender groups (Richard et al., 2004).
“Companies which incorporate employees’ diverse perspectives to rethink primary
tasks and redefine markets, products, strategies, missions, business practices, and
even cultures are tapping diversity’s true benefits by making more creative and better
decisions” (Jackson, 1992; Thomas and Ely, 1996).

Weaknesses
Prior researches have found negative effects (Murray, 1989) or no effects (Michel and
Hambrick, 1992) of team diversity on organizational performance. Indeed, diversity
might be a double edge sword, enhancing a firm’s action propensity and its action and
response magnitudes, potentially benefiting company performance (Chen and Managing the
MacMillan, 1992). On the other hand, diversity might reduce the firm’s speed, both diversified team
in acting and responding, possibly leading to lower performance (Eisenhardt, 1989;
Chen and MacMillan, 1992) less integration (O’Reilly et al., 1989), and more turnover
and dissatisfaction (Jackson et al., 1991; Wagner et al., 1984). Some scholars have
concluded that diversity may be good for group performance while at the same time it
is bad for interpersonal relations and attitudes toward the work group (e.g. Triandis 389
et al., 1994).
Where there is high diversity, teams enter into debate due to their different
perceptions of the strategic environment and the range of possible strategic options.
Rather than accepting existing strategies and routine ways of operating, diverse teams
are liable to engage in conflict, fueled by their different perspectives. By contrast,
teams with low diversity have more common perceptions of the competitive
environment, generate fewer strategic options, and are prone to regenerating existing
strategies. Such teams are prone to competency traps and performance declines,
whereas team members that challenge each other’s assumptions can develop more
comprehensive, broadly framed strategies (Wiersema and Bantel, 1992) and
better-justified decisions (Schwenk, 1984). This type of conflict is based around the
strategy-making task and is termed a “productive” or “task” conflict because it
broadens the strategic arena and improves the strategy-making process.

Opportunities
It is well proved that the organizations which know how to deal with diversity could
get the competitive advantage over those who do not. Team diversity may permit
greater productivity than could be achieved by individual effort. The leaders across the
globe have started to recognize the importance of diversity issues at the workplace.
Companies increasingly use cross-functional and cross-cultural teams to master the
dual demands of creativity and operational efficiency (Randel and Jaussi, 2003; Zhang
et al., 2007). Besides their cultural diversity, this team set-up often entails team
members also being physically dispersed, substituting direct communication with
computer-mediated communication (Lovelace et al., 2001). Management’s role is to help
create and empower an organizational culture that fosters a respectful, inclusive,
knowledge-based environment where each employee has the opportunity to learn,
grow and meaningfully contribute to the organization’s success (Lockwood, 2005).
As no one individual is likely to possess the full complement of task-related
characteristics necessary to achieve the desired goals, team diversity may permit
greater productivity than could be achieved by individual effort.
A team whose members have diverse skills and orientations can be more creative
and nimble in strategic problem solving (Dutton and Duncan, 1987), less susceptible to
“groupthink” (Bantel and Jackson, 1989; Jackson, 1992), and perhaps more likely to
overcome their domestic myopia (Barkema and Vermeulen, 1998). Moreover, such
diversity can build trust and perceptions of procedural justice among a firms’ product
and geographic unit managers by signaling that a team or board takes competing
interests into account when allocating resources internationally (Kim and Mauborgne,
1991). Teams that are socio-cognitively complex may be better equipped to make sense
of the changing international market opportunities and to “reconcile the conflicts and
paradoxes” presented by internationalization (Murtha et al., 1998, p. 112).
TPM Within the information/decision-making perspective, Walsh (1995) suggests that
18,7/8 managers’ mental models will most likely influence the decisions they make. Diverse
groups are more likely to possess a wider range of task-relevant knowledge, skills and
abilities. Diversity might also inspire more creative and innovative group performance.
An internationalization process deals with global markets where diversity is a reality
most of the time. Thus, diversity at the board and team level could serve to: better
390 understand the complexities of different global markets; signal employees, customers,
suppliers and authorities that the firm is making a serious effort to understand new
markets and that distinct backgrounds are customary at the highest levels of the
organization; assure investors and other stakeholders that the firm is drawing
candidates from larger resource pools; diminish the level of uncertainty that the
international arena poses; improve decision making capability of both the board and the
team. This is done through better access to a wider set of information and perspectives.
An interview with the President and the CEO of Lucent Technologies Canada,
underscored the significance of integrating diversity with innovativeness (Innoversity
Network, 2000). The content of the interview suggests how Lucent Technologies is
leveraging diversity to further enhance innovativeness. Diversity is a valuable asset to
Lucent Technologies. They use it as a springboard, drawing on multiple perspectives
to nurture an innovative culture in facilitating development of innovative products.
Indra Nooyi, the current CEO of PepsiCo, once argued: “Great ideas still come from
people”. The challenge is to create the right environment to encourage innovation and
ideas. The diversity of people in a corporation promotes innovation because it achieves
greater diversity of ideas. There is a link between diversity and innovation that is not
theoretical – it is real (Walkup, 2003, p. 97). The diversity increases creativity and
innovation. If an organization has a diverse workforce, it has a broader range of
knowledge, heuristics and perspectives which strengthens the toolbox that a group can
work with and solve problems.

