Introduction
The evolution and advancement of technology have resulted in various countries in the world is interconnected. As a result, most companies are finding themselves having a culturally diverse workforce. Such individuals exhibit differences in culture, language, and attitudes. The value of diversity in teams exceeds beyond attracting a larger talent pool. A team consisting of members from different cultures, religions, ethnicities, and genders, will not view the world from a similar perspective. Therefore, it can be stated that the benefits of culturally diverse teams outweigh the homogenous ones.
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For instance, diverse cultural perspectives in teams are associated with increased creativity and innovation. Having people who have different views on the same issue suggests that the brainstorming process is more likely to generate new ideas, hence, boosting the team’s creativity and its capacity for innovation (OpenStax, 2020). According to the research conducted by Nathan and Lee (2015), increased cultural diversity was found to have a positive impact on innovativeness. The authors collected data from 7,615 companies that participated in the London Annual Business Survey (Nathan & Lee, 2015). The firms’ executives were asked a set of questions regarding their companies’ performance. The findings illustrated that companies managed by multicultural leadership teams were highly probable to develop new products as compared to firms having homogenous leadership.
Furthermore, culturally diverse teams are better at problem-solving and decision-making. Team members from different backgrounds bring diverse solutions to challenges, hence, leading to more informed decision making and consequently, better results. In another study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, the results indicated that ethnically diverse teams were 58% more probable to price stocks correctly (Levine et al., 2015). Conversely, those from homogenous groups were susceptible to pricing errors. Overall, it suggests that a multicultural team is more likely to continuously re-evaluate facts and remain objective. Therefore, by disrupting team homogeneity, team members are aware of their potential biases, which describe their narrowed ways of thinking that can prevent them from including critical information, hence, resulting in errors (OpenStax, 2020). In simpler terms, when a team is homogenous, it is viable to the adverse effects of “groupthink”. On the contrary, in multicultural teams, opposing viewpoints are most likely to be suggested, thus, facilitating a more in-depth fact-finding and richer discussion to make decisions.
Although there are several benefits of having a diverse team, it is essential to note that their success is grounded on the core value of respect. A team is characterized to consist of a group of people having one goal. Therefore, to achieve unified objectives, there must be mutual respect among team members (Martinelli, 2018). Furthermore, in a culturally diverse setting, the members should feel safe and comfortable, which can only be achieved by embracing the core value. Respecting others involves showing support, encouraging participation, giving positive feedback, being a good listener, and being honest. Overall, these before-mentioned concepts cultivate team unity, thus reducing any conflicts that might arise.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the advancement in technology has led to the interaction of people from different cultures, backgrounds, and religions. As a result, most organizations have found themselves having a diverse workforce. The ability of a team to attain its goal is based on mutual respect between members as it helps to minimize conflicts. Otherwise, enriching a team with individuals from different cultures has the potential to boost its performance. Innovation, problem-solving, and decision-making are more successful when executed by diverse teams. Different viewpoints can improve both the comprehension of the issue and the quality of the solution. This is because diverse teams are “smarter” by factoring a variety of information integrated into the decision-making process and eliminating the risk of “groupthink”.
References
Levine, S., Apfelbaum, E., Bernard, M., Bartelt, V., Zajac, E., & Stark, D. (2015). Ethnic diversity deflates price bubbles. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 111(52), 18524-18529.
Martinelli, K. (2018). Importance of respect in the workplace. High Speed Training.
Nathan, M., & Lee, N. (2015). Cultural diversity, innovation, and entrepreneurship: Firm-level evidence from London. Journal of Economic Geography, 89(4), 367-394.
OpenStax. (2020). Organizational behavior. Web.