Introduction
Aims
The aim of this module is to develop in students:
(i)
(ii)
A critical understanding of equal opportunity and diversity issues within HRM;
The ability to evaluate current debate on the changing nature of equality issues at
work and their regulation.
Learning Outcomes
1.
Knowledge & Understanding
(i)
(ii)
A critical understanding of equal opportunity and diversity issues within HRM;
A comprehensive understanding of strategic changes and developments in diversity
regarding gender, age, race and disability.
2.
Discipline Skills
(i)
Be able to critically evaluate key developments within the area of diversity in
institutional and social terms and assess relevant methodologies.
3.
Personal Transferable Skills
(i)
(ii)
Further develop communication, analysis, presentation and negotiation skills.
Deal with complex issues in a systematic manner.
Pre-Work
Being Exposed to Diversity Assignment (unassessed)
Purpose
1. To become exposed to cultural or ethnic differences
2. To examine your feelings resulting from being a minority
Background
The following assignment exposes you to a new situation, requires you to carefully observe
your surroundings and asks you to both describe what you felt and what other individuals
might feel to have you among them. Your assignment is to go by yourself (you may not
take anyone with you) to a place you have not been before, and to observe what you see
(and participate, if appropriate). Please note that these two conditions (doing something you
have not done before and doing it by yourself) are important. After your field experience,
you will write notes that include the following:






Date and address of where the experience took place
Length of time you were there
Brief description of setting
Your reaction to the situation in terms of your behaviour/feelings
The reaction of the other individuals toward you
What you have learned from this experience about being different from others in your
environment

How such an experience might influence your development if you were to live or work
in such a setting for a major portion of your life
Relevance of theory of readings in any of the texts (appropriately reference work when
you draw from readings and other literature)
Concluding comments


Do not choose a setting where you would feel like an intruder into someone’s privacy. In
some situations you may need to get permission to observe the group. Use your good
judgement. Do not place yourself into a situation that is physically dangerous to you.
Choose a setting that you truly want to learn about so you don’t feel like an “undercover
agent.
Session 1
Being different; conceptual frameworks
Objectives
At the end of this session participants will be able to:
o
o
o
o
analyse suggested differences between the concepts of equality and diversity
argue the business case for managing diversity
describe their own cultural values, beliefs, and attitudes
discuss how individual cultural values, beliefs, and attitudes may influence
interpersonal behaviour and interactions in organizations.
Video: the Tale of 0
Basic reading
On concept of diversity:
Kirton & Greene ch 1 – this can be downloaded from the publisher’s website at:
http://books.elsevier.com/uk/management/uk/subindex.asp?isbn=0750662174&country=Unit
ed+Kingdom&community=management&ref=&mscssid=2H68AKG180AK9JP1LVL3GE1JLP
X6C2W2
Prasad et al ch 1
Other resources
R. Roosevelt Thomas Jr. “Managing Diversity: A Conceptual Framework”, Diversity in the
Workplace, ed. Susan Jackson, 306-317.
Robin Ely and David Thomas (1996). “Making Differences Matter: A New Paradigm for
Managing Diversity”, Harvard Business Review, Sept-Oct.