Threats
Diversity can enhance business performance; however, if it is not properly managed or
left to glide along without close attention, it is possible that it may produce higher
turnover, conflict, miscommunication or other unintentional consequences. The causes
of such problems are deep, with no easy solutions.
Diversity introduces manpower with different thoughts, cultures and ideas, which
can benefit the organization in multiple ways. Team members may be of different sexes,
racial groups, or ethnic, social, or cultural backgrounds. Owing to the very nature of
heterogeneous teams, which are made up of diverse individuals, challenges not present
in homogeneous teams are introduced. Polzer (2008) argues that diverse teams “are prone
to dysfunction because the very differences that feed creativity and high performance
can also create communication barriers”. Similarly, Mello and Ruckes (2006) suggest that
members of heterogeneous teams are more likely to diverge in their preferences with
respect to courses of action, which will lead to lower effort. Fleming’s (2004) study on
patents indicates that innovations from heterogeneous teams are, on average, of lower
financial value than those coming from homogenous teams.
Members of a team that is heterogeneous with respect to social categories may find
it difficult to integrate their diverse backgrounds, values, and norms and work together
( Jehn et al., 1999). Effective teamwork requires members to recognize the team as a unit
with common goals, values, and norms (Lembke and Wilson, 1998). The efficient Managing the
management of diversity in the organization has the effect on its goals and diversified team
achievements. One of the strongest reasons, apart from achievement, is the adhering of
the law of the state where the organization is working. The law has provisions to deal
with the diversity issue in the organization. Managers are responsible for the
management of diversified manpower and accountable for the employee development,
productivity and conflict resolutions in the organizations. 391
Methodology
The purpose of this paper is to briefly outline the preliminary approach used in
research to understand how diversity managers in India conceptualize diversity and
diversity management to form a basis to investigate how this conceptualization is
being implemented in the company and the outcomes of such efforts. The description
of this “research framework” focuses specifically on the first stages to gather and
analyze data sets made up of interview transcripts with Indian managers responsible
for diversity management in their company.
In order to attain more detailed and reflective information, this study applied
qualitative approach using face-to-face interviews. Data were collected from
20 corporate executives who were leading a diversified team.
The focus of the study was to find interviewees who have a good experience in
handling a diverse workforce. For the meeting, the purposive sampling technique was
applied. This technique is appropriate when the random sample is not sufficient to find
out the required results.
The sample was taken of those managers who have a particular attributes,
e.g. experience in handling the diverse work force. To make study more purposive and
quicker the technique of snowballing was applied. Under the technique of snowballing,
the interviewees are asked to give references if they know somebody else who can be
helpful to the study and can be contacted for an interview. Although snowball
sampling or networking is often associated with qualitative research, this sampling
method was found to be useful during the quantitative phase of the research, as
employees who had been contacted to participate in the survey, had inadvertently
passed the questionnaire onto individuals within the institution who met the sample
criteria.
This way researchers get help and they do not need to prove the authenticity of their
research repeatedly. Apart from that, interviews in successions were added which help
to get the novel ideas of the interviewees from the point onwards where the previous
interview has finished. As pointed out in earlier paragraphs, the sample was
non-random due to nature of the study. Therefore it does not show the actual age
distribution in the industry.
Interviews were conducted on the executives who were associated with the
industries in National Capital Region, Delhi. The companies were based in Delhi –
NCR (capital of India). As it was important to find interviewees who had experience in
managing diverse workforces, purposive sampling was used. Purposive sampling was
used to make the study more meaningful, as random sampling was not useful in this
case.
The study has used an unstructured interview technique as the structured interview
was not possible in this case. The interviewees were first selected through references so
TPM that researchers could have set a proper time to discuss issues with them. The
18,7/8 interviewees were contacted through telephone first before they were visited at their
offices. It helps the researcher to get exclusive time with the executives to discuss the
issues at length.

