Getting Diversity
at Work to Work
Yves R. F. Guillaume
Aston Business School, Aston University
Jeremy F. Dawson
Management School and School of Health and Related Research, University of Sheffield
Steve A. Woods and Claudia A. Sacramento
Aston Business School, Aston University
Michael A. West
Lancaster University Management School, Lancaster University
Address to NHS Employers Strategic Forum, London 9th October 2013
Overview
• Share insights from a recently published special
issue in JOOP on getting diversity at work to work
• Talk about the challenges in accumulating
evidence-based knowledge and making it
accessible to practitioners and organizations
• Discuss whether research in diversity asks the
right questions and learn from you what
questions it should be asking
What do we know about diversity?
• When effectively managed it can have positive effects
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More innovation/creativity
Better decision making
Higher customer satisfaction
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• When mismanaged it is likely to have negative effects
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Higher absenteeism
Lower social integration
Poorer in- role and extra-role performance
Incivility and discrimination
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Given getting diversity at work to work seems to be the right and strategic
thing to do, how can we actually get it to work?
JOOP special issue on
getting diversity at work to work
• How do demographics affect work outcomes?
• How does work group diversity affect work outcomes?
• How can diversity in organizations be managed
effectively?
• How can we accumulate (more) evidence-based
knowledge on effective diversity management that has
impact and make it (more) accessible?
How do demographics affect
work outcomes?
Luksyte, A., et al. (2013). "Held to a different standard: Racial differences in
the impact of lateness on advancement opportunity." Journal of
Occupational and Organizational Psychology 86(2): 142-165.
• Summary
– Research Question
• How is lateness linked to advancement opportunities
• What role does race play in the relationship?
– Method
• National US survey of 2789 employees working in educational services,
retail, and manufacturing
• Experimental study with 204 full-time working adults
Luksyte, A., et al. (2013). "Held to a different standard: Racial differences in
the impact of lateness on advancement opportunity." Journal of
Occupational and Organizational Psychology 86(2): 142-165.
• Practical Implications
– Both employees and managers should be made aware that
lateness behaviours are viewed differently for Black, White and
Hispanic employees with the penalizing effect applying only to
Black employees.
– Managers should avoid differential evaluation of the same
lateness behaviour of their racially diverse employees when
evaluating performance and making subsequent promotion
decisions.
– Managers could be trained to focus on behaviours, not the race
of employees, when making important personnel decisions.
Open questions
• How do demographics affect employability,
advancement opportunities, and
promotability?
• To what extent is differential treatment a
result of discrimination, unconscious bias, real
differences, or other factors?
• How can organizations and policymakers
ensure equal treatment?
How does work group diversity
affect work outcomes?
Liebermann, S. C., et al. (2013). "Age diversity and individual team member
health: The moderating role of age and age stereotypes." Journal of
Occupational and Organizational Psychology 86(2): 184-202.
• Summary
– Research Question
• How does age diversity in work groups affect the health of younger,
middle-aged and older group members?
• How is this affected by age stereotypes?
– Method
• Survey of 2,000 representative German workers via telephone interviews
• Examined age stereotypes by asking for agreement with five stereotypical
statements
• Looked at general health, including days unwell due to physical and
psychological impairments
Liebermann, S. C., et al. (2013). "Age diversity and individual team member
health: The moderating role of age and age stereotypes." Journal of
Occupational and Organizational Psychology 86(2): 184-202.
• Practical Implications
– Age diversity can have a negative impact on health – particularly prone are
younger and older workers
– Organisations have to be aware that age diversity can undermine the health of
older and younger team members.
– Younger team members' health is only affected by working in age-diverse
teams if they hold negative stereotypical views about older team colleagues.
In contrast, older team members' health is only affected if they hold negative
stereotypical views about younger employees.
– Teams and team leaders should take steps to reduce the age stereotypes of
younger team members in age-diverse teams.
Gilson, L. L., et al. (2013). "Unpacking the cross-level effects of tenure diversity,
explicit knowledge, and knowledge sharing on individual creativity." Journal of
Occupational and Organizational Psychology 86(2): 203-222.
• Summary
– Research Question
• How is diversity in group tenure linked to individual creativity?
• What roles do individual knowledge and knowledge sharing play in the
relationship?
– Method
• Survey of 341 employees in 76 groups at a Korean insurance company
• Individual creativity rated by managers
Gilson, L. L., et al. (2013). "Unpacking the cross-level effects of tenure diversity,
explicit knowledge, and knowledge sharing on individual creativity." Journal of
Occupational and Organizational Psychology 86(2): 203-222.
