For an organization looking to cultivate a more diverse and inclusive workplace, it is important to understand what constitutes workplace diversity.Workplace diversity refers to the variety of differences between individuals in an organization. Diversity not only includes how individuals identify themselves but also how others perceive them. Diversity within a workplace encompasses race, gender, ethnic groups, age, religion, sexual orientation, citizenship status, military service and mental and physical conditions, as well as other distinct differences between people.

There are many benefits to having a diverse workplace. For starters, organizations that commit to recruiting a diverse workforce have a larger pool of applicants to choose from, which can lead to finding more qualified candidates and reducing the time it takes to fill vacant positions. Businesses that do not recruit from diverse talent pools run the risk of missing out on qualified candidates and may have a more difficult time filling key roles, which increases recruitment costs. Diverse companies are better able to win top talent, orient themselves well with their customers and improve decision making. Other kinds of diversity like age, sexual orientation and experience creates a global mindset and cultural fluency. Women’s representation in the top levels of management has yielded positive results. 

Achieving greater diversity is definitely not easy. A lot of work needs to be done to get the kind of numbers that make it attractive, compelling and ideal. In today’s times, we live in a deeply connected and global world. Companies should take advantage of the opportunities that diverse leadership brings. They should also be able to create the next level of leaders at all levels in the organization by attracting, developing, mentoring, sponsoring and retaining talent. Considering the high levels of returns that diversity brings, it is better to start investing right away.