How can a company make its internship program more diverse? Here’s how!

A growing number of companies nowadays are placing a high value on promoting employee diversity and inclusion, but a recent survey by InternMatch have found that not all of these companies actually succeed in making their internship programs as diverse as they desire them to be.

For hiring managers who are looking for ways on how to make their intership programs more diverse and inclusive, here are some tips that may help:

1. Track the number of diverse interns your company hires every year, as well as the sources for these hires.

2. Network with groups and organizations with a national reach to help you find talented minorities.

3. Invest time and resources in mentoring young students.

4. Communicate your company’s diversity initiatives and support them with concrete programs and visible actions.

5. Look beyond traditional hiring strategies to engage potential hires.

Visit diversityworking.com to read the full story.

Diversity expert speaks at University of Chicago to fight discrimination

Tim Wise, a renowned writer, educator and anti-discrimination advocate, was at the University of Chicago on May 6 to raise students’ awareness about race and gender inequality in the U.S. Wise also told students how they can become part of the solution to end racism and gender discrimination in the country. 

In his talk entitled, “Affirmative Action, a Post-Racial Society, and White Privilege,” Wise pointed out that the ignorance of dominant social groups in our society is a persistent problem, which contributes to educational disparity in the U.S. Being part of a dominant social group means “knowing that what else others of our race do, we will not have to answer for them,” he said.

Wise, who is known for his strong anti-racism stance, also touched on the subject of gender discrimination during his talk. He encouraged his listeners to widen their view and understanding about race, sexuality and gender in order to reduce the problem of discrimination in the country.

Wise also dealt with a recent instance of racial discrimination in the University of Chicago, which involved posting of offensive contents on the Internet.

“If you think it’s OK to post anonymous homophobic, racist, sexist things…. You are not qualified to attend a university in the United States of America, especially this one,” he said in reaction to the incident.

After his talk, students said they gained new understanding of the issue of race and gender.

Wise is just among the many faces that combat discrimination and promote diversity in society and in the workplace. If you’re interested to find out more about this subject, visit diversityworking.com and see how companies and other groups promote diversity

What diversity really means

The push for workplace diversity and inclusion has been going on for decades, not just in the U.S. but all across the globe. While most people think that the concept of workplace diversity is chiefly about creating an inclusive workplace for people from different cultural backgrounds, the idea is actually bigger than the issue of race and racial discrimination.

Workplace diversity means recognizing and respecting individual differences. These differences include several dimensions such as race, age, gender, sexual preference, ethnicity, religion, social status and even political beliefs.

But diversity goes way beyond these dimensions. It also means being open to people with different experiences, personalities, communication styles, physical appearance and level of comprehension or learning.

Diversity yields significant benefits to people, businesses and communities. Among many others, diversity allows a person to explore new cultures and backgrounds, which can be essential in his or her personal development. This cultural awareness gives people a deeper level of understanding about the world. It also helps people understand themselves and enables them to relate with others more effectively.

Several factors are important in achieving diversity, not just in the workplace but even in businesses, schools and communities.

The first step to achieving diversity is knowing a person’s traits, both the visible and the invisible. We must be very careful not to pass judgment on a person based on superficial traits such as a person’s clothing or even a person’s hairstyle. Judging others based on their outward traits creates a gap that could prevent people from creating bonds, business relationships or friendships. Thus, it is important that we get to know the person deeper before passing judgment.

After knowing the person, the next step is to welcome him or her into the community. Once we get past the person’s traits, we can freely interact with that person regardless of his or her cultural background, sexual orientation or appearance.

All in all, respect and acceptance are the foundations of diversity. To know more about this topic, visit diversityworking.com and see how U.S. companies and the government work hand in hand in promoting workplace diversity across the country.

Microsoft expert encourages firms to hire women execs, engineers

Blaise Aguera y Arcas, a fellow at Microsoft Research, strongly believes that women will dominate the tech market in the future, and so tech firms should get as much women as possible on board in order to tap this potential market.

Speaking at a conference in Tel Aviv, Israel, Aguera y Arcas disclosed that based on his research, women’s incomes will most likely surpass those of men’s in the future as more women graduate from college than men. These findings debunk a current popular notion that students can stay out of college and still become successful, owing to the fact that several tech founders, including Bill Gates himself, never finished college.

