Reflective Journal: Leadership, Workplace Diversity, and Ethics

This reflective journal explores the concept of workforce diversity, its importance, and the challenges of workplace discrimination. The author reflects on their learning from a leadership management course, discussing how the course content applies to their personal experiences and future career goals. The essay recounts a personal experience of witnessing workplace discrimination, analyzing the impact of the situation and the author's role as a manager. The author identifies areas for personal and professional development, focusing on adopting an ethical and democratic leadership style to foster an inclusive and respectful work environment. The journal emphasizes the importance of communication, trust-building, and acknowledging diverse perspectives within a team to create a positive and productive organizational culture. The author aims to become a better leader by promoting transparency, respecting all employees, and making decisions that benefit the entire team.

Running head: WORKFORCE DIVERSITY
Workforce Diversity
Name of the student
Name of the University
Author note

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Workforce diversity refers to bringing together of various kinds of people within the
boundaries of a company. The workplace comprises of the people having various range of the
experiences, characteristics along with the backgrounds. Workplace diversity is indicative of
the similarities and the differences in between the employees in relation to cultural
background, race, gender along with the religion (Cho, Kim & Mor Barak, 2017). Diversity
can help in making workplace heterogeneous and it is a positive force in a company.
Globalization have made the management of the workplace diversity of crucial importance in
the present age. Fundamental shift have taken place within world economy and the barriers in
relation to the world trade have broken down owing to the advancement made in the
transportation along with the telecommunications technology. The concerted efforts of the
people can help a company in achieving the goals. The cordial relationship in between the
employees from various kinds of the cultural and the religious backgrounds can help in the
smooth functioning of company. This essay discusses about the issue of the workplace
discrimination and the changes that can be brought to the workplace that can help in
resolving the situation. This essay elaborates on my learning in the class and how it can help
me in dealing with the conflicts in an organisation. The essay talks about my evolving in the
role of leader in the future and an aspect that I would like to work upon so that I can become
successful as the leader. The essay reflects on my abilities as a manager and the kind of
approach that can be adopted that can help me in becoming a better leader.
I have learnt in the class that the leaders should be able to set tone of the business and
they should represent the core values of a company. I have gathered the knowledge that the
leaders in a company have the responsibility of shaping the organizational culture with the
help of allocation of the resources along with the role modelling. I have been able to learn
that the establishment of the relationship in between leaders and that of subordinates should
be on the basis of the confidence along with the trust which can help in strengthening the

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position of a company. The leaders can lead by setting an example that can work to the
benefit of the other employees of the company. The unconscious bias should be recognised
by the leaders that can help in the reduction of the discrimination taking place in the
workplace. It can help in inculcating the right kind of the attitude that can help in the
inclusion of all kinds of employees within the framework of an organization. The leaders
should be able to convey with the help of their communication that they do not have the
preconceptions that can help a company in getting rid of the issues related to the diversity
(Ravazzani, 2016). The creation of a team on the basis of the principle of the inclusiveness
along with the trust can prove to be rewarding for the employees of company (de Aquino &
Robertson, 2018). In my view listening more closely to the views of the employees can help
in spreading a positive message in company that can have positive effects on the performance
of a company. The principles of the diversity and the inclusion are the core values that can
strengthen the performance of employees. The hate and the bigotry should not be tolerated in
the workplace and the appropriate steps should be taken that can help in curtailing the evil
forces in a company (Assari, 2018). The learning experience can be said to be of great value
it can help in relieving the stress which is felt by the employees belonging to the racial
minority that can be instrumental in increasing overall performance of employees. The
mistreatment in the workplace can cause a person to suffer psychologically that can spoil the
career progression of an individual.
In the event of working in the British fashion retailer All Saints, I was witness to an
incident of the workplace discrimination that left a deep impression on me (Allsaints., 2020).
I saw that there was a black British working in the company who had to face a lot of
discrimination owing to the fact that he belonged to the class of the ethnic minority. The
person got involved in a scuffle as he had a different opinion from the other employees of the
company. The black British was working in the marketing department of the company and he

