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ERIC Number: ED371809
Record Type: RIE
Publication Date: 1994-May
Pages: 24
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Why and How To Manage Diversity.
Burgos-Sasscer, Ruth
Demographic predictions indicate that by the end of this century only 15% of new entrants to the workforce will be white males, compared to 47% in 1985. Executives, as well as academic administrators, are being forced to learn how to manage a diverse employee population by cultivating, strengthening, and utilizing diverse talents and skills, rather than merely providing access to new groups. The barriers that exist to integrating new team members can be overcome by understanding differences of race, gender, disabilities, sexual orientation, and social class and recognizing that different groups may approach their work differently. More specifically, the following 10 strategies can help college presidents build diverse teams: (1) insist on a diverse pool of qualified candidates for managerial positions; (2) address salary inequities; (3) adopt flexible family needs policies; (5) disseminate information about student, faculty, and staff demographics; (6) provide seminars and workshops on diversity issues; (7) celebrate diverse cultural events; (8) provide opportunities for social events that bring diverse staff members and their families together; (9) set an example by behaving more like a colleague than a boss; and (10) empower the team through retreats, training in cross-cultural communication, seminars and workshops on Affirmative Action and Equal Employment Opportunity programs, encouraging innovation and new ideas, and minimizing hierarchical structures. (Contains 21 references.) (KP)
Publication Type: Opinion Papers; Speeches/Meeting Papers
Education Level: N/A
Audience: Administrators; Practitioners
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Note: Paper presented at the Annual International Conference of the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development on Teaching Excellence and Conference Administrators (16th, Austin, TX, May 22-25, 1994).