Hubbard pp 8-9
Basic reading
On business case:
Kirton & Greene ch 5 pp 127-139, ch 8 pp 201-204 ch 9 pp 239-240 ch 11 pp 288-296
Other resources
Harvey & Allard 3rd ed pp 5-6, pp 261-270 (case study)
Hubbard pp 3-26
Session 2
Explanations from organizational behaviour; theories of exclusion
and segmentation
Objectives
At the end of this session participants will be able to:
o
o
o
o
o
explain how perception and attribution contribute to discrimination in the workplace
explain how societal and organizational roles and stereotyping contribute to
discrimination in the workplace
examine their own processes of perception, attribution and stereotyping
describe the nature of, and reasons for, horizontal and vertical occupational
segregation in the workforce
assess labour market explanations
We will look at your pre-work during this session
Basic reading
On OB explanations:
Read a chapter/s on the topics of perception, attribution, roles and stereotyping in a
standard OB or Management textbook
e.g. Francesco and Gold
Other resources
Albert J. Mills and Elisabeth M. Wilson (2000): Perception and Stereotyping, ch 3 of Wilson
E – available on Blackboard [I own the copyright and give permission for you to download
one copy only for personal use]
Wilson. F (2003) ‘Perceiving Men and Women in Organizations’ ch. 2 Organizational
Behaviour and Gender – this can be downloaded from the publisher’s website at:
https://www.ashgate.com/shopping/title.asp?key1=&key2=&orig=results&isbn=0%207546%2
00900%206
An earlier version is: Wilson. F (1995) ‘Perceiving Women in Organizations’ ch.2
Organizational Behaviour and Gender London, McGraw-Hill
Basic reading
On institutional and labour market explanations
Kirton & Greene ch 2 pp 13-40 ch 3 pp 53-62
Session 3
Gender and culture
Objectives
At the end of this session participants will be able to:
1. describe and discuss the four approaches that analyze the intersection of gender and
organizations
2. Discuss essentialism and social construction
3. explain functionalist and symbolic approaches to organizational culture
Case study: The Indian Hotels
Basic reading
On gender
Ely R et al pp 1-15 – this can be downloaded from the publisher’s website at:
http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/book.asp?ref=1405102551&site=1
Kirton & Greene ch 3 pp 63-78
Wilson. E. (2001): Organizational Behaviour and Gender' from Organizational Behaviour
Reassessed: The Impact of Gender, London, Sage pp. 1-6– available on Blackboard [I own
the copyright and give permission for you to download one copy only for personal use]
Wilson. E. (2001): Organizational Culture’ from Organizational Behaviour Reassessed: The
Impact of Gender, London, Sage pp. 1-6– available – available on Blackboard [I own the
copyright and give permission for you to download one copy only for personal use]
Other resources
Wilson. F (1995): Learning and Socialization’ from Organizational Behaviour and Gender,
London, McGraw-Hill pp. 92-103
Kanter R. M. (1977) Men and Women of the Corporation, USA Basic Books
Mills A. J. and Tancred P. (eds.) (1992) Gendering Organizational Analysis, London Sage
Acker, Joan (1990): ‘Hierarchies, Jobs, Bodies: A Theory of Gendered Organizations’ Gender
and Society Vol. 4 no. 2 pp. 139-158
Hearn, Jeff, Sheppard, Deborah, Tancred-Sheriff, Peta and Burrell, Gibson (1989): The
Sexuality of Organization, Sage
Rosener, Judy B (1990): 'Ways Women Lead', Harvard Business Review, Nov-Dec pp. 119125 Very influential article advocating differences between men and women.
Deborah Tannen: 'The Power of Talk', Harvard Business Review September-October 1995
E. Wilson (1998): ‘Gendered Career Paths’ Personnel Review Vol. 27 no.5, pp. 396 – 411
(case study)
Paalman (will be provided)
Simmons College, Center for Gender in Organizations website:
http://www.simmons.edu/som/cgo/
Government report on women and work:
www.womenandequalityunit.gov.uk/women_work_commission
Basic reading
On organizational culture
Kirton & Greene ch 4 pp 83-112
Drummond, Helga (2000): ‘Organizational Culture’ ch. 9 and ‘The Symbolic Life of
Organizations’ ch. 10 in Introduction to Organizational Behaviour, Oxford, Oxford University
Press
Morgan (1997): ‘Creating Social Reality: Organizations as Cultures’ ch.5 in Images of
Organization, 2nd ed. London, Sage
Other resources
Martin, Joanne (2001) Organizational Culture: Mapping the Terrain, Sage
Schein (1992) Organizational Culture and Leadership. One of the best known writers on
organisational culture
Schultz, Majken (1995): On Studying Organisational Cultures; Diagnosis and Understanding,
de Gruyter, Berlin A very clear introduction to the two approaches to culture.
Parkin, Di and Maddock, Sue (1995): ‘A gender typology of organizational culture’ in Itzin and
Newman pp. 68 - 80
Roper, Michael (1994) Masculinity and the British Organisation Man since 1945, Oxford
University Press, Oxford.
Blunt, Peter and Jones, Merrick L (1992): ‘Culture and Organization’ ch.
