The effects of workplace diversity on performance management system in the United Arab Emirates

The effects of workplace diversity on performance management system in the United Arab Emirates

AbstractWorkplace diversity is one of the challenges that most organizations’ human resource professionals face, in effectively managing its employees’ performance (Christian, Moffitt, and Porter, 2006) . New ideas have evolved concerning the performance management of diverse cultural environment within organizations. The modern work force (unlike the earlier workforce) is very varied in terms of composition due to changes in demographic factors like economic globalization and immigration (Ibid, 2006). This study aims at exploring the effects of workplace diversity on performance management of multinational organizations operating in UAE. The study will take into account the different definitions of diversity as defined in modern literature, and investigate the challenges encountered by the multinational corporations in the UAE, in their efforts to effectively control and manage their diverse human resources. This research will take a descriptive approach in investigating the relationship between workplace diversity and performance management among multinational organizations operating in UAE, using semi-structured interviews and self-administered questionnaire. This study hopes to contribute to the existing body of literature relating to performance management and workplace diversity, and hopefully give suggestions to organizations on how to effectively manage the performance of its diverse workforce.

IntroductionPast studies that have attempted to explore the connection between workplace diversity and performance management (e.g. Cox & Blake 2010; Van Knippenberg & Schippers, 2007) have argued that workplace diversity determines organizational effectiveness, has an impact on the organization’s ability to attract and retain qualified human resources, has an impact on organizational innovation and creativity among other issues.

As Christian, Moffitt, and Porter (2006:14) quote it, “Workplace diversity is one of the central elements that are common, ongoing in modern management and organizational performance”. New ideas have evolved concerning the performance management of diverse cultural environment within organizations. This concept has been characterized by challenges, especially how to effectively manage these diversities within the working environment. Workplace diversity phenomenon has captured corporate world’s attention given the fact that it is often characterized by socio-political and human resource administration’s patronage.

Research ProblemMajority of the big companies operating in the UAE employ a workforce that comprises of UAE nationals and expats from around the world, characterized by mixed age groups, gender, and race, which presents a challenge to the human resource management domain. For this reason, multinational organizations devote much of their resources to diversity training as a way of increasing the productive capacity of the organization through embracing workplace diversity (Guzzo, & Dickson, 2006). Therefore, this study will attempt to answer the central question: What are the effects of workplace diversity on performance management systems of multinational organizations operating in the United Arab Emirates?

This research will also be guided by the following sub-questions:

What fundamental changes are required in an organization operating in the UAE’s performance management system in order to take advantage of diversity in the workplace?

What are the possible disadvantages of employing a diverse workforce?

Research Interest

The study is very interesting because various past studies have demonstrated and showed that workplace diversity has a multifaceted effect on organization’s functions and processes. For instance, Steel and König (2006) note that harnessing employee motivation and empowerment are essential elements of ensuring effective management and improved performance in employee productivity, and achieving these aspects of workplace dynamics can be a great challenge to the manager in several ways, specifically, with consideration to the more culturally diverse nature of the modern workforce. The aspect of globalization and the spirit of global village have integrally played a major part in defining many aspects of modern organization management, yet they are relatively young. Workplace diversity in the United Arab Emirates has grown relatively fast in over a short period of time. Many companies have been very creative in introducing human resource policies to cater to its diverse workforce. Having worked and lived in the Middle East now for the past 7 years, I have seen and experienced so many HR practices from different companies that promote diversity in the workplace, while others maintain a one size fits all HR policies to its diverse workforce. Therefore, it is worth investigating how these realities interplay to influence human resource management practices of multinational organizations in the UAE.Theoretical FrameworkThe underlying literature on the performance management within workplace diversity mainly entails two major bodies of work that focuses on the advancement of the conceptual frameworks for comprehension of diversity and its corresponding effects on the organizational behavior and performance. Workplace diversity is normally depicted as a more multifaceted, controversial and corresponding political portents (Roberson, 2013). It is normally conceptualized from numerous perceptions. Wang and King (2009) states that the concept of diversity ought to be constrained to particular cultural categories, namely race and gender. Diversity is mainly based on the race, ethnicity and corresponding gender that cannot be comprehended within the similar men in line with the diversity of the governmental functions, capabilities and cognitive locations (Wang and King, 2009). Moreover, the main issues that pertain to diversity are contemporary because of discernment and the segregation of the cultural groups from old-fashioned organizations (Konrad, 2006).

Karsten (2006), explains that empirical assistance for the prevailing assumption stipulates that all existing dimensions pertaining to diversity results to negative impacts thus confirming the emphasis of the social categorization, which depicts the resemblances and dissimilarities that lead to the classifications thereby favoring individual’s in-group to the harm of the out-group social.

Underlying empirical evidences, notwithstanding the controversy of the positive association amidst workplace diversity and organizational performance, pertains to the evidence for managing workplace diversity possessing antagonistic implications (Konrad, 2006). Assessment of the effect of diversity upon businesses raise question concerning the presence of any connection amidst workplace diversity and occupational performance. The underlying business benefits of the workplace diversity have been extensively contested because of the apprehended idea (Karsten, 2006).

