American International Group's approach to diversity and risk management

Diversity in Modern Business and the Accruing Benefits in Their Daily Operations

DIVERSITY IN MODERN Business

American International Group, Inc. (AIG) is an insurance corporation operating in 130 countries, with over 88 million customers. The American multinational has over 64,000 employees in 90 countries. AIG Life and Retirement, AIG Property Casualty, and United Guaranty Corporation (UGC) are the major operations of the company. Institutional, commercial and individual customers use AIG Property Casualty in order to secure insurance for their products. In the U.S.A., AIG operates AIG Life and Retirement, which offer customers life insurance and retirement services. AIG customers interested in mortgage insurance and mortgage guaranty insurance fall under UGC. The corporation is also focused on global capital markets operations, retained interests and direct investment. AIG was greatly involved in the 2008 financial crisis. $180 billion was spent by the federal government to bail out AIG and therefore, the government took charge of the corporation. A research by the U.S. government's Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission (FCIC) gave conclusions that the selling of large amount of insurance by AIG while failing to hedge its investments, primarily led to its downfall. The Corporation did not put up initial collateral, hedge its exposure, nor set aside capital reserves before the massive sales of credit default swaps. That is said to be a profound failure, especially in its risk-management practices and also the governance of AIG (Angelides, 2011).

Innovation thrives in safe places but it definitely doesn't grow in a box. In order for companies and individuals to grow, they require significant freedom. AIG provides this safety to allow growth. It has a duty to pinpoint risks and in turn prevent them from actualizing into losses hence enabling the clients to create the future freely. They also assist their clients in identifying the unseen risks to stop unprecedented accidents. The organization has been facing and managing complex risks for about a century; and has empowered about 90 million clients in more than 100 countries by providing the risk expertise and the much desired financial strength. Today, the organization is evolving so as to meet the clients' needs in a better way. They value clients and are therefore simplifying their structure to allow working more closely with clients, increasing transparency, and ensuring fast and more efficient delivery. They greatly acknowledge that, change is a constant need. To counter the challenges, they are becoming leaner, more profitable, and more focused. The world is changing at a fast rate and it is possible that what was true yesterday may be false tomorrow. This may cause fear of the future. However, you'll be better prepared and less anxious of the future due to the AIG's risk expertise. They will be very instrumental if you are interested in seizing the next opportunity.

Accessibility of Diversity-Related Material

"Diversity and Inclusion" is a sub-section in the link "Careers" on the website (AIG, n.d.). On the same website, a link "About Us" in the homepage contains another link that also leads to "Diversity and Inclusion." When you type in the search bar the word "diversity" 25 different results are yielded, ranging from "Diversity and Inclusion," to "exploring what it is like to work at AIG" and "Citizenship." The commitment of the company is to encourage diversity, considering it is a multinational company dealing with international clients. The cultural diversity of customers and workforce of the company is the source of the firm's strength. The company values this diversity as shown by its diversity and inclusion. The company states that diversity and inclusion are of much importance to its mission and future -- building a foundation for a workplace that supports creativity thus leading to growth, innovation and profitability. There are several initiatives and programs set in place for the development of employees, to transform them into valued and respected individuals (AIG, n.d.).

The exclusion of certain people who could be beneficial to the business is a risk the corporation cannot afford. For instance, ignoring an LGBT prospect with a strong financial background together with other certifications for various skills based on sexual orientation; he might be lured into the competitors' camp, which might affect the general company's earning. There is an interesting picture that shows a large team of AIG employees on the website. On this particular picture, the employees, from diverse backgrounds, are wearing matching blue shirts thus resembling a sports team. This portrays the company's commitment to appreciate diversity and the benefits that accompany this act. AIG's makes it evident that the company welcomes people regardless of their ethnicity, race, age, color or gender. The company aims at emerging as an example of promoting diversity and at the same time getting the benefits from the special abilities of these people.

Usefulness of Diversity Information

The diversity related information is very useful to the potential customer, employees and suppliers. It is highly significant since these stakeholders are made aware that the organization is concerned about their supporters and followers. The "diversity and inclusion" section mentions the diversity related material. The favorable impact of diversity on business is the reason why it is held by the company. Peter Hancock, the CEO of AIG, explain further by stating that diversity is a part of the organization, more like a talent. It is embedded in everyone, from vendors to the clients and even at the workplace. It is one of the factors that propel success, not an afterthought. This shows how much emphasis the company puts in the case of diversity. It is difficult to determine exactly when the diversity-related material was incorporated in the company since the website does not indicate when the webpage was last updated.

Diversity plays an essential role in ensuring the growth and prosperity of companies, majorly the multinationals (Walter, 2014). Diversity in the workplace is important for employees because it manifests itself in building a great reputation for the company. This leads to increased profitability and opportunities for workers. The importance of workplace diversity within as well as outside the organization cannot be ignored. Companies are demonstrating their commitment to promotion of diversity through recruiting efforts, and aggressive outreach enables the reputations of the business to flourish. An organization known for its fair employment practices, ethics and appreciation for the diverse talent manages to attract a great number of qualified applicants. Another advantage that may accrue from this is loyalty from customers, especially those who strictly choose to do business with companies that demonstrate socially responsible business practices (Mayhew, 2016). This should be enough proof that fostering diversity and inclusion can enable the business to reap more profits than expected. The company is seen to promote equal employment opportunity by mentioning on the website the diversity related material. This assures all the employees of their safety as they work for the company, which is a major advocate of the bigger aspect of the workplace (Diversity Journal, 2015).

