Managing Cultural Diversity- A Key to Organizational Success

Organizations around the world has been realizing theDiverse group of employees are perceived to be
cultural diversity within organization is not a negativemore creative and efficient in problem solving as
aspect, rather can facilitate organizational stalk forcompared to homogenous group
glory (Papers4you.com, 2006). However it is not anAbility to manage cultural diversity increases
easy task to manage employees with different culturaladaptability and flexibility of an organization to
backgrounds. Nevertheless there are many policyenvironmental changes.
guidelines that can make task easy.Many organizational examples can be taken in this
On a broader perspective, cultural diversity can beregard. In Australia, for instance, Hotel Nikko in Sydney
manage through communicating (creating awarenesshas unique edge that staff members in direct guest
among all employees about diverse values of peerscontact areas speak a total of 34 different languages.
through communication), cultivating ( facilitatingSimilarly Qantas Flight Catering has sixty-six
acknowledgement, support and encouragement of anynationalities on staff, with various overseas-born chefs.
employee' success by all other workers), andSo dedicated diverse 'ethnic' kitchens gave Qantas a
capitalizing (linking diversity to every business processhuge competitive edge that offers food based on
and strategy such as succession planning,customer's ethnic taste and requirements. Moreover
reengineering, employee development, performanceDon's Smallgoods through literacy, language and
management and review, and reward systems)cultural trainings increased cross-cultural communication
strategies ( Cascio, 1995).and increased profits while lowering costs at the same
There are many different innovative ways thattime. Similarly The Cheesecake Factory had put
organizations have adopted to manage diversity. Forspecial effort to understand Japanese quality and
instance Tabra Incorporation, a small manufacturer ofpackaging culture as Asian employees assist
jewellery and accessories in California comprised ofmanagement to understand Asian tastes so that they
modest workforce is composition of Third Worldcan target exports to Asia (Nankervis et al, 2002)
immigrants from Cambodia, China, El Salvador, Ethiopia,Hence the discussion suggests that it is imperative to
India, Laos, Mexico, Thailand, Tibet Vietnam and otherrealize that cultural diversity should be taken as a tool
nations. To acknowledge importance of their culturalfor better organizational progress rather than a
association, at least 10-12 different flags are alwaysmanagerial problem and if effectively managed, it can
hanged from the ceiling of its main production facilitybe a key to gain competitive edge and success
which represents the countries of origin of theReferences
employees. The owner's view point is 'I would like forBhatia, S., K., & Chaudary, P., ( 2003),'Managing Cultural
this to be a little United Nations everybody gettingDiversity in Globalization- Key to Business Success of
along and appreciating each other's culture instead ofGlobal Managers- Insights and Strategies', New Delhi:
just tolerating it'. (Bhatia & Chaudary, 2003)Deep & Deep Publication Pvt Ltd
If cultural diversity can be managed effectively, there isCascio, W., F., (1995), 'Managing Human Resources'
a potential to use diverse workforce for organizationalInternational Edition, US: McGraw Hill.
benefits. Cox and Balke (1991) asserts thatCox, T. H., & Balke, S., (1991), 'Managing Cultural
multi-culturism is directly linked to organizationalDiversity: Implications for Organizational
success asCompetitiveness' Academy of Management
Effectively managed multi culture companies haveExecutive, Vol 5, Issue 3, August 1991
cost effective competitive edgeNankervis, A. Compton, R., & Baird, M., (2002) 'Strategic
It helps in promoting minority friendly reputation amongHuman Resource Management'. 4th Edition. Victoria:
prospective employeesNelson Australia Pty Limited
Diverse cultural corporations help to get betterPapers For You (2006) "P/HR/188.
customers which has a variety of people