Diversity in the workforce is nothing new. It is at the top list for companies and organizations to do because it helps create a more equal playing field, but also diversifies everything across the board. More assets in a company will come from diversification of workforce, including people of all races, religions, genders, and sexual orientations. Rarely do people discuss skill levels across employees but most companies are looking for ways to build diverse, productive teams who will take them to the next level. Find out why it is so important to diversify the workforce and how it strengthens inside business culture.
Teams Over Individuals
People are an asset in themselves, but alone, they can do much less work than they can in a team. With a team, the key is to diversify skillsets, so everyone is moving forward with the same goals and values but come with a broad range of abilities to perform the tasks. Often people are put together based on experience or titles, but newbies can learn from seasoned pros, making space to create and hone important assets along the way.
Best Drives the Bottom Up
Diversity is not just about having a lot of different people doing different things. It is also about bringing the bottom up to the top. What this means is hiring people of all skill levels and having them work together to strengthen the weakest links. Not everyone is strong in all areas. What is beneficial from a diversity perspective is to hire employees with higher skill sets and have them coach those lower on the rung, new to the game, and hungry to build those skills as an asset to the company or organization. This also lights a fire in others who see the increased productivity as a sign of company growth.
Incentivize Teams
Working with teams means putting the right people together to get the best results. Sometimes, the wrong people are in a group and can affect dynamics to the point of stagnation. To avoid this, it helps to let teams implement themselves (with some boundaries) and support them in selecting teammates with varying skill levels. Employees may take this opportunity to take advantage of how to learn and grow by outperforming teams with mostly employees of the same skill level. Give them incentives to grow and become better to drive productivity outcomes.
Make Inclusion a Priority
With some companies, diversity recruiting can fall short in employee retention when there is lack of inclusion. This means prioritizing an environment (culture) where all employees can voice their opinions and suggestions freely towards the betterment of the organization. Surveys often help to gather anonymous feedback that helps create a better business culture. This will help with hiring and onboarding in inclusive ways. Some keys to consider with inclusion:
- Listen well to what people say
- Validate team members
- Learn from mistakes
Don’t keep repeating the same mistakes, hiring the same people for the same roles, and expect different results. Turnover can kill company inclusion in a heartbeat, especially if word gets out that certain companies or cultures are not diverse or inclusive (even if they say the opposite). Conduct exist interviews, assess why minority or diverse employees leave, and be willing to implement strategies that shift things in a new direction.
Diversity is Not the End Goal
Companies that create diversity programs for marketing purposes often lose sight of the real importance and benefits o f diversity in the workforce. The results of a better company culture are myriad. Diversity drives innovation reaches a broader audience and produces better results. Ask employees to be thorough and realistic about their experiences. When diversity in company culture and hiring practices is held to the highest standard, then inclusion can play a major role in pushing a company to the next level and promote better business practice overall. The key is not to think about it in terms of profitability, but internal company culture being strong, which will inherently drive profit margins to the top when everyone feels their voice matters in creating something great.
Read more relevant blog post: It’s Time to Look at the Pros and Cons of Outsourced Customer Service for Your Business