Proposes a typology for African organisations
pp.196-203
Palestrant, Stacy (1995): ‘Francisco de Narvaez at Tia’ case no. 9 in Francesco, Anne M.
and Gold, Barry A. (1998) (case study)
E. Wilson (2000): ‘Inclusion, exclusion and ambiguity: the role of organisational culture’
Personnel Review 29:3 pp.274-303 (case study)
Session 4
The UK legal framework
Objectives
At the end of this session participants will be able to:
o
o
o
o
describe direct and indirect discrimination, and victimisation
discuss duties of public authorities to promote equality
analyze the effectiveness of legal remedies
assess the contribution of quangos, employer and campaign bodies
Basic reading
MacDonald chapters 1 - 8, 10, 11 [pp. 196 -- 234]
Kirton and Greene ch. 6 pp. 143 -- 169
and/or any other HR textbook which describes up-to-date UK legal framework
Other resources
Chartered Institute for Personnel and Development http://www.cipd.co.uk/default.cipd
for links to other websites
Inter-session group exercise
Best Practices Presentation & Discussion – for session 5
o
Students will make a presentation and facilitate a class discussion on “best practices”
for managing one aspect of diversity in contemporary organizations. The topic for
each group will be negotiated in class.
o
The presentation should be research-based, drawing on course materials, relevant
scholarly literature, organizational materials, and related readings.
o
Be prepared to make either a PowerPoint presentation, or a flipchart sheet
presentation, in both cases supplemented by handouts, and listing all resources
used. It should last about 10 minutes. The presentation should incorporate a
combination of theory, models and current literature, with appropriate citations. The
resulting class discussion should highlight examples of organizations and/or
practitioners using these best practices.
o
Although the presentation will not be assessed, materials researched may be useful
for the assignment or examination assessments
Session 5
HR responses and responsibilities
Objectives
At the end of this session participants will be able to:
o
o
o
o
identify HR policies and practices where diversity impinges
advocate organizational best practice
discuss the role of trade unions
discriminate between different approaches to evaluating diversity
Group student presentations: best practice
Case study: Wal-Mart
Basic reading
MacDonald chapter 9
Kirton and Greene ch. 7 pp. 180 – 194, ch. 8 pp. 205 - 24
Hubbard ch. 7 pp. 121 to 146
Other resources
McCracken [2000]: winning the talent wall for women: sometimes it takes a revolution,
Harvard Business Review Nov-Dec
Many articles in People Management
Session 6
Cultural differences and the international context
Objectives
At the end of this session participants will be able to:
o
o
o
discuss cultural differences between societies
assess critically the debates about cultural divergence
describe and evaluate different approaches to equality and diversity in different
countries
Basic reading
Kirton and Greene ch. 2 pp. 40- 47, ch 10 pp 251-284
E. Wilson (2003): ‘Equity, Equality and Diversity: a Cross-Country Comparison’,
Comportamento Organizacional e Gestao (Portugal) 9:2 pp.107-123 [I will provide copy]
Other resources
McIntosh in Harvey & Allard pp 83-93
Francesco and Gold ch.2
Adler: Global Careers and International Perspectives on Work and Family
Chs 8, 9, 10
‘Cultural Constraints in Management Theories’ by Geert Hofstede in Francesco and Gold
pp. 259-271
Francesco, Anne M. and Gold, Barry A. (1998): pp. 17-31 including ‘Do the cultural
frameworks really explain cultural differences?', pp. 32-33 'How culture relates to
organizational behavior' p. 33 'Convergence or divergence?'
There is also a short section in each chapter of F&G on convergence and divergence.
Francesco and Gold: It is also worth reading the short explanatory sections of:
Skill Exercise 5: 'How many things do you like to do at once? An introduction to monochronic
and polychronic time' and Skill Exercise 7: “Facts “ or “Feel”?
