18 July
Today, many persons in charge are poorly prepared to manage diversity issues. We have grew up in different religions, languages, education, socioeconomic status, work background, tradition and culture which are great challenges when we are working with such diverse people.
For all those who play a part in a very difficult negotiating process, growing the wisdom to bring together with differing views for the common interest of the people is very important. We need to have the courage to accept dissimilar ideas and practices because of very dynamic socio-cultural changes and conflicting societies. It is a reality.
Diversity affects management and unity of an organization. Classification of diversity is off limits, which can be similar or dissimilar to each other. Most of the people know Diversity is just gender and ethnicity. Actually, diversity is more than just two; it can also include age, income, marital status, personality, parental status, religious beliefs, educational background, work service, geographical location, learning styles and any other different identities. In a global market, many companies and government organizations have robust cultures and management for workplace diversity which are becoming a business necessity to build effective working relationships and diversity values among diverse individuals by combining similarities. We are not able to achieve particular desires and objectives in certain situations in various cultures. In today’s many workplaces, you will see multicultural admixture of workforce from different cultures, ethnicities, lifestyles and backgrounds, and likewise our diversity in peace and unity in our country. It was expressed in many research studies that replications of some foremost management principles and theories failed due to the valued cultural setting of minorities especially in the areas of leadership and decision making, welfare distribution and pattern of training.
Diversity consists of both differences and similarities and is a fact of life when we talk about an issue, neither one should be ignored because of varieties of things, people, feelings, ideas. It is a fundamental concern. In diversity management, All-inclusiveness is very important for unity especially for those who are falling out of the group such as women, children, minorities, and disabled persons. Recognition of their representation, quota and affirmative action is the reason for an opportunity for diversity. By contrast, there may be some people having different opinions from the majority. As concerned, the majority cannot accept such dissimilar things which are also mistaken anonymously. From the majority site, they need to create a safe space to hear the unspecified voices of the minorities. This type of management makes good results and prevents the unnecessary consequences of the group.
In a diverse organization, creating multicultural network groups strongly support the power of diversity in this organization and can provide a broader and deeper experiences and ideas for making problem-solving, creativity and innovation. As a result, that value encourages the minority members to reduce their social isolation, to be more efficient in their works leading to positive impact and good opportunities for carrier development and on their organization. With such similarities and differences, we must consider that we all are inclusive and every individual contribution is more or less important to the decision-making process of the group.
With all those who play a part in the peace process, we must create a common ground for all to work together for national unity by generating bigger things together. In fact, unity is constructive efforts that require wisdom, courage and perseverance. The wisdom is the quality of knowledge of reuniting differing views, and courage is the strong will of accepting ideas and new practices. On top of those characters, our constant perseverance surely overcomes misunderstandings and misbelief among us.
In a negotiation process, both diverse sides face obviously intense discussions, exchange of views and debates to reach common agreements on issues. On the whole, we must recognize and follow the principles of powerful negotiation. They are courtesy, honesty, openness, empathy, patience, flexibility, mutual understanding and transparency. We should not focus on the weakness of another side. We must seek to identify the constructive outlooks and conceptions which can contribute to strengthening among us.
We must listen to the speech of all sides carefully. Through this productive dialogue we can be able more to identify the common ground and can build trusts and expectations. We believe that mutual respect among diverse individuals and big acknowledgment of the importance of others’ differences foster to find easily similarities.
Recognizing individual diverse talents and experiences can make a greater variety of solutions to problems and build synergy with better attitudes and more efficient processes. Diversity in an organization or a group reflects diversity in a large society.
In conclusion, unity in diversity fundamentally can be used as a popular slogan in my country as an expression of harmony and unity among dissimilar groups. If the diversity of the people can be applied to the peace process as an opportunity, it will bring about good performance, greater achievement, wealth and happiness, and also social harmony, stability and security without riots, civil wars and fears.
“Let us confidently exercise the opportunity with the strengths of diversity to live in unity.”
By Dr.Myat Moe
