Introduction
The report gives a detailed description of the reasons why a particular organisation was selected, an overview of the organisation, a brief explanation about diversity and why it is important from an organisation’s perspective to actualise such concept and at the end it focuses on a mission statement regarding the achievement of diversity. As part of this assessment task 2 the author has written the diversity mission statement for Crowne Plaza Hotels and Resorts.
The author strongly believes that this organisation has competitive advantage over its competitors in terms of the location, quality of service and unique design. The quality of service at Crowne Plaza Hotels and Resorts is achieved through diligent recruitment, training programmes and motivational rewards for the employee’s achievements. Such an organisation believes in creating an environment which endorses equal employment opportunities, exhibit honesty, care and integrity towards colleagues and guests. Crowne Plaza in Canberra care for people by working with local Australian charities to help fund financially challenged families and nurture their children’s education are some of the reasons the author has selected such an organisation.
Overview of the organisation
The organisation is located in Canberra as Crowne Plaza Hotel where the author is currently employed. The author is working in the Front Office Department in a supervisory role for more than 5 months. The hotel is known for providing seamless customer service at all times throughout other respective departments. It therefore will always stay the first preference for guests, stakeholders, colleagues and business partners. Crowne Plaza Hotels and Resorts strive by taking care of the guests via the upmost level of service provided by the staff members and providing satisfaction through the hotel design, food and beverage and other facilities on offer.
The property is not only deeply committed towards diversity but is also committed to corporate social responsibility by making a positive contribution towards community, stakeholders, sub-ordinates, environment etc. Crowne Plaza Hotel in Canberra is a 4.5 star hotel which offers facilities such as 24*7 business centre, events and conference rooms, express check-in and check-out services, laundry, valet service. The reception, room service is 24*7, has one main restaurant, one bar, foreign exchange services.
Theory and Practice
Diversity – Diversity stands for the various differences in individuals as well as similarities that exist among them. (Kreitner, 2001, p. 37). In other words it involves employees from a different range of backgrounds which means having people from different race, caste, religion, ethnicity etc. Diversity creates equal employment opportunities. Diversity promotes mutual respect among the sub-ordinates. It can therefore be described by having four layers such as personality, internal dimension, external dimensions and organisational dimensions. (Kreitner, 2001, p. 38). Personality can be described as characteristics which are portrayed by an individual. In other words it can be said someone’s action or behaviour. Personality is classified into 2 aspects positive and negative. An example of personality traits can be seen below:
Positive Traits Negative Traits
Patience, Honesty, Reliability, Trust Rude, Self-Centred, Obnoxious
Internal dimensions include factors such as age, gender, ethnicity etc. External Dimensions include factors such as marital status, religion, experience and on the other hand organisational dimensions include factors such as the status of the management and seniority. Diversity is built on a set of values that recognises that the differences between people are a potential strength for the organisation; this process of management creates an environment that allows all employees to contribute to organisational goals and also experience personal growth. (Kramar, R., Bartram, T., De Cieri, H., & Noe, R, 2013, p. 496). ).
Diversity means having co-workers from a different range of backgrounds which means having people from different race, caste, culture, religion, ethnicity etc. Diversity involves creating a cohesive environment that would lead to the development of employees as well as the organisation. It focuses on how an organisation can effectively manage employees from different sections of the society, and how it can use them productively. It can be said that diversity still exists even when groups of people have become homogenous.
When it comes to Crowne Plaza Hotel, Canberra the hotel has created an inclusive environment that accepts each individual’s differences, embraces their strengths and provides equal employment opportunities for all the sub-ordinates to achieve their full potential. Therefore this hotel doesn’t end with just having a pool of employees from different culture or religion but also lays a great significance on how to embrace their talents, their differences of opinion, and their values and culture. Organisations are committing strategic resources to create a productive workforce and are also incorporating diversity management into Human Resource Management policies and practices. (Stones, 2016, p. 782). Therefore managing diversity identifies the differences among people are sources of strength and holds a competitive advantage for organisations in service and product market. (Kramar, R., Bartram, T., De Cieri, H., & Noe, R, 2013, p. 497).
From Crowne Plaza’s and also from other organisation’s perspective it is very important to actualise the concept of diversity because of the following reasons:
1) Diversity managed well offers a marketing advantage – An example of having a marketing advantage is that many people from culturally diverse groups will prefer to buy products or services from an organisation which has a good reputation for managing diversity. (Dubrin, 2014, p. 451). In other words it can be said that having diversity within a workplace can increase the business development.
2) Diversity eventually enhances team performances because people with diverse backgrounds are often affiliated with diverse information, knowledge which can be effectively used to solve problems within an organisation.
3) If organisations strive for diversity in recruiting has a larger talent pool in which to search for candidates and therefore those organisations who don’t support a diverse workforce are more likely to shrink for supply of potential candidates. (Dubrin, 2014, p. 452)
4) Having diversity within the workplace increases the morale of the team members, sub-ordinates will perform more efficiently, the organisation’s productivity will also increase and will eventually deliver better results, diversity help organisations in achieving their organisational goals, effective communication.
5) Diversity therefore creates a positive reputation for an organisation and consumers feel such organisations are socially responsible. As a diversified environment encourages personal growth and development. Diversity adds to an organisation’s competitive advantage and therefore its value increases in the market.
6) Diversity within a workplace fosters mutual respect between colleagues, creates a positive reputation which has been mentioned above.