Hofstede G. (1980) Culture’s Consequences: International Differences in Work-Related
values, Beverly Hills CA, Sage The original book
OR Hofstede G. (1992): Cultures and Organizations: Software of the Mind, London,
McGraw-Hill (An updated version, perhaps a little easier to read)
Hofstede G. and Bond, M.H. (1988): ‘The Confucius Connection: From Cultural Roots
to Economic Growth’ Organization Dynamics 17 pp.4-21 also reading 5 in Blunt, Peter
and Richards, David (1995)
Blunt, Peter and Jones, Merrick L (1992) ‘Culture and Organization’ pp. 189-95
(Hofstede applied to Africa)
Dunphy, Dexter (1987): ‘Convergence/divergence: A temporal view of the Japanese
enterprise and its management’ Academy of Management Review 12 (3) pp 445-459,
also reading 4 in Blunt, Peter and Richards, David (1995)
Hannigan T.P. (1990) ‘ Traits, Attitudes and Skills that are Related to intercultural
Effectiveness and Their Implication for Cross-cultural Training: A Review of the
Literature’ International Journal of Intercultural Relations 14(11) pp.89-111 also reading
15 in Blunt, Peter and Richards, David (1995)
Triandis et al (19): ‘Cross cultural Training across the Individualism-Collectivism Divide’
International Journal of Intercultural Relations 12(3) pp. 269-289 also reading 15 in
Blunt, Peter and Richards, David (1995)
Trompenaars, F. and Hampden-Turner, Charles (1997): Riding the Waves of Culture:
Understanding Cultural Diversity in Business, 2nd Ed., London, Nicholas Brealey
Publishing. Easy to read
Hickson David J. and Pugh, Derek (1995): ‘Managing and the Cultures of Societies’ ch. 2 in
Management Worldwide: The Impact of Societal Culture on Organizations around the Globe,
London. Penguin Easy to read.
BOOKLIST - Diversity in Work & Organisations
Whilst, a range of suitable/recommended books, is identified below, this list is by no means
exhaustive, and other references that you are likely to identify yourselves are potentially
valid and worth considering, although you should be particularly cautious of older references.
Additionally, for each of the units/sessions of study, specific recommended reading and
reading lists will be provided, often drawing on journals as well as more specialist and
directed texts which will help you target your learning more effectively.
Where the class no. is given the book is in the University of Bradford library collection
I have made comments where I am familiar with the book
Core Texts
Recommended text
Kirton, Gill and Greene, Anne Marie (2005). The Dynamics of Managing Diversity : a critical
approach. Oxford, Butterworth-Heinemann (Class Number: E658.304 KIR).
Best book with a UK focus to combine the basics with a more critical approach
Highly recommended
Konrad, Alison, Prasad, Pushkala, and Pringle, Judith (2006). Handbook of Workplace
Diversity. London, Thousand Oaks, New Delhi. Sage
Excellent, comprehensive coverage of the topic, however from a North American perspective
Daniels, Kathy and MacDonald, Lynda (2005). Equality, Diversity and Discrimination: A
Student Text. London. CI PD
OR
MacDonald, Lynda (2004). Equality, Diversity and Discrimination: How to comply with the
law, promote good practice, and achieve a diverse workforce. London.
CI PD
E658.304MAC
Either of these are suitable for a good understanding of the UK legal framework
Other books
Adler, Nancy J. (2002). International Dimensions of Organisational Behaviour. 4th ed.
Cincinnati, Ohio. Southwestern/Thompson
Albrecht, Maryann H. (2001). International HRM: managing diversity in the workplace.
Oxford, Blackwell Publishers (Class Number: E 658.304 ALB).
Arredondo, Patricia (1996). Successful Diversity Management Initiative: a blueprint for
planning and implementation. Thousand Oaks, London. Sage
Straightforward, thorough account of how to approach organizational diversity
Baxter, Carol (2001). Managing Diversity and Inequality in Health Care. Edinburgh, Bailliere
Tindall (Class Number: WX 422 BAX).
Clements, Phil and Jones, John (2002). The Diversity Training Handbook : a practical guide
to understanding and changing attitudes. London, Kogan Page (Class Number: E 658.304
CLE).
Assessment
Essay Title
Write an essay on one topic or theme focusing on diversity in the workplace taken from the syllabus,
and apply it to an organisation you know. Your essay should be structured using the information
provided below.
1. Outline the current standard position on your chosen topic or theme by describing the main points
of related academic theory and current practice. Your essay should refer to up to date literature.
