Employers are missing the mark when it comes to managing diversity within the workplace

While much progress has been made, attitudes to diversity in the workplace remain old school. By default most employers seem to be missing out on the real business benefits that a more informed understanding and application of the business case and good practice could deliver. This is according to a survey, Diversity in business ñ a focus for progress, from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD).

The new report uses a diversity sophistication index based on the survey responses, to measure the progress employers have made. This makes it clear that while employers focus on responding to legal requirements the majority fail to focus on the broader business benefits, such as improving creativity and innovation, which they could derive from putting managing diversity at the heart of operational activities. The top business benefit is perceived to be better talent management, showing how attention to managing diversity is largely related to people management and development issues.

Public sector employers lead the way in managing diversity and they are closely followed by those in the voluntary sector ñ five of the top scoring organisations were from the public sector. But no organisation represented in the survey sample scored the maximum marks. The gap in the very top scores, achieved by only five organisations, and the potential that could be achieved is 16%.

Dianah Worman, CIPD Diversity Adviser, says: ìThe survey shows that the state of play with regards to diversity in the UK is more cosmetic than real. By adopting a box ticking approach organisations are missing out on the real business benefits of diversity ñ such as creativity and innovation and improving access to customers and retaining their loyalty. Investing properly in building a diverse workforce could unleash those benefits and boost business performance.

ìOrganisations should not simply focus on increasing diversity but learn how to manage it better, in ways that address both organisational and personal needs. This requires more than minimal legal compliance. It requires an understanding about the inclusive nature of managing diversity and how to manage it effectively to add value to business performance.

ìThe new Commission for Equality and Human Rights needs to focus its attention on the issue of education and awareness-raising and providing guidance and support, rather than being pre-occupied with policing legislation. Only through getting the message about the potential business benefits and improved understanding of the intrinsic relevance of diversity, will businesses speed up the rate of progress revealed by the CIPD research.î

The survey shows that the support of senior management and top teams is a critical lever to facilitate the progress of diversity. But less than half (42%) of people with responsibility for diversity feel that senior management in their organisations encourage diversity ñ in fact only 16% are positive they have senior management support.

ìThose with responsibility for diversity cannot be expected to add value to business on their own. They need the support of senior managers and the board. By having more people, at senior levels with a responsibility for diversity, the pace of change and benefits to business will improve,î adds Worman.

Other findings:

Large organisations are more sophisticated in their approach to diversity ñ 38% of large organisations achieve the highest levels of sophistication compared to just 11% of medium sized organisations and 3% of small organisations.

Public sector organisations are more sophisticated than organisations in the private and voluntary sectors: only 7% of private sector organisations achieve the top scores amongst survey respondents, compared to 34% of public sector organisations and 18% of voluntary sector organisations.

Legal pressures are the main driver of diversity (68% of survey respondents believe it is a key driver).

Less than half of survey respondents rank diversity as most important in helping to improve innovation and creativity and customer relations (43%) and just one-third rank responding to the competition in the market.

44% of survey respondents believe improving products and services is a key driver of diversity.

39% of survey respondents believe reaching diverse markets is a key driver of diversity.