Analysis and results

392 This is a big question for the managers today: how to manage a diverse workforce?
Also, what kind of skills are require to manage the diverse workforce and how they
perceive and handle the different issues that arise from having diverse manpower.
Individuals are more attracted to similar persons. As a consequence, people in teams
are more willing to collaborate with others similar to themselves and, as a result,
interact more smoothly with these persons, rendering homogeneity more conducive to
group performance than diversity. Differences between team members may be
associated with valuable task-relevant differences in knowledge, expertise, and
perspectives, which may expand the available information in diverse teams.
Management’s role is to help create and empower an organizational culture that
fosters a respectful, inclusive, knowledge-based environment where each employee has
the opportunity to learn, grow and meaningfully contribute to the organization’s
success (Lockwood, 2005).

Leading a diverse team

Managers of organizations have an important role to play in understanding the vision
of the organization and achieving it with the help of professional and other staff who
are working in their leadership. Another aspect of the managers’ responsibility is
communicating the vision of management to the team and motivating them to achieve
that vision. As far as the area of diversity is concerned, the vision and responsibility of
managers should relate to articulation of a rationale that is persuasive, nurturing
recruitment and promoting services and ultimately to create an organizational climate
that is conducive for organizational success.
In a diversity scenario, managers have to face a wide range of societal,
organizational and professional issues which act as hindrances to the achievement of
organizational goals. The managers should be prompt to recognize the diversity issues
in the organization and summarily categories them as per race, ethnicity, gender and
sexual orientation, rather than being emotionally laden, which makes it difficult to
discuss the issues more rationally.
Diversity management efforts should be an ongoing process in the organization.
The managers should aim to give the free space where the capability of committed and
talented manpower can be used for both the organization and the community. The
conducive environment within the organization should foster the trust and belief
among the manpower where each and every one could share and discuss for their
differences. This wholesome environment should give them inspiration to celebrate
diversity, instead of rejecting it. Exploring the full potential of having cultural
differences in the workplace will benefit all.
One of the important parts of diversity management is the Multiculturalism. It is
useful in managing diversity effectively in the age of cultural pluralism. Under the
process of managing with Multiculturalism, there should be an inclusion of all cultures
at one place. The art of managing diversity should be exercised by the managers in an
inclusive mode where no one should be left out. Managers should avoid giving Managing the
advancement to one group and leaving others in isolation. The tendency of diversified team
discouraging someone because of biological, political, cultural and socio-economic
issues should be avoided and controlled.
The purpose of adopting multiculturalism should be to avoid bashism. Under
bashism, persons are treated negatively by others on the basis of socio-economic
differences like gender, age, race/ethnicity, class, education, values, religion, affiliation 393
etc. The motivating factor for bashism is fear, arising out of ignorance of others. The
managers should not ignore, but acknowledge, the contributions made by team
members by discouraging the factor of bashism.
The effective management of diversity includes, empowers and benefits all persons
concerned and is instrumental in organizations’ success. Managers should discourage
the abuse of power by certain groups. The people who are instrumental in the
organization should be given proper regard. They should be given chances to participate
in the management based on their contributions in the organization’s success.