You should cite the references you use, observing standard citation conventions [e.g. Harvard
system].
(25%)
2. Examine current academic debates around your topic. For example, you are encouraged to
highlight and discuss the main points of dispute that surround conflicting academic theories
relating to the topic.
(25%)
3. Discuss the extent to which key theories relating to this topic are relevant/applicable to an
organisation with which you are familiar. You are encouraged to provide specific examples of
relevant organisational practice/behaviour when seeking to discuss the relevance/applicability of
these theories to your chosen organisation.
(50%)
The essay must not exceed 2000 words in length and should be word-processed. Diagrams and
tables can be included in addition to this word limit, and you may attach strictly relevant appendices
e.g. tables, company literature or interview schedules.
Your case should have a clear and distinct title of no more than 10 words. The particular focus
considered (such as culture, human resource development, gender, etc.) should be clearly indicated
in the title. A list of references of all sources used must also be provided.
Within the 2,000 words it is likely that parts 1, 2 and 3 will approximately reflect the allocation of
marks.
Assignments must be submitted no later than 12.00 noon on 8 April 2011.
You should not exceed the above deadline, except in exceptional circumstances. Extensions
will only be granted with good cause.
As indicated above, your assignment should include theoretical, empirical and practitioner material
drawn from the module materials and your extended reading. The lectures alone are unlikely to
provide a sufficient basis for a good mark - wider reading is required. You are strongly encouraged to
familiarise yourself with these prior to completing your assignment.
The Institute of Management Sciences will retain the coursework you hand in. You
are therefore advised to retain a copy for yourself. The assignments should have a
front cover that should contain the following information:






your name;
your student number
this module’s title (Diversity in Work Organisations);
my name (Syed Zulkifal),
the number of words, and;
A statement confirming that the submission is all your own work.
Essay Tips
Before starting your essay you will need to read widely around the topic. The reading lists
should help you with this. You should expect to find different opinions, different types of
evidence and different conclusions. You are required to produce a well written, well argued
essay in which you answer the question set and provide evidence to support your
statements. Please feel free to include your own views in this but you should not do so by
ignoring important pieces of evidence. It is fine to argue a case for something (if that is what
the question asks) but you must also put the case against. Remember that the most
important part of this exercise is to answer the question set, not the one you think has been
set or the one that you would rather were set.
Make sure that you support your arguments with evidence. Simple assertions (even when I
happen to agree with them) rarely earn marks. This is intended to be an opportunity to
analyse a situation, not a comparison of prejudices. The articles and books that you read in
preparation for this essay should provide evidence and it is up to you to use it. Evidence,
paraphrasing and quotations should be properly attributed and you should ensure that any
work handed in is your own. The penalties for plagiarism are severe and the University does
check coursework for plagiarism. If you are in any doubt please ask for advice.
Referencing
The requirement for work supported by evidence from and analysis of appropriate theory
and literature requires that your assignment be referenced as appropriate and that it will
conclude with a reference section indicating the sources you have used. This should provide
full bibliographic information for all references used, in alphabetical order by first authors
surname. Failure to include references will result in a significant reduction in your
mark.
There exist a number of alternative referencing styles. Whichever you choose, please be
consistent. The minimum requirements are that where references have been used, this
should be identified in the text of your assignment, and that the reference list should contain
all the information that another person would need to be able to find that reference for their
self. I strongly recommend that students adopt the Harvard System for referencing.
The key feature of the Harvard System is that in a reference list it places the year of
publication immediately after the name of the author(s) and indicates the name of the
publication by underlining or in italics. All references given in this module handbook follow
this model. Under the Harvard System your reference list need to include specific
information, in a certain order:

For Books: Cite the Author(s) or Editors(s) Surnames(s) followed by their
initials, the Year of Publication, the Title of the book (in Italics), the Edition (if
revised or other than the first), the Place of Publication and the Publisher, for
example:
Torrington D. and Hall L. (1998) Human Resource Management (4th edition).
London: Prentice Hall.