"I've heard some nonsense that college isn't worth anything and it’s better to just found a startup. That's rubbish as far as I can see. All the data shows college earns you way more money over your career," he said.

By 2020, these women would have bigger incomes and more money to spend. The challenge for tech companies, then, is to lure these women into buying their products by designing mobile apps and gadgets that cater to women’s needs and preferences. Hence, companies should get more women on board in engineering, conceptualizing and even reviewing apps, gadgets and other tech products.

"If you can, hire women engineers and CEOs," he said.

Microsoft is one of the leading companies that promote workplace diversity and inclusion. Aside from valuing women as an integral part of the company’s success, Microsoft also promotes cultural diversity in its workforce.

To find out more about what Microsoft is doing to boost diversity, visit diversityworking.com.

Study: Team-building activities don’t always work

Team-building activities and work social events are often used by most companies to develop rapport between their employees and create an inclusive workplace. But a new study found that these activities don’t always achieve their intended purpose.

According to the study, team-building activities may be effective in improving relationships between employees that belong in the same racial or social class, but they don’t always work in building close ties between employees from dissimilar groups.

Experts suggest that instead of focusing on creating work social programs, employers should instead focus on promoting diversity and inclusiveness in the workplace. That way, employees would be empowered to contribute to the company’s overall growth as they find their niche in the workplace.

"Sometimes you can create cohesion around the work task itself — you don’t need outside social interaction. If everyone can feel good about the work they do and celebrate the successes they achieve together, it is not necessary to find ways to connect outside of work," according to Tracy Dumas, the lead author of the study.

Read the entire report at diversityworking.com.

The importance of diversity in the workplace

Discrimination and unfair biases still exist in the workplace at present, and diversity advocates still work round the clock to push for a more inclusive job market that provides a level playing field for all people regardless of their gender, race, ethnicity, religion, age and appearance.

All over the world, companies and organizations that tout workplace diversity boast of significant growth in their bottom line after they embraced the idea of diversity. As employees become empowered and feel comfortable to work with their bosses and colleagues, they feel more motivated to contribute to the company’s well-being. Many studies have shown that increasing workplace diversity yields business success, better productivity and improved customer service.

Because of this, a growing number of companies are beginning to create diversity and inclusion programs in a bid to break cultural barriers and bridge the gap between employees.

Now, for business owners and employers who want to embrace workplace diversity, you can begin by engaging your employees to embrace diversity and work hand in hand to promote diversity. You may also implement programs and policies that give equal business and employment opportunities.

Respect and fairness are the foundations of a truly diverse workplace. See to it that your company promotes these values in all your dealings, particularly in hiring new employees and managing your workforce. In the end, your efforts and initiatives will pay off as your company achieves significant growth.

To learn more about diversity, visit diversityworking.com.

Top tips on how to create a diverse workplace

Creating a diverse workplace is the cornerstone of growth, so companies and organizations that desire to attain exponential growth should strive to achieve genuine workplace diversity, said Nareen Young, CEO of Diversity Council Australia.

According to Young, male workers in Australia currently get higher salaries than women. “Across the demographics it's 17.5% between men and women in Australia right now, recent DCA research has shown us it's 37% for women 45 and over,” she said.

“That's obviously not good enough and clearly that would indicate a couple of things; there are not enough women in senior and executive positions in the employment market, but also that remuneration processes are clearly still very gendered,” Young added.

And so, to help companies create a truly inclusive and diverse workplace, Young gave the following tips:·    

•  Evaluate the company’s level of inclusiveness and identify and resolve issues that hinder diversity.
•  Communicate the benefits of creating a diverse workplace to your employees and engage them to take part in achieving the goal.
• Root out discrimination in the company, particularly in the hiring and retention process.
• Value employees from diverse cultural and racial backgrounds; these employees may help you expand your market reach because of their diverse knowledge and experiences.
• Provide equal flexible work privileges to all employees, regardless of age, race or gender.
• Respect indigenous people’s customs, beliefs and traditions.
• Put your managers to task in promoting workplace diversity.
• Ensure employee protection against workplace discrimination and sexual harassment.

These tips can help a company or an organization achieve genuine workplace diversity. When carefully followed, this could eventually yield significant benefits for the company’s bottomline. 

“Diversity needs to be viewed as a key business strategy and it needs to work across organizations in all areas and aspects of business,” Young said.

Read the article here:  Pro Bono Australia