While the world still has much to learn about diversity, especially in the workplace, six companies around the world are embracing diversity in a big way. These companies are hiring all genders, races, religions, and ages. They are opening opportunities for everyone, which results in a better understanding of customers and clients. They are also answering the emerging demands of a new generation of consumers.
Why Is Diversity Important?
Many studies have been made about the importance of diversity in the workplace. Even international organizations are encouraging companies to focus on diversifying the talents they hire and the markets they serve. The studies point out the same things. The first one is that diverse teams are more innovative. The second one is that they remain within budget, and lastly, they also meet deadlines.
But aside from these reasons, diversity also encourages more engagement and understanding among colleagues. The more diverse a workplace is, the better the employees get along with each other. But this also means that diversity should be seen in leadership.
SMRT
Singapore’s SMRT started embracing diversity by making sure they offer equal opportunities to all genders and races. These are all done at the back of the commitment of CEO Neo Kian Hong to serve the stakeholders better. He’s a proponent of an expansive mindset as a liberating way to lead a company. He said that his work with diverse groups in the past enabled him to see the benefits of working with people not only from the same background as yourself.
Sodexo
The lifestyle company isn’t only diversifying its employees by hiring more women. It’s also making sure that “gender balance” becomes the core of its business. More than 40% of its staff are women, and 43% of its executives are female. The company is working toward making this as balanced as possible. Because of this policy, the company reported that workers are more engaged, and the brand’s image strengthened by as much as 4%.
Johnson & Johnson
The pharmaceutical and consumer packaged goods company has been on the Working Mother 100 Best list for 28 years. It created a Diversity University within the company. The aim is to educate employees on the importance of diversity in the workplace and how they can take advantage of the existing differences in cultures and traditions. So important is this program that its chief reports directly to the CEO and chairman of the company.
Mastercard
You wouldn’t think that a financial services company would be putting premise on diversity in the workplace, but here you are. Mastercard has made it into the Top 10 of DiversityInc’s 50 Best Companies for Diversity list.
But aside from pursuing gender equality in the workplace, the company is also hiring older and younger workers. They believe that diversity is getting views from all generations—whether it’s a Baby Boomer’s seemingly outdated perspective or a young Gen Z’s innovative view. The company is so committed to this endeavor that it has a mentoring program for older workers who want to become familiar with social media.
Kaiser Permanente
The company is the largest managed care organization in the United States, but that doesn’t stop them from encouraging diversity within its ranks. About 60% of its employees are people of color, while nearly half of the executive team and more than a third of the physicians are women.
The reason they wanted to become a diverse company is to provide better health care services. With culturally sensitive information coming straight from their employees, the health care provider will be more than ready to meet the demands.
Disney
While gender and race are important components of a truly diverse workplace, Disney went beyond far and beyond. They aren’t just hiring women; they are expanding the opportunities they can reach while employed at Disney. Latinos at Disney are received more promotions than other races.
The company, in fact, did and gave more to Latinos than 75% of DiversityInc’s Top 50 list. Disney is said to be a proponent of inclusion as the company believes it is a formula to success. It is truly the happiest place on Earth.
Diversity in a company doesn’t happen overnight. It takes time, commitment, effort, and money. A lot of your resources will go into making sure that the company hires the right people and keeps them happy and contented in their positions. You need to open opportunities for them and make sure chances for promotions are equal among different races and gender. It’s a tall order, but these companies have reaped the rewards of that risk.
