Cultural Awareness for Hiring and Productivity!
By Seema RafaySenior Director Talent Development
Agile-1/Talent Management Specialist
1• What is Cultural Diversity?
2• Cultural Descriptors
3• Stereotyping, Bias, and Prejudice
4• Equal Employment Opportunity Laws
5
• Cultural Diversity for Hiring and Productivity!
OBJECTIVES
Culture Defined
the customary
beliefs, social
norms, and
material traits of
a racial, religious,
or social group;
the characteristic
features of
everyday
existence shared
by people in a
place or time.
Where we See Culture
English Tea Indian Chai
American Iced Tea Chinese Tea
Culture is
reflected in
our lives in
everything
from how
we perform
rituals to
the foods
we eat or
even how
we drink
the same
beverage
What is Cultural Diversity?
The existence of a variety of
cultural or ethnic groups
within a society and
workplace
Cultural Descriptors
Ethnicity Race Religion
Ethnicity
• used to describe the
cultural identity of a
person
• group of people within a
larger society
• Share common ancestry
and symbolic elements such
as language, customs,
dress
Race
• Considered biological
• Used to describe the
physical characteristics
of a person
• Distinct populations
within a species
• Research shows NO
genetic differences
between races
Religion
• Used as a global descriptor for some cultures, i.e. Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, Catholic, etc.
• Religion, unlike race and ethnicity, can be changed altering the culture it belongs to
• Religion ≠ Race
• Religion is intertwined with ethnicity
• Ethnicity ≠ Nationality
Wait! There’s more to Cultural Diversity
than meets the eye!
Parts of Culture we can see
Parts of Culture we cannot see
Wait – There’s more?
Dimensions of Culture
PD Small Power Distance
(egalitarian)
Large Power Distance
(Hierarchy)
IDV Individualism (self over group) Collectivism (group over self)
MAS Performance/Achievement (M) Caring/Quality of Life (F)
UA Strong Uncertainty avoidance
(structured)
Weak Uncertainty avoidance
(flexible)
LTO Long term orientation (Tradition) Short term Orientation (Modern)
How Cultures Impact Behavior
Stereotyping, bias, and prejudice
• Human beings find comfort in likeness
• Human beings by nature resist change
• Human beings are ethnocentric
Stereotyping
A widely held but fixed and oversimplified image or idea of a
particular type of person or thing
Often Negative
Do not allow
individual
differences
Limit individual
variations
Stereotyping
What’s your story?
BIAS
Bias is the tendency to move towards what is similar in oneself and
away from what is different. Bias can include many factors such as:
Culture Age Race
ReligionEthnic
Origin
National
Origin
Prejudice
Prejudice is an opinion, prejudgment or attitude about a group or
its individual members.
• Prejudice is almost always negative
• More often it is looking down on a group because of assumed
behaviors, values, capabilities, or attributes
• Prejudiced people use their stereotypes to make assumptions
about how a group will act
Being Ethnocentric
Evaluating other people and cultures according to
the standards of one's own culture
Cultural Relativism
“the view that cultures are merely
different, not deficient, and each
culture’s norms and practices
should be assessed only from the
perspective of the culture itself, not
by standards embraced by
another culture.
Cultural relativism says
that we should not look
at other cultures with
our own ethnocentric
lens.
Benefits of Cultural Diversity
• Increases Problem solving ability
• Increases Creativity and Innovation
• Enables Curiosity and Understanding
• Widens Markets and Reach
• Values-Based
• Increases Productivity
Not only better for business…
It’s also the law!
Diversity and Inclusion
Equal Employment Opportunity
What does this mean
26
• Age
• Race
• Color
• Sex
• Religious creed
• National origin
• Political opinions or
affiliations
• Marital status
Each employee or
applicant has an equal
employment opportunity
without regard to:
Reporting Discrimination “If you find or observe discrimination in your workplace, or believe you have
been subjected to any form of unlawful discrimination, notify your Human
Resources Department, immediately.
Be prepared to provide a written complaint. Your complaint should be
specific and should include the names of the individuals involved and the
names of any witnesses. The Company will immediately undertake an
investigation and attempt to resolve the situation. If the Company
determines that unlawful discrimination has occurred, appropriate remedial
action will be taken.
Appropriate action also will be taken to deter any future discrimination. The
Company should not retaliate against you for filing a complaint and will not
knowingly permit retaliation by management staff or your co-workers. If you
believe that you have been retaliated against, you should immediately notify
your Human Resources Department”
Disclaimer: Content provided as sample and for educational
purposes. Your Human Resources department or corporate attorney
should be consulted for the appropriate verbiage applicable to
your organizational needs.
Recognizing Types of Discrimination
• Disparate or adverse impact
• Disparate treatment
• Lack of Reasonable Accommodation
• Retaliation
Steps to Embrace Cultural Diversity
Steps to Embrace Cultural Diversity
Organizational approach:
• Cultivate D&I within culture
• Articulate your stance
• Awareness through Education
• Introspection – Evaluate yourself
• Practice what you preach
• Training with Onboarding through Succession
Steps to Embrace Cultural Diversity
Recruitment:
• Express inclusiveness in all communication
• Utilize Job-fit assessments*
• Conduct Behavioral Interviews
• Discover attitudes and expectations
• Focus on talent, capabilities and opportunities
• Cast a wider net in talent sourcing/acquisition
• Remember cultural influence on resumes
Steps to Embrace Cultural Diversity
Training and Talent Development:
• Mandatory Diversity training in Learn Plans
• Assign Mentors and Coaches
• Strengths-based assignments
• Perform regular check-ins
• Provide constructive feedback
• Focus on work output
• Acknowledge and celebrate differences
Articulate Your Organizational
Stance
38
The Company is an equal opportunity employer and makes employment
decisions based on merit. The Company is committed to complying with all
applicable laws providing equal employment opportunities. This commitment
applies to all persons involved in the operations of the Company and prohibits
unlawful discrimination by any staff of the Company, including supervisors and
co-workers. Every employee has the right to work in surroundings that are
free from all forms of unlawful discrimination.
equal opportunity employer: an employer who agrees not to
discriminate against any employee or job applicant because of
race, color, religion, national origin, sex, physical or mental
disability, or age.
5 Steps to Becoming More Culturally Aware
A. Awareness – Multiculturalism is growing/reality
B. Be Yourself – express your uniqueness
C. Check your Bias (www.projectimplicit.com to learn your
unconscious bias)
D. Dive Deeper – make a commitment to learn more about one
new culture every ___________ (fill in blank)
E. Eat out more – try a new restaurant and take it all in
Source: Improving your diversity IQ | Doug Melville
Why?
For More Information Please Contact:
Seema Rafay
Talent Management Specialist
Tel: 786-245-7161
Email: [email protected]
WEB: www.spectrum-performance.com
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