Action Learning Project
WK4 DQ1
Needs Analysis Plan should begin by assessing organizational, operational and personal needs. Organizational needs include the broad goals of the organization. Operational needs pertain to the knowledge, skills and abilities needed for the organization to function. At the personal level, you examine what employees need to perform their tasks well. Organizations should also consider completing a cultural audit to determine a baseline for the organization's approach to diversity and to reveal issues that need to be addressed in diversity training. Because of these three-level of needs assessment, you should be able to determine:
Why you want to begin a diversity training program?
Most organizations begin diversity training because of negative pressure, research and development, or a desire to prevent problems. Negative pressures may stem from lawsuits, activist groups or internal conflicts. Research and development findings often demonstrate that diversity programming is a business imperative. What are the potential participants' attitudes toward diversity and how strongly they hold those attitudes?
In the organization of Wal-mart most of the workers are opened to working in a diverse environment. The attitudes are positive and receptive to change that will better the operation of the business.
How the organization defines diversity and the one most appropriate definition for the training outcomes?
Wal-mart defines diversity as understanding, respecting and valuing diversity—unique styles, experiences, identities, ideas and opinions—while being inclusive of all people (Hasan, 2018). Walmart believes in educating its workers to ensure the opportunity for advancement within the organization. Across a two span, Walmart has invested more than $2.7 billions in educating and training, wages and scheduling to ensure even more of their employees have a clear pathway to grow and advance.
Whether the training groups should be homogeneous or heterogeneous? According to Ford (2004) “Diversity studies have linked heterogeneous groups to increases in the quality of discussions, reductions in tokenism, and increased sharing about differences and similarities.” Homogeneous training groups often create safe zones for candid discussion and facilitate learning about self-identity. Either approach may be beneficial, depending on whether your goals are to increase awareness or change behavior or both and how much diversity training participants have already completed.
References
Ford, R. L. (2004). Diversity Dimensions: Needs Assessments helps ensure effective diversity training. The Public Relations Society of America, Inc.
Hasan, B. (2018). Diversity & Inclusion. Walmart Corporate Home Offices. Retrieved from: http://career.walmart.com.
Wk4 DQ2
Three initiatives affecting diversity effectiveness includes diversity recruitment, diversity training, and formal mentoring programs. According to Brief (2008) “diversity recruiting strategies are consistent with the tenets of the business case for diversity, since they are designed to capture underutilized aspects of the labor pool and make a diverse set of perspectives available to the organization for customer outreach and internal decision making.” The recruiting process should help to select the best candidates for the job that will be effective in all aspect of the business. Diversity recruiting helps to change or build character of the individuals in the selection process.
Training is an important function of any business that aid the employees to learn how to work and operate in any type of environment. Organizations use diversity training to stress the importance of diversity goals, to describe the potential benefits to the organization to achieve employee buy-in to diversity programs and signal a change in the status quo (Ford and Fisher, 1996; Holvino et al., 2004).
The last step would be formal mentoring programs which initiated and managed by the organization, are another common activity used in diversity initiatives (Brief, 2004). Mentoring programs allow diverse groups to interact with other groups that can create a balance of knowledge and talent displayed in the organization. If implemented correctly, mentoring programs can help to develop and advance workers into leadership roles and prevent high turnover which often happens among diverse groups. Formal Mentoring programs are used to
help retain workers and encourage them to be a part of the diverse work environment that can increase moral of individuals and improve on performance.
References
Brief, A.P. (Ed.). (2008). Diversity at work. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Ford, J. K., and Fisher, S. (1996). The role of training in a changing workplace and workforce: New perspectives and approaches. In E. E. Kossek and S. A. Lobel (eds.), Managing Diversity: Human Resource Strategies for Transforming the Workplace (pp. 164-193) Cambridge: Blackwell.
Holvino, E., Ferdman, B. M., and Merrill-Sands, D. (2004) Creating and sustaining diversity and inclusion in organizations: Strategies and approaches. In M. S. Stockdale and F. J. Crosby (eds.), The Psychology and Management of Workplace Diversity (PP. 245-276) Malden, MA: Blackwell.