• Practical Implications
– Individual creativity can benefit from being in teams that include a mixture of
older and newer members
– However, working in a diverse group is not enough; the knowledge has to be
shared. If it is not, then tenure diversity can actually stifle creativity
– It is only through increasing individual knowledge in this way that creativity is
released
– For complex jobs, where creativity is desired, but much of the work is
independent, managers need to encourage employees with diverse levels of
tenure to share experiences and ways of performing their tasks
Open questions
• What mitigates the negative effects of
diversity, and how can work groups reap its
benefits?
• What can teams and leadership do to harness
diversity for effectiveness?
• Does diversity have the same impact on all
employees?
• How does diversity affect employee well-being
and health?
How can diversity in
organizations be managed
effectively?
Singh, B., et al. (2013). "Managing diversity at work: Does psychological
safety hold the key to racial differences in employee performance?" Journal
of Occupational and Organizational Psychology 86(2): 242-263.
• Summary
– Research Question
• Via which mechanisms can diversity climate affect performance, and how
is this effect dependent on individuals’ race?
– Sample
• Survey of 165 employees from a Midwestern US mid-size production
organization and respective colleagues/supervisors.
Singh, B., et al. (2013). "Managing diversity at work: Does psychological
safety hold the key to racial differences in employee performance?" Journal
of Occupational and Organizational Psychology 86(2): 242-263.
• Practical Implications
– In the midst of increasing workforce diversity, the study highlights the
importance of a psychologically safe work environment where employees feel
confident in expressing their true selves without fear of being judged as
inferior or incompetent.
– By necessitating the creation of psychologically safe work environments, the
study establishes psychological safety as a principal motivator of employee
performance behaviors in a racially diverse work setting.
– The study cautions organizational practitioners that when dealing with racial
diversity, one size does not fit all. Rather, positive organizational contexts
(such as diversity climate and psychological safety) hold a greater significance
for minorities and are more effective in shaping their performance behaviors.
Groggins, A. and A. M. Ryan (2013). "Embracing uniqueness: The
underpinnings of a positive climate for diversity." Journal of Occupational
and Organizational Psychology 86(2): 264-282.
• Summary
– Research Question
• What underlies a strong positive
climate for diversity?
– Method
• Case study of a diverse organisation
including focus groups, interviews,
and reviews of organizational
documents and artefacts.
• 32 staff members of a large non-profit
organization responsible for running
one of the largest vocational
community rehabilitation programmes
in the US.
Groggins, A. and A. M. Ryan (2013). "Embracing uniqueness: The
underpinnings of a positive climate for diversity." Journal of Occupational
and Organizational Psychology 86(2): 264-282.
• Practical Implications
– Having a norm of accommodation can create attitudes of openness to
change and help develop efficacy for change.
– When respecting difference is essential to everyday functioning,
interpersonal competence and openness to others is promoted.
– Framing a diverse workplace as necessitating continuous learning can
provide for openness to error that allows for organizational
improvement.
– To promote a positive diversity climate, attend to structural
inclusiveness.
Open questions
• How can we create positivity diversity cultures
that engage all employees in promoting positive
attitudes and behaviors to diversity?
• What approaches to involving employees in
shaping cultures of positive diversity are most
effective and sustainable?
• How do people management practices impact
upon cultures of diversity positivity?
• What other generic factors underpin cultures that
manage diversity effectively?
How can we accumulate (more)
evidence-based knowledge on
effective diversity management
that has impact and make it
(more) accessible?
State of the Art
• Organizations invest millions of pounds in diversity
initiatives
• Only 20% of the literature on diversity management is
purely evidence based
• 80% of the literature on diversity management does not
address the critical question which diversity interventions
will lead to which desired diversity outcomes
• Research in diversity often opportunity based than careful
methodological planning because of the sensitive nature of
the topic
The Way Forward
• Rigorous research assessing the effectiveness of diversity
interventions and their results in situ
• Collaborations between practitioners, organizations, and
academics
• Dissemination of evidence based findings in a language
accessible for practitioners
• Development of evidence-based tools that are useful
D&I Group
• Group of people that seeks to engage with
organizations to …
– Accumulate evidence-based knowledge on how to
manage diversity in the workplace effectively and
to make the knowledge accessible
– Help organizations create inclusive work
environments in which employees no matter what
their background can flourish
Q&A
Does research in diversity ask the
right questions?
What questions should it be
asking?
Thank You!