For Journals and Periodicals: Cite the Author(s) Surname(s) followed by
initials, the Year of Publication, the Title of the Article, the Periodical Title (in
Italics), the Volume and Part Number (or Month of Publication) and the
Pagination, for example:
Spicer D.P. (1998) "Linking Mental Models and Cognitive Maps as an Aid to
Organisational Learning." Career Development International, Vol. 3 No.
3, pp. 125-132.

For Internet/ World Wide Web References: Cite the Author(s) Surname(s)
followed by initials (if any is identified), the Year of Publication (or date stamp of
site if any is given), the Title of the Site (in Italics), a full URL reference, and the
date on which you access the information, for example:
Jones P. (1999) Personnel on the Internet. URL:
http://www.management_information.co.uk/personnel/
(accessed on 27/03/00).
Or:
PC Magazine. URL: http//www.ziff.com/npcmag/ (accessed on
01/01/01).
The Harvard system also has conventions for referencing in text. When referring in the text
of your assignment to items in your reference list, the author(s) names and the date of
publication should be cited, for example:
In a recent study Spicer (1998) showed…
Or:
It has been demonstrated (Torrington and Hall 1998)…
Direct quotations should be kept to a minimum (see guidance on plagiarism below), but if
used these should be contained within quotation marks, and along with the author(s) names
and the date of publication, the page reference of the quote should also be given:
"Effective organisational learning is critical in today's turbulent business
conditions" (Spicer 1998, p. 125).
Style
There are a number of student study guides which provide general advice for assignment
writing available through the university library. I would strongly suggest that if you are not
confident in your report writing or feel you would benefit from further help in this regard to
look to these. Good examples include:



Cottrell S. (1999) The Study Skills Handbook. Basingstoke: Macmillan. (Chapters
7 and 8; pp. 131-187).
Giles K. and Hedge N. (eds.) (1998) The Manager's Good Study Guide. Milton
Keynes: Open University. (Chapters 4 and 5; pp. 81-136).
Northedge A. (1990) The Good Study Guide. Milton Keynes: Open University.
(Chapter 6; pp. 156-201).
In completing your assignment, please ensure that it COVERS ALL ASPECTS OF THE
TASK AS SET, and do not fall into the trap of talking about an issue in general terms, or
failing to complete all aspects of the assignment. This is the number one cause of students
failing to get the marks that their time and efforts deserve.
Your assignment must be WORD-PROCESSED. Before submission, please ensure that you
proof-read and edit your piece of work. It is better to do so a day or two after completing
your final draft. In that way, it is like looking at it anew. Watch out for spelling and
grammatical mistakes, ensure there are no inconsistencies and typographical errors, and
make sure it is understandable.
Length
Having a limit of 2,000 words will exercise your judgement and decision making skills. You
will need to determine what content is essential to include, what is peripheral and what is
unnecessary. Please ensure your assignment does not exceed 2,000 words in length.
University regulations state:
“Assessed work which exceeds a specified maximum permitted length will be
subject to a penalty deduction of marks equivalent to the percentage of
additional words over the limit. The limit excludes bibliographies, diagrams
and tables, footnotes, tables of contents and appendices of data.”
This means that if your assignment is 10% over length you would loose 10% of your mark
(i.e. a mark of 60% would be reduced to 54%). Penalties will be applied to work that is
significantly over-length.
Plagiarism
Please be aware that plagiarised or copied work will not be acceptable. All quotations
used in your coursework should be accorded recognition in your reference section. Long
passages of script from books or articles should not be used. Short passages should be
accorded recognition of their source. University regulations state, in part:
"A dissertation, thesis, essay, project or any work which is not undertaken in
an examination room under supervision but which is submitted by a student
for formal assessment during his/her course of study must be written by the
candidate him/herself and in his/her own words, except for quotations from
published and unpublished sources which shall be clearly indicated and
acknowledged as such...The incorporation of material from other works or a
paraphrase of such material without acknowledgement will be treated as
plagiarism subject to the custom and usage of the subject…"
Work which is found to be plagiarised or copied (identical or near identical work from
different students) will be investigated and be subject to disciplinary action. The penalties for
plagiarised or copied work are severe, with a minimum penalty being a mark of zero. The
University, however, may wish to impose a more severe penalty.