Managers in charge of diverse work groups have a considerable list of tasks on their hands. What makes the job even more difficult is that all of these tasks need to be specifically tailored to the employee in question. The following are practices managers should not adopt when managing diversity in the workplace.
Leaving Issues to Build up Beneath the Surface
When regulating a diverse workplace, managers need to keep in mind that, most of the time, interpersonal issues are not made obvious in the slightest. The vast majority of concerns coworkers have with each other is left unsaid. While this leads to know visceral short term repercussions, these bottled-up issues can potentially explode in the long run if not dealt with, resulting in a disarrayed workplace. This is why it’s important for managers to hold regular meetings wherein employees can discuss their issues among themselves. As a less direct approach to start with (exemplified in certain PERM recruitment ads), managers can install a comment box in their office so that employees can anonymously voice the concerns they have. With that information in hand, managers can effectively proceed to regulate the problem before it backfires on all members involved.
Praising Some While Ignoring Others
Of course, in a company, there will inevitably be some employees who are more deserving of praise than others. However, that by no means suggests that any employee should essentially be ignored. Simply put, that’s a bad management practice. Managers should consider that, if they are repeatedly praising certain employees out in the open workspace, all employees who are not receiving praise are taking note of what’s going on, and it may lead to the employee feeling as though their work is under appreciated. For a workplace to function as optimally as it should, every worker needs to feel as though they’re significantly contributing to the company’s greater picture. That’s why managers should ration their attention equally among all employees. If the performance of a given worker is lacking, it’s up to the manager to give them the proper notes on how to improve.
Trying to Implement a “One-size-fits-all” Management Approach
When monitoring a diverse group, it would be convenient for managers to take the same approach with all employees in order to solve all problems, but this is unfortunately wishful thinking. A working group with diverse members of different genders, races, and age groups all have unique individual needs, all of which need to be acknowledged and respected by the manager. When trying to take the same approach with everyone, the approach will inevitably fail with some employees due to the nature of diversity. Managers regulating these groups have a lot of work on their hands since they need to devise specific practices for each member of their team.
