MBA502 Assessment 2: Report on Woolworths Diversity Initiatives

This report provides an overview of Woolworths Supermarkets' diversity initiatives. The report begins with a brief overview of the company, its market position, and workforce size. It then delves into Woolworths' diversity-related initiatives, highlighting their commitment to cultural diversity, gender equality, and support for indigenous communities and individuals with disabilities. The report draws from secondary sources, including the company's website and industry publications. A critique of these initiatives is presented, identifying areas where implementation has fallen short, particularly in integrating diversity policies beyond CSR. Recommendations include measuring diversity outcomes, implementing effective strategies, removing diversity policies from HR, focusing on retention, and providing targeted training. The report concludes by emphasizing the importance of continuous improvement in fostering a truly inclusive workplace.

Running head: EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE
Emotional Intelligence
Name of the student
Name of the university
Author Note:

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Table of contents:
Overview of the Firm.......................................................................................................................3
Diversity related initiatives..............................................................................................................4
Sources from where you have obtained information.......................................................................5
Critique of the diversity initiatives..................................................................................................6
Recommendations............................................................................................................................6
Additional Sources...........................................................................................................................7
References........................................................................................................................................8

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Overview of the Firm
The Woolworths supermarkets is the largest and the most prominent supermarket store of
Australia. The presence of the company in the Australian market for close to 100 years is the
proof of its large scale reputation in the island nation. The company which is headquartered in
Bella Vista, NSW has expanded itself to close to 1000 stores across the country. The presence of
such large number of stores across Australia proves its capability and operational reputation. The
company recorded revenue of more than A$55 billion in the year 2018 (woolworths.com.au
2019). With a workforce of more than 115,000 people in its ranks, Woolworths is one of the
largest employers of not only Australia but also all across the globe.
The company was established in the year 1924 and specializes itself in the year 1924 and
specializes itself in selling different kinds of the groceries like vegetables, meat, packaged food,
magazines, DVD’s and many more as such (woolworths.com.au 2019). Apart from this, the
company also has subsidiary convenience stores named “Metro”. The company has also recently
launched its own online store “Home Shop” which is a click and collect online store of the
company. The management of the company has introduced loyalty schemes for the customers
under whom various discounts can be obtained at the stores as well as other areas. The presence
of these schemes makes shopping more attractive for the customers which further increases the
reputation and profitability of Woolworths.

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Diversity related initiatives
The Woolworths group can be termed as one of the best in class when it comes to the
matter of diversity. The company has its separate rules and policies that define diversity in the
workplace. The presence of the diverse range of people as the employees of the company has
been helpful for the organization to offer a proper and efficient element. Woolworths Group
Limited is committed to an inclusive workplace that helps to embrace and promote diversity in a
clear manner. The management of the company provides value, respect as well as leverage to the
unique contributions of people with the diverse backgrounds. The experience of all the people
and the exceptional customer service to the different types of community (insidefmcg.com.au/
2019). The management of the business refers to the changing domestic responsibilities
throughout all their careers.
The company has a large number of diversity objectives for their large number of
employees. This includes the likes of;
a. Support the cultural and mutual diversity f the workforce and engage the diverse
workforce in different positions within the company
b. Support the gender equality and continue to employ women into important roles and
responsibility within the company
c. Training women with senior roles and skills that can help them to take up senior posts
within the company. Such kinds of programs helps to support the gender diversity and
equality of the company

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d. The management of the company has pledged to support the indigenous Australian
community and train them to take up important as well as general roles within the
company
e. The providence of disability employment chances and also support the process of career
development process
The objectives clearly prove the presence of a large number of new and existing diverse
initiatives of the company. On the other hand, I have been able to gain a strong proof related to
the principles of the company regarding diversity and the measures implemented by the
management of the company to promote diversity within the business organization.
The principles and policies of Woolworths provide a clear and strong framework that
supports the initiatives and policies of the government in a strong and supportive manner. The
management of the company rewards and promotes the team in a supportive manner and presents
reward to the people who are able to promote diversity amongst the workforce of the company.
The CEO and the other supervisors of the organization obtain information and monitor the
diversity of the workforce in a strong and supportive manner that can be helpful for the
organization.
Sources from where you have obtained information
The sources for collecting the information have involved the secondary research sources.
The secondary sources mostly involve the likes of the organizational sources. The official
website of the company and the use of the different types of the organizational elements have
been presented in a different manner. The sources used has been that of the secondary sources

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related to Woolworths diversity and value for people, All the sources have been presented in the
referencing section of the assignment.
Critique of the diversity initiatives
There have been a large number of critiques for the diversity failures in Woolworths. The
inability to implement the diversity programs in a sincere manner has been one of the major
reasons for the failure of the diversity programs. The major problem behind the failure of the
diversity initiatives has been the reason for the inclusion of the diversity policies within the CSR
initiatives. Apart from this the implementation of the diversity policies by the HR groups. The
non diversion of these policies has caused immense problems to the success of the diversity
policies of Woolworths. Such problems had less to various issues of diversity scandals within the
company. This has been problematic for the organization to maintain a strong diverse workforce
in a smooth manner.
Recommendations
Some of the recommendations for maintain a strong diversity policy is as follows;
a. Measure it- The measurement of the diversity includes the access to the people who work
for the company and their diverse backgrounds. The policies of the company must be
prepared accordingly.
b. Implement the best strategy- The implementation of the best strategy can be helpful for
the management to gain diversity.

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c. Removal of diversity policies from HR policies- The removal of the diversity policies
from the HR policies can support the success of the organization in the most efficient
manner.
d. Focusing on retention- The retention policies of the organization will help in the success
of the business.
e. Effective Training to people- The diverse range of people must be provided exclusibe
training for success.
Additional Sources
Some general sources that include additional requirements have been used in the
assignment. These have helped to gather the recommendations and critiques of diversity in
Woolworths.

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References
Cohen, E., 2017. Recruitment, diversity and inclusion. In CSR for HR (pp. 122-152). Routledge.
GradConnection. (2019). Woolworths Group - Cultural Diversity. [online] Available at:
https://au.gradconnection.com/employers/woolworths-group/cultural-diversity/ [Accessed 15
Sep. 2019].
HR Daily Advisor. (2019). 8 Ways to Improve Diversity in the Workplace - HR Daily Advisor.
[online] Available at: https://hrdailyadvisor.blr.com/2016/11/28/8-ways-improve-diversity-
workplace/ [Accessed 15 Sep. 2019].
Inside FMCG. (2019). Woolworths named No. 1 in Australia for diversity and inclusion - Inside
FMCG. [online] Available at: https://insidefmcg.com.au/2018/09/07/woolworths-named-no-1-in-
australia-for-diversity-and-inclusion/ [Accessed 15 Sep. 2019].
Mor Barak, M.E., 2015. Inclusion is the key to diversity management, but what is
inclusion?. Human Service Organizations: Management, Leadership & Governance, 39(2),
pp.83-88.
Puritty, C., Strickland, L.R., Alia, E., Blonder, B., Klein, E., Kohl, M.T., McGee, E., Quintana,
M., Ridley, R.E., Tellman, B. and Gerber, L.R., 2017. Without inclusion, diversity initiatives
may not be enough. Science, 357(6356), pp.1101-1102.
Woolworths.com.au. (2019). Woolworths Supermarket - Buy Groceries Online. [online]
Available at: https://www.woolworths.com.au/ [Accessed 15 Sep. 2019].

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Woolworthsgroup.com.au. (2019). [online] Available at:
https://www.woolworthsgroup.com.au/icms_docs/183931_Diversity_Policy.pdf [Accessed 15
Sep. 2019].