Why Hire a Globally Diverse Team? -> The Benefits of Globally Diverse Team
Our planet is extremely varied and unique. Our communities are populated by individuals from all walks of life, including racial backgrounds, economic classes, physical and mental abilities, sexual orientations, gender identities, income levels, body shapes, and religious beliefs.
We communicate in different languages with various communication styles and hold varying beliefs and core goals. While these differences at times may lead to conflict, they should not have to imply division. We think embracing diversity makes teams stronger, more innovative, and ultimately better.
Through our new series Hiring globally Diverse team, we aim to demonstrate the enormous advantages of promoting diversity and spotlight some of the most important blind spots in recruitment methods.
What are the Benefits of having a diverse team?
There are several advantages to hiring internationally remotely.
- Diverse perspectives: One of the benefits of having a diverse workforce is that it brings employees with different backgrounds and perspectives. This can lead to more innovative and creative work as employees can share their unique perspectives and ideas.
- Improved communication: Another benefit of having a diverse workforce is improved communication. When you have employees from different countries, they can act as cultural ambassadors and help improve communication between employees from different backgrounds.
- Enhanced reputation: Companies are known for being diverse and inclusive often have a better reputation, which can help attract top talent.
- Increased productivity: A study by McKinsey & Company found that companies with more diverse teams are more likely to be innovative and have higher levels of employee engagement, which can lead to increased productivity.
- Improved bottom line: A study by Credit Suisse found that companies with gender-diverse boards outperformed those without by 26%, while ethnically-diverse companies outperformed their counterparts by 36%.
Access to Specialized Talent:
When you hire internationally, you have access to a larger talent pool. This can help you find employees with the specific skills and experience you are looking for.
One of the main advantages of hiring from outside the country is access to a wider variety of talents.
It opens doors to a much wider range of talent and access to special talents that may not be accessible locally.
“Different areas have different skill sets.,” says Katrina Too, the Managing Director of Open Doors Policy, a non-profit training organization for remote digital work that serves refugees and other marginalized communities. “There is a lot of engineering talent in the Middle East. Then you’ll notice that, in Myanmar, refugees have a lot more craft and soft skills. A lot on the customer experience side, such as excellent service personnel.”
According to data from The Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) and the International Labor Organization (ILO), one in every two businesses struggle to find workers with the required skill sets. Based on BCG research, one in every two firms has struggled to fill open jobs across various industries due to a lack of skills or competencies.
“In the future, by 2030, more than 1.4 billion people with competencies will either surpass or fall short of the tasks they carry out today.”
A lack of competent individuals does not cause the technology skills gap; instead, it results from a mismatch between their talents and the job demands.
The OECD data shows in the US alone, 33.5% of workers are mismatched with their current position.
“The expense of a faulty hire or a misfit can be extremely costly for businesses,” Katrina says.
Non-fulfillment might result in longer training, less efficient operations, dissatisfied clients, or even project failure.
Katrina claims that remote work lowers the danger of a misfit because it broadens your possibilities.
“You’ve been there, and you know what I’m talking about. There’s always a position to be filled, and finding the best person for that job, regardless of their boundaries, is the way to go, in my opinion.”
According to the BCG, hiring internationally may provide more value to your organization than just the savings it offers.
“Developing nations with open economies have significantly greater economic growth rates than those with closed economies. The countries that embrace labor market flexibility and are willing to share best practices with their peers will be much better equipped to handle labor market mismatches.”
Local Knowledge and Languages:
When you hire employees from other countries, they can bring with them valuable local knowledge and language skills.
This can be helpful if you are trying to expand your business into new markets.
Having employees familiar with the local culture and language can help you avoid misunderstandings and build better relationships with customers, partners, and other stakeholders.
It can also help you tap into new markets and understand customer needs better.
“There is no doubt that when you have people from different cultures in an organization, they tend to bring different perspectives,” says Too. For example, India has 22 official languages, with 427 languages.
Different viewpoints can lead to more creativity and innovative solutions.
A study by the Boston Consulting Group found that companies with a more diverse workforce are more likely to launch successful new products and services.
The study found that firms with a higher proportion of women in management roles were 1.4 times more likely to introduce successful new products than those with fewer women in management.
Firms with a higher proportion of employees from outside the country were 1.7 times more likely to launch successful new products than those with a lower proportion of employees from outside the country.
Diverse Perspectives
Diversity can also help you attract and retain top talent.
A study by McKinsey found that companies with diverse management teams are more likely to outperform their peers financially.
The study found that companies in the top quartile for gender diversity on executive teams were 21% more likely to have above-average profitability than companies in the bottom quartile.
Companies in the top quartile for racial and ethnic diversity were 33% more likely to have above-average profitability than those in the bottom quartile.
“Information is not neutral,” Katrina emphasizes. “It’s critical to double-check things from various angles before they’re published. So having a wide range of ideas and viewpoints is crucial.”
Diversity can help you attract and retain top talent, promote creativity and innovation, and tap into new markets. However, it is important to manage diversity effectively to reap these benefits.
Too recommends that companies consider the following when managing a diverse workforce:
- Make sure everyone feels included. Ensure all employees feel like they are part of the team and their voices are heard.
- Encourage open communication. Encourage employees to openly communicate with each other, share their ideas, and give feedback.
- Promote collaboration. Encourage employees to work together to solve problems and achieve goals.
- Provide training on cultural competence. Provide training on how to work with people from different cultures effectively.
- Appoint a diversity champion. Appoint someone to champion diversity initiatives and help ensure that the company manages diversity effectively.
Keeping up with Shifting Market Trends
The ever-changing business landscape means that companies must be agile to stay ahead of the competition.
This is especially true in today’s digital age, where new technologies and business models disrupt traditional industries.
To stay competitive, companies need to embrace change and be willing to experiment with new ideas.
Too says that diversity can be helpful in this regard, as employees from different backgrounds are more likely to have fresh ideas and be open to change.
“If you want to stay ahead of the competition, you need to be open to new ideas and willing to experiment,” she says.
“Diversity can help you by bringing different perspectives and ideas to the table.”
“Employers should pursue non-discriminatory hiring based on abilities and competencies, according to changing employee values,” suggests BCG.
It also implies intentionally looking for methods to eliminate any obstacles or biases in the recruiting process.
“There are several types of restrictions that applicants might face: a lack of information on job openings, employer prejudice against applicants’ formal qualifications, and the refusal of employers to consider personal circumstances and values when hiring.”
Conclusion:
In conclusion, diversity can help organizations in several ways. It can promote creativity and innovation, attract and retain top talent, and help companies stay ahead of the competition. However, it is important to manage diversity effectively to reap these benefits. Some tips include encouraging open communication, promoting collaboration, and providing training on cultural competence.