Analysis
The interviews were divided into two parts – one for those who were working in the
manufacturing industries and another for those who were working in the service
industries. Manufacturing industries were selected in the field of health care (including
pharmaceuticals and biotechnology) as it is the most popular industry among diverse
workforce. It is also the top preferred industry among freshers. The companies selected
were Johnson & Johnson, Jubilant Organosys and Dabur India Limited. Only industries
which were at least five years old were selected, as it can give better results. In the
service sector, the industries selected were in the area of telecommunication and
retailing. The industries selected in telecommunications were Bharti airtel limited,
Tata Telecom, Reliance Communications and in retail the company taken was future
group.
The samples were taken of 20 corporate executives representing the well
established industries in Delhi – NCR and were dealing with diverse workforce. The
industries selected had employees aged from 19 to 68. In all industries with an age span
from 19 to 60 þ , more than 20 percent of all employees were over the age of 35. The
sample was chosen for the reasons argued previously, thus providing access to
informants possessing relevant information. The interviewees were Human Resource
Executives who were responsible for Training and Development and were
instrumental in doing the job analysis.
The managers in the manufacturing industry were asked about their experience in
managing a diversified team. A few things which were common in the discussions
were that they agree that in the globalised era, a diversified team helps in achieving the
organizational objectives better than the non-diversified team. The interviewees
discussed the challenges in managing the diversified team. The majority of executives
were of the opinion that challenges, with regard to culture, are many. There are the
issues like language, style of working etc. which some time become difficult to
co-ordinate. But eventually there are many more benefits than there are problems. Most
of the issues can be settled amicably.
The managers in the service sector had few differences in opinions from their
counterparts. Compared to manufacturing industry, the turnover of diversified team is
TPM much more than in the service sector. They spoke about the extensive benefits of
18,7/8 having diverse teams in the service sector. Most of them have advocated a diverse team
in the service sector because of language and culture benefits.
All of the executives were involved in developing, implementing, or managing
strategies or programs related to diversity and inclusion for their companies’
workforce. Of the 11 (55 percent) respondents were from the Manufacturing sector and
394 nine (45 percent) were from the Service industry. The interviews not only reflected the
findings of the survey, but also provided a detailed look at how companies are using
diversity to work for them, and how a diverse and inclusive workforce is essential for
driving innovation and guiding business practices.
Senior executives are recognizing that a diverse set of experiences, perspectives, and
backgrounds is crucial to innovation and the development of new ideas. When asked
about the relationship between diversity and innovation, the majority of respondents
agreed that diversity is crucial in encouraging different perspectives and ideas that
foster innovation.
About a third from the service sector said that their companies have global
strategies that allow for minimal regional deviation, while half of the executives from
manufacturing sector said that their organizations have a global plan that also allows
for different strategies and programs in order to address regional needs or cultural
differences.
The managers were asked about how the distrust, lack of cooperation, and general
unwillingness to work with others created by social category diversity, could impact
performance and how it can be overcome. A total of 61 percent in the service sector and
65 percent in the manufacturing sector were of the opinion that the role of cultural
events, get-togethers and participation in the social events substantially helped to
overcome these problems.
A total of 53 percent from service sector and 55 percent from manufacturing sector
strongly agreed that diversity helps drive innovation. “Because of our diverse
workforce, we’ve experienced a boost in productivity.” Out of the survey, 60 percent
from the service sector and 64 percent from the manufacturing sector have programs in
place used specifically to recruit diverse employees.
More than half of the service sector interviewees (55 percent) had the policy of
recruiting the fresher’s from colleges having intake from diversified culture, while
60 percent of the interviews in the manufacturing sector were of the opinion that they
could recruit the fresher’s from the universities and colleges where they could find
diverse workforce. Out of the total executives surveyed each one agreed that their
organization have formal diversity and inclusion strategy in place.
The managers interviewed were asked about their company’s diversity and
inclusion priorities. A total of 49 percent in the service sector and 51 percent in the
manufacturing sector stated that retention and development of talent helped in
ensuring diversity in the workplace.
The managers were asked whether the training they receive at the workplace helps
them to deal with diversity of the workforce. A total of 54 percent in the service sector
and 59 percent in the manufacturing sector strongly agreed that the training received
at work enables them to deal with the diverse workforce.
The interviewees were asked about the importance of policies and procedures in
their organization in managing the diversified workforce. Around 53 percent in the
service sector and 59 percent in the manufacturing sector agreed that defined policies Managing the
and procedures help in controlling the diverse workforce. diversified team
The managers who had participated in the interviews were asked about what were
the perceived barriers and whether they enabled them to share knowledge with the
diversified colleagues. The purpose was to establish if the diversity climate would
feature as a barrier and/or an enabler, if it was not explicitly mentioned as such.
395
Discussion and conclusions
The analysis shows that the organization as represented by management can provide
the tools to assist employees in improving their work climate, in terms of diversity and
knowledge transfer. However, cognitive and behavioral change and the benefits to be
realized from such initiatives can only emanate from the individual. As such,
individuals need to align themselves to the broader organization goals in order to
realize their desired career outcomes. In terms of knowledge, sharing specifically,
employees can be proactive in building or joining informative networks such as CDG
(Culturally Diverse Groups) applied in the company.
Human Resource specialists should ensure that knowledge harvesting is conducted
in respect of individuals leaving the organization. This forms part of the knowledge –
sharing drive, as personal knowledge that such individuals have gained in the
organization – can be used for the benefit of others. From a Human Resource
perspective, it is important that all discussions with the diversity managers, in the
interviews reported, indicate discrimination on any level, as they need to be dealt with
in a manner that discourages this type of interaction.
Extensive literature has been researched indicating that businesses are sensitized to
the extent that a diverse workforce can extend their capabilities in terms of innovation
and sustained competitiveness, differences in culture and background and still be a
barrier to the sharing of tacit knowledge. Analysis shows that in either sector,
manufacturing or service, results are more or less are same.
The discussions made with the mangers dealing with the diverse workforce have
shown that if the maximum benefits are to be obtained from team production, it is
imperative that distrust, lack of cooperation, and general unwillingness to work with
others created by social category diversity be overcome. Effective teamwork requires
members to recognize the team as a unit with common goals, values, and norms
(Lembke and Wilson, 1998). The more that team members identify with one another,
the more likely they are to believe they hold similar goals, values, and norms, and the
more willing they will be to cooperate and work together as a team. An individual who
perceives himself as a member of a team is more likely to perceive the fate of the team
as their own (Ashforth and Mael, 1989).
With time, group members begin to share each other’s perspectives. arriving at
common understandings of the group tasks, something that diminishes diversity’s
tendency to trigger task conflict.
A team with dissimilar individuals and opinions need a leader that can guide the
group in a common and productive direction and align efforts. “A leader can be wrong
but not confusing”. It is the role of the team leader to delegate appropriately (Wee and
Morse, 2007), which means that he or she needs to know each team member’s
strengths, weaknesses, likes, and dislikes and the only way to achieve this is through
open communication.
TPM Managers should appraise the performance of their employees and, more
18,7/8 importantly, identify the individual’s potential for success in a more seasoned way.
Therefore, any differences in the way managers interpret, appraise and respond to the
performance of their subordinates should be eliminated. It is also essential to have fair
and effective processes in managing the diverse manpower and, at the same time,
organizations need to investigate which skills will create a more inclusive environment.
396 It can be understood in the context of the discussions that a productivity and
competitive advantage can be gained, through the utilization of the different skills of
diverse individuals. Managers can do it strategically.
Several key diversity competences can be used to develop greater awareness and
skills in managers. One of the most effective approaches is the establishment of the
resource centers where employees identify, analyze and experience the required
behaviors first hand through a series of meetings/role plays observed by coaches.
Clearly, it is important for organizations to commit to diversity, to review targets
and networks, and to find innovative ways of tackling bias. Even more critical to
success is training and development, both in building the skills of assessors and
encouraging managers to reflect on their own behavior. Without this missing link, it
will be difficult for organizations to effectively translate their policies, procedures and
targets into actions.
The workforce is not going to be limited to one culture or population, rather, it
should be made to include a multicultural and diverse population. The managers
should understand and, accordingly, prepare to face the multicultural and multilingual
communities in future. The future managers who have understood this scenario are
concerned with the strategy formulation used handle the related issues.
The art of managing diversity is thus a big challenge to future managers charged
with the responsibility of leading the diverse team. On the basis of the discussion made
with the interviewee, the team leaders should carefully evaluate their teams’ strengths
and weaknesses, so as to build on the strengths and facilitate improvement of weak
areas. Sometimes it will be necessary to modify the team’s structure by either
recruiting talent or removing weak links that hinder performance and productivity so
as to ensure that the appropriate competencies are present.
This paper concludes that managers in organizations need to operate at the micro
level by engaging members of their workforce in the development of policies. It will
create an environment of co-operation among the team members irrespective of what
the culture, age or language of the members may be. The future organizations should
create a conducive environment where the workforce have members of diverse
backgrounds and the members of these workforces should accommodate the views of
others and applaud genuinely.