Diversity is inevitable in any corporate structure these days. Organisations these days with a diverse workforce are considered as socially as well as ethically responsible organisations, as they focus on promoting equal opportunities to all and refrain from having any kind of discrimination. (Dubrin, 2014, p. 449). Crowne Plaza Hotel believes in diversity and endorses a work environment where everyone within the organisation is treated with respect and dignity. Social media giant Facebook has appointed Kenneth Chenault to its board, making him the first African on board, Oscars 2017 showed great diversity as most of the awards were presented to African American Stars are some of the examples for diversity in different organisations.
Mission Statement – “We believe in supporting a group of people that come from various backgrounds with different goals and objectives”. “We endorse on influencing a diverse workforce therefore by building leadership effectiveness. In other words it can be said that the people here from different backgrounds create a memorable, unique and great hospitality for guests, stakeholders, community and environment. The hotel always strive in order to provide unique and enjoyable experiences for guests and staff at all times. The focus here is on authentic hospitality, innovation and providing a rewarding experience to guests and also the sub-ordinates which therefore leads to superior results”.
The management here acquires diversity by offering a diverse as well as a committed workforce. By offering a diverse as well as a committed workforce employees here are willing to go an extra mile. At Crowne Plaza colleagues are treated with respect as well as dignity, therefore the management effectively listens to other colleagues’ viewpoints, thoughts and opinions. The main focus here is to become better by representing women, minorities, and people with disabilities by a certain number of policies and practices that are being followed within the organisation.
At Crowne Plaza Canberra “Diversity” is therefore considered to be at the core of the mission statement, vision statement and core values. Crowne Plaza has therefore created an environment which endorses different culture, different backgrounds and different opinions. In this hotel diversity is promoted through variety of frameworks which consists of culture, talent in order to support diversity and to create a competitive business. Crowne Plaza doesn’t accept discrimination on any of the grounds such as race, colour, gender, ethnicity, marital status etc. The workplace here completely endorses the local communities in which the hotel operates.
Crowne Plaza focuses on making sure that in order to promote diversity women are taking part in leadership development and mentoring programmes. Women are expanding their productivity by suggesting about the direction of their position in this organisation as it eventually drives teams to be more productive. Such an organisation makes sure that they are taking necessary steps to empower women to ensure they can work cohesively with male counterparts for the most beneficial outcome for the company. They are providing opportunities to women in order to achieve their goals. An example can be seen where the chief executive officer of Crowne Plaza Hotels and Resorts has joined other hotel executive officers to make sure that 40% of the senior leadership position will be taken by women by the end of 2020.
• In the above mentioned figure it can be clearly seen that in the December 2016, out of 10 directors in the board at Crowne Plaza 4 were appointed as women directors which is equivalent to 40%
• In January 2017, out of 128 senior managers 34 were appointed as females which is equivalent to 27%.
An example can be seen where Crowne Plaza Hotel has designed an Indigenous Australian Employment Program. The hotel is therefore not only responsible to its guests, stakeholders but they are also responsible to its sub-ordinates, community and environment. Therefore, the management has recognised that they also have responsibility in order to create jobs, opportunities to help Aborigines and Torres Strait Islander so that they can also help them in order to step up in the hotel industry. Such a programme is designed in a way where the Aborigines and Torres Strait Islander candidates will be given ample amount of opportunities where they can demonstrate their skills regardless of their experience. The hotel is currently focusing on creating more employment opportunities for the community, positive steps are being taken in terms of recruitment and then training of Aborigines.
Therefore, Crowne Plaza is seen as socially as well as ethically responsible by having a diverse workforce, as they give equal opportunities to everyone and refrain from having any type of discrimination. By promoting to diversity in the workplace this organisation is leading to better outcomes, diversity in the workplace allows the people where they can see themselves to be represented within the hotel. It is leading towards a safer and friendly working environment where the employees feel accepted, valued and recognised. In order to attract and retain the best talent Crowne Plaza invests heavily in people. Employees are involved within the hotel operations, rewarded and recognised for all their hard work, for their contributions. Therefore by promoting diversity here it not only helps the business to distribute and associate with different customers but also plays a very critical role where the sub-ordinates work with each other to bring out creative ideas, opinions, and suggestions at the workplace. A diverse workforce at Crowne Plaza provides more exposure from variety of backgrounds and cultures and also the sub-ordinates learn from each other. Crowne Plaza focuses on promoting both men and women that come from different backgrounds (racial and ethnic), religions. The hotel takes a proactive approach when it comes to diversity related matters. Diversity is driven here from top to bottom.
Conclusion
The author would like to conclude by saying that these days organisations have realised that in order to be successful they need to tap talent from different backgrounds. It further helps to strengthen an organisation’s cultural values, its reputation, improved client relations, helps in increasing productivity, maximising brand value and most importantly fosters a safer as well as a friendly working environment for the employees. It therefore gives rise to overall development of an economy as all the sections are equally valued and benefitted. By bringing diversity organisations have also realised the importance of having women in their workforce. From the examples and statistics mentioned above it can be seen that organisations have started giving additional roles, responsibilities to women by giving them major roles in the company’s board. Many of the organisations now have different policies and procedures for female employees to ensure that they feel secure, respected and their emotional wants are met. “Diversity within an organisation leads to better productivity and also leads to an overall development of an organisation.
