Description
Discrimination is the prejudicial and/or distinguishing treatment of an individual based on their actual or perceived membership in a certain group or category, "in a way that is worse than the way people are usually treated.
Business Case for Positive Discrimination
provision means that in the UK a form of positive discrimination will be lawful. Thus, if managers have a sound business case for diversity, then they now have at their disposal an additional legal means of actually delivering diversity and reaping the business benefits. Consequently, for many organisations there will be a business case for using this particular form of positive discrimination.
References
Noon, M. (2010) 'The shackled runner: time to rethink positive discrimination?' Work, Employment and Society; 24(4): 728-739
1
Professor Mustafa Özbilgin
Professor of Organisational Behaviourl Brunel Business Schoo
A
lthough laws tackle direct and indirect forms of discrimination, subtle forms are harder to
old guard continue to dictate definitions of merit, talent, skill and education in ways that suit themselves, they also continue to resist change interventions and measures such as positive discrimination, quotas, positive action — challenges to the status quo. Their resistance takes multiple forms, including suggestions that equality interventions are unnecessary, forced, rushed or in conflict with the interests of business. Evidence suggests resistance to diversity is, at best, ill informed. There is nothing more valuable to business than the effective recruitment, deployment and retention of talented staff, an approach which should recognise talent is more diverse than before. So something has to give. Reflecting on the success of quotas in Northern European boardrooms, we need to demand stronger legal measures to tackle the long standing inequalities keeping diversity at arm's length. At the same time we must work to redefine merit. So, how can we break the stalemate of slow change and limited legislation? I recommend an evidencebased approach, which can help us measure and monitor the full extent of diversity of talent, redefine its changing dimensions, needs and requirements, and translate them into organisational design. Such efforts require diversity managers to serve as and work with other agents of change. The agency of change may start with investigating the
explicit and subtle indicators of performance at work and systematically challenge the biases underlying them from the diversity perspective. What law currently offers us in terms of positive discrimination, positive action, quotas and other equality measures severely lacks imagination. There is a strong business imperative to expand our organisational definitions, policies and repertoires of management rather than to simply follow the minimum requirements of law. Future-proofing organisations will require us to prepare our workplaces to the challenges of the next two decades with its promise of greater, rather than less, diversity at work. This requires a thoughtful evidence-based approach, involving external and internal diversity as well as future trends to ensure effective management of talent in the organisation1. Ultimately, we need to identify and translate into job design what motivates and satisfies individuals at work, and what makes them commit and perform better. Leveraging diversity for high performance promises workers more autonomy, better recognition, fair rewards, better work/life balance, more flexibility, security and wider possibilities of personal and professional development.
References
Özbilgin MF, Tatli A. (2008) Global Diversity Management: an evidence based approach. Palgrave: Basingstoke.
1
combat using the blunt measures of law alone. One of the subtle forms law fails to capture is the very definition and construction of talent itself. Although diversity in the main has increased, how we recognise talent remains immune to these changes and our definitions of talent have remained narrow in ways that only cater for the needs of the old guard (ie, the white, middle-aged, middle class, heterosexual man). Not only does the
www.talentengagementreview.com/categories
TER
Spring Volume 1 Issue 3
13
doc_820017808.docx
Discrimination is the prejudicial and/or distinguishing treatment of an individual based on their actual or perceived membership in a certain group or category, "in a way that is worse than the way people are usually treated.
Business Case for Positive Discrimination
provision means that in the UK a form of positive discrimination will be lawful. Thus, if managers have a sound business case for diversity, then they now have at their disposal an additional legal means of actually delivering diversity and reaping the business benefits. Consequently, for many organisations there will be a business case for using this particular form of positive discrimination.
References
Noon, M. (2010) 'The shackled runner: time to rethink positive discrimination?' Work, Employment and Society; 24(4): 728-739
1
Professor Mustafa Özbilgin
Professor of Organisational Behaviourl Brunel Business Schoo
A
lthough laws tackle direct and indirect forms of discrimination, subtle forms are harder to
old guard continue to dictate definitions of merit, talent, skill and education in ways that suit themselves, they also continue to resist change interventions and measures such as positive discrimination, quotas, positive action — challenges to the status quo. Their resistance takes multiple forms, including suggestions that equality interventions are unnecessary, forced, rushed or in conflict with the interests of business. Evidence suggests resistance to diversity is, at best, ill informed. There is nothing more valuable to business than the effective recruitment, deployment and retention of talented staff, an approach which should recognise talent is more diverse than before. So something has to give. Reflecting on the success of quotas in Northern European boardrooms, we need to demand stronger legal measures to tackle the long standing inequalities keeping diversity at arm's length. At the same time we must work to redefine merit. So, how can we break the stalemate of slow change and limited legislation? I recommend an evidencebased approach, which can help us measure and monitor the full extent of diversity of talent, redefine its changing dimensions, needs and requirements, and translate them into organisational design. Such efforts require diversity managers to serve as and work with other agents of change. The agency of change may start with investigating the
explicit and subtle indicators of performance at work and systematically challenge the biases underlying them from the diversity perspective. What law currently offers us in terms of positive discrimination, positive action, quotas and other equality measures severely lacks imagination. There is a strong business imperative to expand our organisational definitions, policies and repertoires of management rather than to simply follow the minimum requirements of law. Future-proofing organisations will require us to prepare our workplaces to the challenges of the next two decades with its promise of greater, rather than less, diversity at work. This requires a thoughtful evidence-based approach, involving external and internal diversity as well as future trends to ensure effective management of talent in the organisation1. Ultimately, we need to identify and translate into job design what motivates and satisfies individuals at work, and what makes them commit and perform better. Leveraging diversity for high performance promises workers more autonomy, better recognition, fair rewards, better work/life balance, more flexibility, security and wider possibilities of personal and professional development.
References
Özbilgin MF, Tatli A. (2008) Global Diversity Management: an evidence based approach. Palgrave: Basingstoke.
1
combat using the blunt measures of law alone. One of the subtle forms law fails to capture is the very definition and construction of talent itself. Although diversity in the main has increased, how we recognise talent remains immune to these changes and our definitions of talent have remained narrow in ways that only cater for the needs of the old guard (ie, the white, middle-aged, middle class, heterosexual man). Not only does the
www.talentengagementreview.com/categories
TER
Spring Volume 1 Issue 3
13
doc_820017808.docx