Jayme, M. E. A., and Dipboye, R. L. (2004). Leveraging diversity to improve business performance: Research findings and recommendations for organization. Human Resource Management, 43, 409-424.
WK4 DQ1
Needs Analysis Plan
should
b
egin by assessing organizational, operational and personal needs.
Organizational needs include the broad goals of the organization. Operational needs pertain to
the knowledge, skills and abilities needed for the organization to function. At the personal level,
you examine what employees need to perform their tasks well.
Organizations should also
consider completing a cultural audit to determine a baseline for the organization's approach to
diversity and to reveal
issues
that need to be addressed in diversity training.
Because of
th
e
s
e
three
-
level
of
needs ass
essment, you should be able to determine:
Why you want to begin a diversity training program
?
Most organizations begin diversity training because of negative pressure, research and
development, or a desire to prevent problems. Negative pressures may stem
from lawsuits,
activist groups or internal conflicts. Research and development findings often demonstrate that
diversity programming is a business imperative.
What are the potential participants' attitudes toward diversity and how strongly they hold those
attitudes
?
In the organization of Wal
-
mart
most of
the workers are opened to working in
a
divers
e
environment. The attit
udes are
positive an
d
rece
ptive
to c
hange th
at will better the operation of
the busi
ness.
How the organization defines diversity and the one most appropriate definition for the training
outcomes
?
Wal
-
m
art defines diversity as
understanding, respecting and valuing diversity
—
unique styles,
experiences, identities, ideas and opinions
—
while being inclusive of all people
(
H
asan
, 2018).
W
almart bel
ieve
s in educati
ng its workers to e
nsure the opportunity for
advanc
ement within the
orga
nization. A
c
ross a t
wo span, Wal
mart has invested more tha
n
$
2.7 billions
in educati
ng and
traini
ng
, wages
and
scheduling to
ensure even more of
their
e
mplo
ye
es
have
a clear pathway
to
grow and advance
.
Whether the training groups should be homogeneous or heterogeneous
?
According to Ford (2004)
“
Diversity studies have linked heterogeneous groups to increases in
th
e quality of discussions, reductions in tokenism, and increased sharing about differences and
similarities.
”
Homogeneous training groups often create safe zones for candid discussion and
facilitate learning about self
-
identity. Either approach may be benefi
cial, depending on whether
WK4 DQ1
Needs Analysis Plan should begin by assessing organizational, operational and personal needs.
Organizational needs include the broad goals of the organization. Operational needs pertain to
the knowledge, skills and abilities needed for the organization to function. At the personal level,
you examine what employees need to perform their tasks well. Organizations should also
consider completing a cultural audit to determine a baseline for the organization's approach to
diversity and to reveal issues that need to be addressed in diversity training. Because of these
three-level of needs assessment, you should be able to determine:
Why you want to begin a diversity training program?
Most organizations begin diversity training because of negative pressure, research and
development, or a desire to prevent problems. Negative pressures may stem from lawsuits,
activist groups or internal conflicts. Research and development findings often demonstrate that
diversity programming is a business imperative.
What are the potential participants' attitudes toward diversity and how strongly they hold those
attitudes?
In the organization of Wal-mart most of the workers are opened to working in a diverse
environment. The attitudes are positive and receptive to change that will better the operation of
the business.
How the organization defines diversity and the one most appropriate definition for the training
outcomes?
Wal-mart defines diversity as understanding, respecting and valuing diversity—unique styles,
experiences, identities, ideas and opinions—while being inclusive of all people (Hasan, 2018).
Walmart believes in educating its workers to ensure the opportunity for advancement within the
organization. Across a two span, Walmart has invested more than $2.7 billions in educating and
training, wages and scheduling to ensure even more of their employees have a clear pathway to
grow and advance.
Whether the training groups should be homogeneous or heterogeneous?
According to Ford (2004) “Diversity studies have linked heterogeneous groups to increases in
the quality of discussions, reductions in tokenism, and increased sharing about differences and
similarities.” Homogeneous training groups often create safe zones for candid discussion and
facilitate learning about self-identity. Either approach may be beneficial, depending on whether