To different groups of individuals, there exists other importance of diversity information.

Communication Issues

The impact of diversity in workplace communication is both positive and negative. Diversity might place impediments between co-workers getting in the way of effective communication; therefore, it can directly dampen the cohesiveness of small groups and hence affect productivity. Over the long-term, communication barriers can be broken down by spending time with diverse employees. However, when cultures clash, it is difficult to control the co-workers' orientation periods and the first impressions. Relationships between the company and specific groups of customers can be strengthened through diversity if communication is made more effective. By pairing up Customer service representatives with customers from their specific demographics, customers feel more comfortable with the representatives and the company as well (Ingram, 2016). Therefore, information, benefits, and handling of diversity ought to be made available to all employees.

Integration Issues

The influence of social integration at work is to a small degree. Naturally, the formation of exclusive social groups and cliques is used. However, it proves impossible to control sometimes. This is why companies may experience informal divisions in their staff. This often creates a situation where culturally diverse employees start avoiding exposure to one another during work breaks and after work. There is nothing fundamentally wrong with this scenario but it causes hindrance to the effective sharing of knowledge, skills and experience. In turn, this curbs the productivity growth and the team's effectiveness. Integrating with vendors and clients should be very deliberate in order to achieve the goals set by AIG. This is among the key reasons as to why diversity information is made readily available. It not only enables the staff of the company to work within and with a diverse workforce, but also shows the clients and vendors where the company stands in regard to such issues.

Lastly, diversity information and diversity in general can help drive innovation.

Appropriateness of the Photographs and Graphic Material

On the website, photographs are used to display the graphic material that is linked to diversity. However, it is kept to a bear minimal. The picture where male and female employees, white, black, Asian, Indian, and other races are grouped into a large team is used very often. Pictures of black people, white people, Asians, etc., working either in groups or alone are present throughout the website. There are images of black and Indian employees working alongside their white colleagues. The section for diversity and inclusion has some videos regarding the issue of diversity such as "cultural diversity at AIG, valuing diversity and celebrating diversity in Nordic countries." The organization encourages diversity with the verbal content on their web pages. The firm emphasizes on the fact that it is committed to diversity because of these three reasons: for the workplace (firm), for the company's vendors as well as its clients as the CEO appropriately lists.

In the case of the firm, the company desires a broad spectrum of people to ensure that the best people whose skills are exceptional are recruited by the company to better its long-term growth. The company does this through inclusion. Inclusion is a key link that brings to life the benefits of a workforce that is diverse. Cultivating a culture that seeks and encourages different backgrounds, thinking styles and life experiences will help the company to understand, connect and serve their clients. This will fulfill the company's mission of being the world's most valued insurance company. Secondly, a culture of teamwork is facilitated by the firm to support differences and also encourage inputs from all employees; this is regardless of their creed, gender, sex or national origin. The company has explicitly clarified the equal right of every employee in the working place. Thirdly, knowing how to deal with diversity has given the organization the aptitude to offer solutions to clients to manage a complex global environment and creative concepts.

Perspectives

Based on its website, this company has a positive perception of diversity considering its great highlights of this aspect of the workplace. It encourages diversity by allowing people from various ethnical backgrounds or race to apply for jobs in AIG. Not only does the company do that, but it also provides training and career development, based on educating people about diversity in their various vocational lifecycle. It started this in its various talent programs; where a world-wide and inclusive mindset is maintained with the purpose of identification, development and retaining a workforce that is diverse and optimization of productivity, innovation and creativity.(AIG, n.d.).

AIG works towards driving the development of an inclusive workplace. Through Employee Resource Groups, AIG leverages education and cross-cultural experiences aimed at building inclusive leaders and support employee engagement.

Moreover, as stated on the website, the corporation complies with United States Discrimination Laws. This means that apart from monitoring its business practices based on the initial employment benefits and compensation, the company also takes keen interest in the working behavior within it. The website mentions that strict disciplinary actions are taken against employees and managers found to have been involved in racial/discriminatory actions. This leads to the impression that the company defends strongly equal employment opportunity. As a result, the company's brand is enhanced through the construction of important diverse supplier and community relationships as well as tapping diverse ideas and perspectives to enhance business opportunities world-wide (JPMorgan, 2016).

Internal Management Issues

The internal management issues affecting the prominence of diversity, according to the website, are management of employee relationships. The interpersonal relationships among employees coming from diverse backgrounds can hinder the smooth workflow within a firm. Therefore, it can impact this aspect's prominence on the company's website. As indicated on the website, the inability of the management to nurture a culture of inclusion will make the company fail to meet its purpose and commitment. The increasingly multicultural and aging workforce in Europe is making a significant impact on the marketplace, and also at the workplace. These socio-demographic trends demand that Enterprises focus closely on generational ethnic, and disability issues in the future. The internal issues that affect diversity information on the website can be listed as;

Discrimination

Often, human resource processes are put in place by companies that intentionally hire a diverse workforce with the aim of managing diversity. However, companies that become diverse slowly without a strategic plan may realize more discrimination among subordinates, managers and employees. Considering that discrimination refers to unfair treatment of someone or a group of people because of their distinguishing traits. It is possible for this discrimination to find its way into the individuals who are responsible for the administration of website content.