Demographic factors such as immigration coupled with economic factors especially globalization, have played a major part in influencing organizational policies of multinationals operating within UAE. As United Arab Emirates has grown into an important economic hub in the Middle East region and in the world, immigration of workers has played a major role in bringing in people from various regions of the world to work in the multinational organizations that have increased their presence in the Gulf nation. Simons and Rowland (2011) conducted a study to investigate how diversity in multinational organizations impact the performance of its workforce in the Emirates, and note that one of the greatest challenges is the lack of clear distinction between functional and non-functional types of diversity. The authors further point out that functional diversity within the multinational organizations in the UAE has led to increased effective functional or employee innovation (Ibid, 2011).

Research MethodologyThe study will offer an explanation of the type of data to be included in the study. It will define the research population and desired study sample. In addition, methods of data collection, analysis, and sampling techniques will be discussed in details.

The study will adopt a qualitative research design to achieve the intended research objectives. In addition, it will adopt a case study approach by focusing on HSBC Bank in United Arab Emirates. Semi-structured interviews will be used to achieve the data collection objective. Under this research design, data and relevant information will be collected using semi-structured interview administered to carefully selected managers of HSBC Bank in UAE (Jehn, &Bezrukova, 2004).

The participants for this study will be drawn from HSBC Bank, which is a multinational banking institution operating in United Arabs Emirates. The participants will be workers and managers of these selected multinational corporations. A total of twenty participants will interviewed in the semi-structured interview, and will be randomly selected. The sample selection process will depend on the population size, cost, degree of precision, sample media, and homogeneity (Van Knippenberg, &Schippers, 2011). The random sampling method will be preferred because it gives equal opportunity to all the participants to form the final sample for the study (Khan, 2011). Secondly, random sampling will be desirable given the fact that it is economical.

This study will rely on both primary and secondary data. Secondary data that entail already made available information pertaining to the subject of the study will be collected from secondary journals, books, company websites, internet, newspapers, among other secondary data sources that are perceived as reliable and credible (Stergaard, Timmermans, &Kristinsson, 2011). Primary data on the other hand will be collected through self-administered questionnaires and interviews schedules. This method of data collection is preferred over the rest since it aids in the provision of primary data that are more effective and reliable for the study (Khan, 2011).

Since this study is qualitative and quantitative, inferential and descriptive statistics will be used to analyze the collective data. Qualitative data collected in the study will specifically be analyzed using grounded theory methods. Open coding will be used to categorize and name the data, while selected code will be used to develop a more generalized framework to the study (Schneider, &Northcraft, 2009). Quantitative data on the other hand will be analyzed using SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences) version 21 (Pitts, et al. 2010). The relationship will be presented using regression, correlation, and measures of central tendency. Besides, the data collected through self-administered questionnaires, and the results of the interview schedules will be classified on the basis of common attributes and then tallied to obtain statistical frequencies. The data will be presented using tables, graphs, and charts. The research hypotheses will be tested using a regression model between the dependent and independent variable and also using t-statistics to determine the acceptance or rejection rule (Khan, 2011).

Informed consent and privacy measuresData collection will be performed through face to face means and therefore bringing in the issue of face to face contact with the respondents. For this reason, assurances will be made to ensure that the identity of the individuals are not revealed, since the names and other demographic aspects of the respondents will be based on general limits, such as age groups. Similarly, the responses to the questionnaire will be used for academic purposes and for this survey only. The responses to the questions will also be based on the perceptions of the individuals and not a representation of the views and reality at the HSBC Bank. As a result, any assertions based on this study should be considered under the existing parameters in order to validate their reliability. When carrying out any type of research study, the researcher has to take into account the ethical matters concerning the study’s participants and their rights. For this proposed research study, the researcher shall take the indispensable precautions to guarantee that participants’ rights are not violated. As it is always a standard for most scientific undertakings of the nature similar to the proposed project, the researcher shall obtain informed consent from all participants before proceeding with the study. A consent form will be made part of every data gathering instrument used and such as surveys and interviews or questionnaires; parental consent will not be applicable because all the respondents expected to take part in the study shall be sampled for age above 18 years. The principle rationale of the consent form will be to clearly describe the objective and benefits of the research being carried out. The form will make it clear to the participants that by giving consent; the respondents will be volunteering to be part of the research study, although they will also be informed that they may terminate their contribution at any time based on any grounds without consequence. In addition, the participant-approval forms will inform the participants concerning their discretion and privacy, risks and merits of the research study, and whom to get in touch with for answers to enquiries regarding the research undertaking and participants’ rights. For the above highlighted reasons, the following shall be vividly stressed throughout the study:

This research ensures anonymity of respondents by asking them not to give personal details. They are free to ignore any question they think can compromise on this

The data will be kept under safe conditions so that it can be protected as much as possible

All respondents will be of the age of consent

Respondents can withdraw from the research at any time of their choice

Based on these understandings, the following consemnt form is formulated for the purpose of the study data collection process:

Dear participant, I am a Masters student undertaking a study to investigate The effects of workplace diversity on performance management system in the United Arab Emirates and I have chosen your organization for the purpose of fulfilling data collection exercise. This study is essential for me to accomplish my education and academic aspirations and therefore your participation is highly appreciated. I take this early opportunity to assure you that your participation in the data collection exercise is absolutely voluntary and you can opt out of it at any stage of the exercise without giving reason or notice. I also guarantee that the information collected from the study will be treated with utmost confidentiality and will only be used for academic purposes. no personal information will be collected. Thank you for your participation.

