Workforce Diversity

When President Barack Obama signed Executive Order 13583 (2011), establishing a government-wide initiative to promote diversity and inclusion in the federal workforce, he set the standard for all corporations in America to recruit, hire, and retain a competitive and diverse workforce (para. 1). While diversity in business has been proven advantageous, as it brings a wide selection of backgrounds, talents, and perspectives to the table, we have yet to see that advantage fully translate to the boardroom, the pinnacle of power in the corporate world. The problem is that many of the white male members who sit on the boards of the biggest companies in the U.S. do not view diversity as relevant at the organization’s decision-making level. In fact, …show more content…
According to James (2016), a business becomes stronger and more competitive when it leverages the talents of all its employees (para. 2). Using the different backgrounds, cultures, and viewpoints of all the employees can help create better and more innovative strategies, ideas, products, and services. It has been documented repeatedly that inclusive, diverse teams outperform non-diverse teams in a variety of settings. The team focus should be shifted to empower all members of the organization to continuously work at a highly productive level to encourage innovation and …show more content…
Calvert Investments put together a comprehensive analysis study which reflected the hiring practices, internal and external initiatives to increase diversity, and the representation of women and minorities, of several major companies in the S&P 100 (Adams, 2013). Of the companies studied, Citigroup, Merck, Coca-Cola, and JP Morgan Chase got top ratings for their records on including women, minorities, and people with diverse sexual orientation, while Berkshire Hathaway and eBay scored at the bottom of the rankings for their poor diversity practices (Adams, 2013).
It is curious to note that Berkshire Hathaway comes in nearly last when CEO Warren Buffett (one of the most forward-thinking investors of the 20th and 21st centuries) has spoken out about the importance of promoting women at work. Adams (2011) reflected on his quote, at a conference on women, where he said “In the early years of corporate America, we wasted half our talent by ignoring women” (para. 5). Yet there is little indication that his company values diversity within their