Diversity in the Workplace: If You Build It, They Will Come . . . But Will They Stay?

As more and more companies are coming to understand, diversity is more than just a number. Having a diverse workplace is vital in competitively positioning your company in an increasingly global marketplace. According to an online survey by the Novations Group of over 2,500 senior HR and training executives, 41% said their employers have broadened their diversity efforts because of the impact of globalization.

Human resources across the board have become well versed in diversity recruitment and are utilizing current best practices to their advantage. However, most companies have not moved beyond the point of hire. If an employee is hired through an exemplary multicultural recruitment program, the company needs to continue programs and practices to back it up. To do this, the corporate culture sometimes needs to shift to reflect a genuinely diverse workplace.

Before this can be achieved, it first needs to be defined. In a recent survey by The Society for Human Resources Management, most of the 1,400 HR professionals surveyed believed that workplace diversity was important, but only 30% had an official definition of what it meant for their organization. Companies need to clearly define workplace diversity with a common language about its purpose, its benefits and how it should be implemented.

An in-depth understanding of cultural and religious differences is vital - acknowledging the many traditions, practices and holidays creates inclusion and educates employees. Surprisingly, religious bias complaints to the EEOC have increased 84% since 1995 – more than workplace discrimination based on race, national origin or sex!

Many companies are currently doing all the right things when it comes to multicultural retention practices. Diversity Inc.’s top 10 companies for recruitment and retention have the largest share of top talent from traditionally underrepresented groups and all of these companies have unbiased retention, which means that all employees are retained at equal levels regardless of race, ethnicity or gender. For example:
• JPMorgan Chase reports 41% of its work force are Black, Asian, Latino and Native American, remarkable numbers for a financial-services company. They offer innovative work/life benefits like a 24-hour helpline providing guidance and referrals, educational counseling for school-age children, disability counseling and time-management counseling.
• Verizon relies on its strong employee-resource groups as essential to its retention efforts, and it shows since 39% of management are Black, Asian, Latino and Native American, compared with the national average of 17% (EEOC).
• At Wachovia, another financial-services company, an amazing 81% of those promoted in management were Black, Asian, Latino and Native American. They offer mandatory diversity training for their entire work force and also have a first-rate mentoring program and work/life programs including on- and off-ramping, floating religious holidays, a Moms Corps, and family leave time and adoption assistance for domestic partners. They feature strong diversity metrics, including salary and recruitment data by race/ethnicity and gender, employee focus-group feedback on diversity, line-of-business diversity reviews, and CEO diversity reviews.
• Macy's has an excellent mentoring program and half of its’ work force are Black, Asian, Latino and Native American. The company has mandatory diversity training for its entire work force and mandatory employee surveys.
• Coca-Cola puts strong emphasis on employee engagement and developing a pipeline of talented people from all groups. 33% of its managers and 20% of senior managers represent multicultural groups. Plus, 40% of managers are promoted from those groups.
• PriceWaterhouseCoopers is known for its talent development. Senior management (direct reports to the CEO) is made up of 22% Black, Asian, Latino and Native American and all of its managers participate in its mentoring program. The company is a leader in finding new ways of retaining and promoting top talent, including on- and off-ramping, a work/life resource and referral service, family sick days, floating religious holidays, firm-wide holiday shutdowns, reimbursement for emergency childcare, childcare discounts at leading national vendors, and new mentor-moms programs. They refuse to do business in countries that don't adhere to the same human-rights values as the firm and in 2006, formed a Global Gender Advisory Council reporting to the global CEO.
• Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide has unbiased retention and 33% of managers promoted were from diversity backgrounds. They also spend 13% of their Tier I (contractor) procurement with minority- and women-owned suppliers, compared with the Diversity Inc. Top 50 average of 9%.

Strong mentoring programs, robust diversity employee affinity groups, a common definition of what diversity means to the organization and cultural awareness and education are just a few of the best practices being used to retain a diverse employee base. Valuing cultural diversity and defining what that means to your company are essential to retaining multicultural employees and to maintaining a successful diverse workplace. It’s time to move beyond a cookie cutter approach to embrace the full potential of a global workforce in today’s global marketplace.