Amidst the challenges faced by SME’s in Ireland in 2018, a whopping 22% of organisations cited the recruitment of employees and retaining skilled employees as one of their major impediments to the success of their business.
In today’s business landscape, a larger number of recruiters and HR managers state that it has become increasingly difficult to hire and maintain young talent. This burgeoning phenomenon is known as ‘war for talent’.
Changing Business Landscape
The last ten years have seen a massive transformation, with diversity and inclusion garnering heightened attention. Major companies have made significant efforts to hire neurodiverse talent. What started as a mere acceptance strategy has now reaped immense rewards for these organisations.
Let us take a quick look at some of the leading companies that specialise in diversity in the workplace.
Marriot
This renowned hotel chain is committed to promoting a culture of diversity, equity and inclusion. The organisation was heralded ‘Best Place to Work for LGBT Equality’ after receiving a remarkable score on the HRC’s 2016 Corporate quality Index, a well-regarded yardstick for diversity and inclusion.
Novartis
The pharmaceutical giant has replaced the word ‘disability’ with ‘diverseability’ to promote a more accepting culture. The HR managers are well-educated on topics of diversity so the organisation can foster a more inclusive hiring process.
Accenture
Accenture strives to create a culture that transcends gender, disability, religion, gender orientation and ethnicity bias. To avoid any discrepancy in treatment, Accenture has launched three diversity programs, to help people understand the importance of diversity, educate executives on how to manage diverse teams and to help the diverse employees nurture their skills for success.
Diversity & Inclusion: The Future of the Workplace
Diversity and inclusion in the workplace should never be just a promotional strategy to improve the company’s reputation. A study found a direct correlation between revenue and diversity among employees. Statistics prove that companies with higher levels of racial diversity reported 15 times greater sales revenue and generation.
The millennial generation is 16% more diverse than baby boomers and given that the workforce is expected to comprise 75% of the millennial group by 2025, diversity and inclusion in staffing is the way forward if you wish to thrive in the market.
Ensuring that your workforce has a healthy inclusion of marginalised groups like; women in senior roles, people of colour, LGBT+, is no easy task but we have found that organisations who have implemented DE&I strategies, have seen several lucrative benefits as a result of their commitments.
Improved Business Reputation
In today’s world, staffing trends have drastically changed. The same way potential employees are vying for top jobs; companies are also battling for the cream of employees. The younger generation is now becoming more aware and perpetuates a broader and more inclusive mindset. This trickles down to workplace diversity.
Greater Cultural Insight
With the onset of globalisation, there has been a fusion of ideas and strategies from all over the world. In light of this, it would be rather negligent of an organisation not to leverage the power of cultural diversity. Employees from different cultural backgrounds will bring something new to the table that might have the potential to improve the company’s work ethic and sales generation. Hiring a workforce form a broad spectrum of backgrounds will inculcate more skill, talent, and experience in the workplace.
Another major reason to diversify your workforce is to reach a far wider clientele. As mentioned above, globalisation and the onset of a digital era have paved the way for companies to access a wider customer base. However, tapping into foreign markets with language and cultural barriers might pose as a hindrance. To step into international waters with ease, a diverse workplace is necessary.
Reduced Employee Turnover
Statistics corroborate the fact that diverse companies tend to outperform their less diverse competitors. A major hit to any company is employee turnover as the employer will have to invest time, money and energy into recruiting and training an employee to fill the position of the last one. With increasing competition for talent, companies are on their toes to retain their good workers.
Research has shown that diverse workplaces are a dependable way to reduce employee turnover. Since diversity in the workplace makes the company appear more welcoming, aware of the employees’ needs and ethical values, there is significantly higher employee retention.
Ushering Diversity
Diversity and inclusion in the workplace is not only the future but also the goldmine for organisations. Instead of slashing profits trying to hire and re-train recruits, try to work towards retaining old ones by nurturing a more inclusive and welcoming culture at work.
We work towards a singular goal to promote the three keys of the new business landscape: diversity, inclusion and equity. Our aim is to promote the best employers in Northern Ireland, who are leading the front with the right strategies of equity in pay, merit-based hiring, employee engagement and commitments to diversifying their workforce.
