29Jan

5 Ways to Successfully Manage Diversity at Workplace

It’s certain you’ve come across individuals asserting that the world has now developed into a global village. However, this statement is not literal, symbolically, the world has indeed contracted. Technology has brought all of us closer together – especially when it comes to the workforce. Hence, it becomes imperative that we deal with diversity in the best way possible. Therefore, we’ve made a list of 5 things you can do to successfully manage diversity:

  1. Communication is key

Teams are comprised of various employees from all over the world who carry various viewpoints. This is an appreciated quality to have. But it is vital to make sure all channels of communication are open so that you avoid any misconception. What might be well-mannered in one culture may be completely ill-mannered in another. Language is a reproduction of culture. Each language has its own definition of things. This applies to body language as well. In many cultures eye contact is important when communicating; yet, it can be a sign of disrespect in some cultures. Making sure communication occurs freely means discussing any confusion and mishaps too. Also make sure there is an efficient system of salary management using an effective payroll solution to increase morale.

  1. No preconceived notions are allowed

We truly live in a global atmosphere, supported further by development in technology. While we have witnessed various cultures, languages and people for a long time, it doesn’t stop us from concealing preconceived notions and stereotypes about certain cultures. In order to manage a team of diverse employees, it’s important for the corporates to eliminate any ideas of a culture that they might occur in their minds.

  1. Foster a culture of teamwork and trust

Having teams that include different people from different work cultures and different work experiences can boost an atmosphere of teamwork. It’s also an excellent way to get numerous ideas together because there is more creativity from different sources. The motivation and thoughts that can derive from working together can be an excellent way to create unity between your team. This can result in teams that create successful relationships. Google did a study and found that employees do exceptionally well when they feel their work helps others. Be it family, community or the world as a whole. This also brings in the much-needed quality of trust. Through high levels of trust, you facilitate collaboration, promote smoother communication and this reduces the amount of miscommunication that can occur.

  1. Conflict resolution skills

Working in a team of individuals from various cultures and viewpoints is definitely going to bring in some conflicts. Attitudes and habits that differ can create some dispute among the team members. The varied elegance of working can produce positive work but they can also cause bitterness. By allowing the team to listen cautiously to dissimilar viewpoints and explore all possibilities instead of contacting HR, they will learn to deal with dispute. Teaching team members to acknowledge disputes will result in better teams and understanding amongst the team members.

  1. Ask for scheduled feedback

One of the easiest ways to handle a varied team is to seek out episodic feedback. By inquiring your team on how well you are performing, you open room for improvement. For instance, there may be some in your team who are happy with the prevalent management system, while some may not be. It is important to understand this and make the necessary changes. As with other relationships, there must be transparency and rapport between the management and the employees.  Asking for regular feedback ensures that you can always advance your managing style and produce a more unified and adaptive work atmosphere. Therefore, do not hesitate to ask for feedback and be open to all kinds of feedback.

16Jan

Three Reasons Why Office Festive Can Accelerate Employee Engagement

Keeping your employees fully engaged during the holiday season, from Diwali to Holi, is challenging. Assignments can get harder to complete as co-workers start taking more and more time off. Employees are thinking about their friends and family members who are on leave for the holidays. Children are also on leave, obscuring scheduling. Teams must stay back and work additional hours in order to meet client demands. Bosses add extra pressure on their employees to meet pre-set goals, but often forget to give them satisfactory acknowledgment. With statistics showing that only a meek 13% of employees worldwide being engaged, it’s particularly vital not to lose vision of employee acknowledgment and recognition during the tough holiday season.

So how do you maintain employee engagement under such complicated situations? One of the simplest ways is to drastically increase the use of employee recognition finest practices and strengthen positive relationships between employees and employers. HR must use festivals as brilliant occasions to engage employees in a positive and incremental way. Here are three reasons why celebrating some of the important festivals can be good for employee engagement.

Don’t be extra formal!

The main reason why celebrating festivals at offices can boost engagement is due to the informal atmosphere it creates. It is the perfect way to socialize in an otherwise busy, professional and formal office environment. Employees can relax and freely engage in fun and exciting games. They are excited about the prizes and gifts and find it very satisfying to take part in them.

Torsha B, an editor who works with a market research company in India says, “I relish the general mindless games we play during the holidays. Team-building or educative games are best kept for corporate gatherings or programs. Also, HR puts a lot of thought behind gifts now, which are not just some sweets or dry fruit stuff.  So, it’s thrilling to get some distinct vouchers. The casual aspect of the festivity is a break in an otherwise professional environment.”

Fellow feeling

Because HR takes care of all the departmental procedures, they are usually not very well connected to. The festive experience helps in creating a better relationship amongst the departments. Usually, each department has absolutely no direct work-based contacts, except for mutual events. And inter-departmental events are now and then problematic to pull through for hosts of issues, like mismatch among colleagues, dissimilar work approaches etc. Keeping these issues into consideration, the HR department hosts public festival games where employees with dissimilar departmental members enlist. “We arrange good, thrilling viable games to increase the creativity of the employees. We also give out correspondingly exciting gifts which are a way to say that our employees are important for us. These festivities additionally stimulate employees to partake in the company events with much fervor,” said Shraddha, a member of the cultural team in an MNC based in Mumbai.

Easy induction for newbies

New employees, together with novices have a strong craving to blend in. These festivities are a seamless way to do that. Employees are provided with the opportunity to meet and engage with the office staff, and because it’s informal the introduction process becomes easier to understand. Some tips by veteran employees about the organizational procedures instantly give the new ones a strong sense of belonging. “I find official induction very uninteresting. I joined a firm just at that time of their Diwali celebrations. And I knew no one there but one HR person and my supervisor. But the HR team made sure my name was contained within team games, and even a minor introduction was done by them. I instantly felt at home,” said Vidisha Sharma, a digital marketing expert.