MBA502 Presentation: Evaluating Diversity & Inclusion at Uber

This presentation provides a critical analysis of Uber's diversity and inclusion initiatives. It begins with an overview of diversity in the workplace and its benefits, followed by an introduction to Uber and its historical challenges related to diversity, particularly gender inequality. The presentation examines Uber's diversity statement and its efforts to improve gender representation, noting a significant increase in female employees between 2018 and 2019. It also critiques the company's diversity practices, highlighting a lack of initiative among senior managers and challenges in establishing a positive organizational culture. The presentation concludes with recommended solutions, including measures for needs of diversity, a diverse employee recruitment process, refurbishing the employee retention policy and procedure, remodeling the organizational culture and link with diversity in workplace, and training and development of existing employees. The analysis is supported by various academic sources and news reports.

Emotional Intelligence, Cultural Intelligence
and Diversity

Diversity in workplace
 Diversity brings mutual respect among the employee
 Diversity in workplace is also played magnificently in conflict
resolution and reduction.
 Presence of diversity in workplace helps the organisation to establish
a good image within the society.
 Beneficial to recruit people on the basis of their talent and gain
strategic advantage in the competitive market.

Uber and its workplace
 Uber, founded in 2009 by Travis Kalanick, is known for its peer-to-
peer road sharing and micro mobility system of e-scooter and
bikes.
 There are only 15.1% female employees working in Uber
currently.
 Persistent sexism and gender discriminations are the most
obvious elements existed in the workplace culture of Uber.
 There are enough discrepancies regarding Zero Tolerance Policy.

Diversity and Uber
 Uber tried to set a unique diversity statement by mentioning that the
organisation would like to ignite opportunity by setting the world in
motion.
 The goals and objectives of Uber were loud and clear and the senior
management understood that it was beyond setting just goals and
objectives.
 The organisation shared its focus to recruit more people into the
workforce from different gender and started reducing the gender gap
ration between the male and female employees.
 From the financial year of 2018 to 2019 there was a notable growth of
total female employees of Uber by 42.3%.

Sources of Uber’s workplace
■ The official site of the organisation clearly highlights
the objective and purpose of the organisation to
create an extensive diversity and inclusion practice.
■ Some peer reviewed journals have been taken to
support the initiative of Uber.

Critique of Uber’s deiversity
 There are still lack of initiative among the Uber senior managers to create an effective
organisational practice in order to introduce diversity with full swing.
 Members of the recruiting team were denied to access the demographic information
that the organisation is often used to set its target market.
 The management failed to convince the respective departments to establish a positive
organisational culture for the benefit of Uber.

Recommended solution
Figure out the measures for needs of diversity.
Initiate a diverse employee recruitment process.
Refurbishing the employee retention policy and procedure
Remodeling the organizational culture and link with diversity in
workplace.
Training and development of the existing employees on workplace
diversity

Empirical evidences
Measure
Diversity in
recruitment
Reshaping
organizationa
l culture
Training and
development

Reference
• Ahmed, M., 2019. Ethnic Diversity in the Workplace: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly. Aisthesis: Honors Student Journal, 10(1), pp.10-17.
• Barak, M.E.M., 2016. Managing diversity: Toward a globally inclusive workplace. Sage Publications.
• Cletus, H.E., Mahmood, N.A., Umar, A. and Ibrahim, A.D., 2018. Prospects and challenges of workplace diversity in modern day organizations: A critical review. HOLISTICA–Journal of
Business and Public Administration, 9(2), pp.35-52.
• Earl, C., Taylor, P., Roberts, C., Huynh, P. and Davis, S., 2017. The Workforce Demographic Shift and the Changing Nature of Work: Implications for Policy, Productivity, and
Participation', Age Diversity in the Workplace (Advanced Series in Management, Volume 17). Emerald Publishing Limited, 17, pp.3-34.
• Kato, T. and Kodama, N., 2018. The effect of corporate social responsibility on gender diversity in the workplace: econometric evidence from Japan. British Journal of Industrial
Relations, 56(1), pp.99-127.
• Khan, N., Korac‐Kakabadse, N., Skouloudis, A. and Dimopoulos, A., 2019. Diversity in the workplace: An overview of disability employment disclosures among UK firms. Corporate Social
Responsibility and Environmental Management, 26(1), pp.170-185.
• Lee, B. 2019. Uber’s 2019 Diversity Report. [online] Uber Newsroom. Available at: https://www.uber.com/newsroom/2019-diversity-report/ [Accessed 28 Jan. 2020].
• Narayanan, V. 2019. Uber steps on the gas in effort to promote culture, gender diversity. [online] @businessline. Available at:
https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/economy/logistics/uber-steps-on-the-gas-in-effort-to-promote-culture-gender-diversity/article28655712.ece# [Accessed 28 Jan. 2020].
• Nielsen, V.L. and Madsen, M.B., 2017. Does Gender Diversity in the Workplace Affect Job Satisfaction and Turnover Intentions?. International Public Management Review, 18(1), pp.77-
115.
• Ravazzani, S., 2016. Understanding approaches to managing diversity in the workplace. Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal.
• Roberson, Q.M., 2019. Diversity in the workplace: A review, synthesis, and future research agenda. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior, 6, pp.69-
88.
• Sakdiyakorn, M. and Wattanacharoensil, W., 2018. Generational diversity in the workplace: A systematic review in the hospitality context. Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, 59(2), pp.135-
159.
• Velasco, R., Villar, R., Lunar, R. and Velasco, V., 2016. Diversity in the workplace: Evidences from gulf college, Oman. Journal of Asian Business Strategy, 6(4), pp.73-84.
• Wahab, H.A. and Jaafar, H.J., 2018. Workplace diversity: How does Malaysian law promote people with disability?. International Journal, 3(9), pp.14-23.
• Yang, J. and Matz-Costa, C., 2018. Age diversity in the workplace: The effect of relational age within supervisor–employee dyads on employees’ work engagement. The International
Journal of Aging and Human Development, 87(2), pp.156-183.
• Zaleski and Newcomer 2019. Uber diversity recruiting hampered by lack of leadership, funds. [online] The Economic Times. Available at: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/small-
biz/startups/uber-diversity-recruiting-hampered-by-lack-of-leadership-funds/articleshow/57823802.cms?from=mdr [Accessed 28 Jan. 2020].

THANK YOU