Designing Effective Diversity Training in the Workplace

Introduction

Diversity training is a concept that sometimes invites skepticism — do people really need to be taught about diversity? We are all individuals with unique backgrounds and characteristics, so is it not a step backward to categorize people based on phenotype, national origin, or religion? The subtle nuances may never be perfectly captured. Yet the reality is that all organizations experience some form of diversity precisely because people differ across the world. In all but the smallest communities, groups with different backgrounds and cultures coexist. When an organization operates globally, the ability to work smoothly with many different types of people becomes a critical success factor.

Furthermore, what seems like common sense to an intelligent person should be tempered by the old saying that "there's nothing common about common sense." Organizations do need to educate their people about diversity and the issues it raises. A company that competes globally needs to present a consistent face to the world — a common organizational culture that includes an understanding of the world's people and how to interact with them effectively.

Course Objectives

Before setting up any training course, an organization needs to understand why the course is important, as this will help define its objectives. At the most basic level, there is the legal dimension. Laws exist that prohibit discrimination based on a number of factors — gender, race, religion, and ethnicity among them — and local jurisdictions may extend these protections further. Every organization needs to understand the legal framework governing discrimination, because all members of the organization are bound to follow those laws, and failure to do so creates legal liability for the entire enterprise. Ensuring compliance must therefore be the first objective of any diversity training program.

The second objective is to establish a consistent organizational culture with respect to diversity. The organization can determine for itself what specific elements that culture will comprise, but the training should aim to develop a shared approach so that the way the company handles diversity is implemented consistently across all of its operations. This consistency matters both for compliance and because a strong organizational culture provides clarity for employees. There will inevitably be times when corporate culture diverges from an individual's personal views; employees must understand what the corporate culture requires and that it takes precedence.

A further reason for building a common organizational culture around diversity is that every employee arrives with a different starting point. Some come from highly cosmopolitan backgrounds and may need little instruction on this subject. Others require considerably more. The objective is that all employees, regardless of their starting point, leave the training with the same understanding of diversity and of how it manifests in the organizational culture.

References

Chapman, J. (2002). A framework for transformational change in organisations. Leadership and Organization Development Journal, 23(1), 16–25.

Ferdman, B., & Brody, S. (1996). Models of diversity training. Handbook of Intercultural Training. Retrieved March 29, 2015, from http://bernardoferdman.org/Articles/Ferdman_Brody1996_models_of_div_training.pdf

Derald, S. (1991). A model for cultural diversity training. Journal of Counseling & Development, 70(1), 99–105.

Scott, S. (2015). Cultural diversity training & education in the workplace. Houston Chronicle. Retrieved March 29, 2015, from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/cultural-diversity-training-education-workplace-1853.html