Scope and further research

Diversity management in India represents an area that deserves analytical
investigation so that some sense can be made of what is going on. Initial studies in
India have introduced the European concept of diversity to India, but to make further
studies, interactions with the experienced Indian managers, employees and others
affected by diversity in the field are required. In this paper, the researcher has
attempted to outline a methodology and to use methods that aim to bring about new
understanding of diversity management in the context of Indian Industries. The
approach is bottom up; concepts and theories are built up from the differing Managing the
constructed realities of people in the field. In order to do this, the methodology, drawing diversified team
greatly from social constructionists, was outlined and applied to the case of diversity
management. The study at the initial stages given us a rich understanding of the
dynamics of implementing diversity management in the selected companies. Further
work needs to be completed to obtain a much fuller picture. The current study was
conducted on only two industries and seven companies, which need to be taken to all 397
industries. As the practice of diversity management spreads among a larger number of
companies throughout India, the need for continued research to provide deeper
understanding will become important. As with the complexity and fluidity of diversity
itself, approaches in analyzing and researching this will also have to adapt and
develop. For the researcher, there is the challenge of stepping out of our preconceived
theoretical boxes and step into unknown territories and try to construct a new
understanding of the endless change taking place.
At last, here are a few issues which should be taken care of by the future managers.
They should:
.
try to sensitize the needs of the workforce they are leading;
.
recognize the efforts of the team members; and
.
create an environment where the team could enjoy their culture and practice their
beliefs.

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Corresponding author
Vidhi Agrawal can contacted at: dr.vidhiagrawal@gmail.com

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