Why workforce diversity?

Question

If you were a senior manager of a firm, would you attempt to form teams composed of diverse employees ?

Answer 1

It depends on what you mean by diversity - there are many elements on which people differ from religion, culture, gender, sexual orientation, and just plain personal history.

There's two sides to this that aren't necessarily exclusive -

1) A good diverse mix of people tends to grant a workplace a group of people who have diverse ideas, think differently and approach problems and challenges in a different way. This can be very effective depending on the workplace as the creativeness and unique concepts that can occur can be very beneficial.

2) You have to be aware of the challenges involved in a diverse workplace as you can potentially have conflicts between individuals based on their personal beliefs, prejudices and/or background. This may or may not happen - it may require an effective manager, however diverse workplaces aren't uncommon now and good managers are able to work through any issues quickly.

I personally would be attempting to form a diverse group of employees if I was a senior manager as I believe the benefits far outweigh the negatives.