Nowadays, when we think of diversity, we immediately think of people representing different genders, age groups, social backgrounds, race among other factors. While these do indeed offer a great starting point, limiting yourself or your company, for that matter, to choosing candidates that only tick the aforementioned boxes will not be enough.
Having a qualified workforce is at the very core of a successful company, however, the key here is to make sure that everyone brings a set of skills to the table that are unique. The more diverse your team is, the better decisions they will make together and this can lead to a more creative and unconventional approach not only to decision making but also to team-building and company dynamics altogether.
Let's look at some of the key factors for having a diverse team:
1. Unique Viewpoints and Skills
While it goes without saying that your employees will share many common skills, it's absolutely essential to ensure that there is enough variety in their backgrounds, previous work experiences, and even personal interests. The main goal is to hire people that fit each role, but your company will benefit more if you consider people with relevant skills from, perhaps, different industries or people who have worked abroad as they can bring invaluable cultural perspective.
2. Diversity Drives Progress and Innovation
Imagine a team where everyone is great at processing data but nobody feels strong enough to take it to the next level and present their findings in a captivating way. A job half done. This is why every team needs diversity - someone who is great at being analytical and someone who can look at things from more of a creative side.
3. Language and Cultural Understanding
So many misunderstandings both locally and on a global scale could be avoided if people could speak the same language. Often, quite literally. Language and a cultural understanding of traditions, customs, and social norms is key to being able to build bridges, especially in business. The more diverse your team is in terms of ethnicity and nationalities, the greater your gains as a company. For example, a hotel in Austria hires refugees as they have exceptional language skills - more than 20 languages are spoken among employees at this particular hotel.
4. Access To a Bigger Talent Pool
Having a diverse workforce is something that can greatly improve your chances of attracting excellent talent for open positions. As long as you showcase how progressive your company is, people will resonate with it and the diversity will grow naturally. Now, more than ever, equality and diversity in the workforce is something that people value and seek out when looking for new jobs.
5. Improves Employee Satisfaction and Performance
No matter how qualified your employees are, they will not perform at their best unless satisfied professionally. The work environment is key here. Being able to trust the company they work for and connecting with the core values. Inclusion and equality are particularly important. No matter what role your employees work in or what beliefs, interests, and social background they have, they need to feel like they matter in the bigger picture in your company.