ReflectionThere are a number of conceptual obstacles relating to this proposed study. One of my concerns is the size and access to my sample, which may not a representative of all the multinational organizations operating in the UAE. In addition to that, limited time is also one of the obstacles I have now, as I am pressured to finish my MBA program before the first quarter of 2015, which is the deadline for me to complete the program. Another important practical and empirical obstacle that I can identify is validating the data and the skills that I need acquire/learn in a fairly short time for the data analysis.

The self-administered questionnaire may be advantageous in that they sometimes provide privacy to encourage more honest responses. However, there might be some issues of accuracy and truthfulness associated with the use of self-administered questionnaire, which have been discussed in past studies. Since I will be sending the self-administered questionnaire to my contacts on linked & emails, where I do not have any means to know whether it was the intended person or not who completed the questionnaire, is definitely an area of concern for me. To address these issues, I intend to select people that I know quite well, and get referrals from friends and family of people who are willing to participate in the survey. Additionally, in order to generate more truthful answers, I also intend to construct similar questions that are repeated at different places in the questionnaire or that indirect and follow-up questions be used where required. Furthermore, questions in the survey can also be wrongly understood or interpreted by the respondent. It is proposed to use proven questions on the performance management, employment equity and senses constructs, which have been used in previous studies to avoid language and interpretation issues. Similar to past studies, I also intend to carry out a pilot survey to verify the correct understanding of the questions and layout of the questionnaire prior to the actual distribution of questionnaires.

Another possible issue is the potential bias introduced by the use of non-probability sampling methods such as convenience sampling. Secondary and primary data sampling are proposed to address the ethics of research as far as possible. It is to be noted that a low response rate for a probability sample can also add bias to the data since the sample no longer represents the target population.

I have created a timescale for this study which will guide & remind me on what to complete between now and until February 2015.

I intend to conduct my study in accordance to the code of ethics in academic research. A non-disclosure of identity agreement will be distributed to all participants of the study. I will also ensure that I will not distort or influence the answers of participants in the interview or survey at any time.

In spite of that many possible obstacles of this study, I am still positive that, since my topic, I believe, is a well-researched area, it should help me in gaining adequate information for the research, and be able to produce a study that may still add to the existing body of literature on workplace diversity and performance management.

ConclusionCurrent demographic and economic trends around the world have contributed to a very diverse workforce in the United Arab Emirates and the resulting workplace diversity has without doubt affected many management processes of the multinational organizations operating in the country. Among these processes, performance management is very vital. Understanding the relationship between workplace diversity and performance management has the potential to reform the multinational organizations in ways that will allow the human resource domain to get workplace diversity to work to the advantage of the business. The significance of workplace diversity in determining many aspects such as the organization’s ability to attract and retain qualified human resources, organizational innovation and creativity among other issues provides strong philosophical support and justification for the study.

Timescale research planningAugust – October 2014 Write my dissertation proposal/one to one session w/ dissertation tutor on blackboard/ one to one session with tutor arranged by Stafford Dubai

01-15 November 2014 Literature review/Gather references/Note taking

16-25 November 2014 Design and creation of interview questions and self-administered questionnaire

26-31 November 2014 Send out invitation/book appointment for interview /Pilot test questionnaire and interview

01-15 December 2014 Amend interview questions/questionnaire/Send out invitation/Book appointment for interview and get confirmation from respondents/ Send out & self-administered questionnaire

16-23 December 2014 Collection of questionnaire results/ Interview people who confirmed their participation/Re-send some more questionnaire if necessary/

23-30 December 2014 Collection of additional results/Work with results and start writing the dissertation paper

01-30 January 2015 Write dissertation paper

01-15 February 2015 Write dissertation paper

16-28 February 2015 Submission of dissertation paper

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Appendix: Interview Questions for Workplace Diversity and Performance Management Implementation in United Arab Emirates

1. Kindly indicate your Age bracket

18 – 252. 26 – 35

3. 36 – 454. 46 – 555. 56 and above

2. Your gender

Male2. Female

3. Do you test your assumptions about workplace prior to acting on them?

Yes

No

4. Do you believe there is only one right way of doing things, or that there are a number of valid ways that accomplish the same goal?

Yes

No

5. If yes in 4 above, do you convey that to staff?

Yes

No

6. Rate your relationships with each staff member you supervise based on the scale below and based on their cultural background

1. Extremely Honest

2. Very Honest

3. Honest

4. Somewhat Honest

5. Not Honest At All

7. Are you comfortable with each of the staff members you supervise?

Yes

No

8. Do you know what motivates them, what their goals are, how they like to be recognized?

9. What role do you play in ensuring the organization embraces values of a diverse workforce?

10. What are some of the skills you need to achieve the role above?