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felt that taking recourse to the sponsoring of the charity events can help the company in
creating a good impression on the people. He was however opposed by all the other people in
the meeting and his ideas were swept aside by the other employees. The sponsorship of the
charity events can help in increasing the brand loyalty that can help a company in becoming
popular among people (Oduro et al., 2019). His opinions were ridiculed on account of the
fact that he belonged to the marginalised class and his decisions were looked down upon by
the other people. I was the manager of the company and I went along with the opinion of the
majority as I felt that supporting the black employees would infuriate the other people who
were working in the department. The black employee was scoffed at by the other works and
harassed that left a deep impact on his morale. He was not supported by the other people that
made him feel slighted among the other workers. The other employees were prejudiced
against the black employees that made them neglect the opinion of the worker. It made the
worker feel rejected that resulted in a feeling of guilt for the worker (Goswami & Goswami,
2018). It gave birth to sadness and the depression and it made him feel that he was not
valued like the other employees. It made the black British develop the hatred for the other
people and he withdrew himself from the other employees of the company. I have in the
present time been responsible for the propagation of the institutional racism in the company
that have a bad influence on the culture of my company.
I have not supported the just opinion of the black worker and hence acted in an
untrustworthy manner that would have a detrimental effect on the performance of employees.
The employee would lose the trust in the leader which would affect his performance in
company in a negative manner (Page, 2019). I would like to emerge as an ethical leader
within the next one year by displaying the proper behaviour among the employees. It can
make the subordinates trust the leader that can act as a positive force for the development of
company. The ethical leader can inspire the trust and the positive attitudes pertaining to the

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job that can help the employees in maximising their performance in a company. The
unethical leaders harms the organization owing to the deteriorated trust among the employees
of company. I have played the role of an abusive supervisor as I have displayed the hostile
behaviour towards an employee of the minority origin in the company that would cause the
company to suffer in the long run. Racial discrimination can be considered to be abusive
supervision and it can cause the employees to have less amount of trust in the resolution
process of a company (Barak, 2016). It have been found that the supervisor in the event of
being abusive can reduce the productivity of the employees and it can contribute to that of the
negative emotions within the framework of a company. Within a span of five years, I would
like to improve the style of my communication that can bring the employees together in the
company. It can create the bond in between the employees of the company that can help the
company to get rid of the issues related to diversity. The communication taking place in
between the employees of company can help the employees in knowing about the customs
and the traditions of the other workers that can help in the area of unity in between the
employees of company (Khan et al., 2019). In my view, within the course of the five years I
would built the trust in the team by acknowledging the differences in opinion among the
employees that can help in the creation of the honest conversations in between the employees
of company.
In my view, this incident helped me in learning important aspects regarding the issue
of the workplace diversity and its effect on the employees of company. It was learnt by me
that the discrimination takes place owing to the perceptions along with the opinions of the
people. The unfavourable treatment meted out to the other employees can make a worker feel
himself to be undervalued that can have a bad effect on the performance of an employee
(Riccucci, 2018). I was able to understand that the establishment of safe and a respectful
workplace can help in increasing the efficiency of work of the employees of company. The

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staff of company should be able to understand their rights and the responsibilities that can
help in the creation of right kind of environment in the workplace (McCann, 2017). In my
view, the company culture should be able to encourage the staff of respecting the differences
of the other people. The value of the experience resides in the fact that it can help me in
evolving as a better manager who would be able to increase the job satisfaction of the
employees who are working in a company. I was able to understand that victimisation can
take away the opportunities of a person and it can impede the professional development of a
person. The employees feel burdened when they are discriminated against in a company and
it causes the deterioration of performance of the workers.
I have learnt that the employees not being considered during taking a decision leaves
a negative effect on employees. The learnings have taught me that the hegemonic culture
prevailing in the organisation impedes the development of employees that proves to be
inimical for the future of the company. I would like to become a democratic leader in the
future who makes the vital decisions in the company on the basis of inputs of the other
members of the team. It can help in ensuring the diversity in the company as it can give the
voice to the employees coming from the minority backgrounds that can encourage all kinds
of employees in a company. It can help all the employees in expressing their concerns along
with the problems that can help a company in making the progress. This style of the
leadership should be adopted by the leader that can help in taking into consideration the
interest of all kinds of the employees in company. The democratic leader can help in ensuring
the transparency that can prove to be imperative for the functioning of the diverse group of
the employees (Newton, 2018). It can help the people in expressing themselves freely that
can encourage the people to act in an honest manner. It can help the leader in showing the
respect to all the workers that can take an organization ahead in the long run. It can aid the
people in putting forward the views along with the opinions that can ensure the success of a

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company. It can help the members of the team in feeling themselves to be more valued that
can improve the performance of the workers. The leaders should explain the decisions to the
employees that can aid in the process of growth of company. I think that the approach of the
democratic leader can help him in getting the followers of the high morale that can help in
serving the cause of diversity in a company. It can encourage the diverse group of the
employees in offer the creative solutions that can facilitate the functioning of a company.
There are certain activities that should be carried out that can help in the creation of the right
kind of the workplace environment which values all aspects in relation to the human
relations. The senior management in a company should build the relationship with that of the
underrepresented groups that can help them in knowing about the grievances of the
employees (Dovidio, Gaertner & Abad-Merino, 2017). There should be workplace programs
that can help in providing the training to the people belonging to the minority group that can
strengthen their position in the company. The mentoring programs can prove to be crucial for
the leadership development and it can help in the identification of the highly skilled people
among the people of the colour which can be utilised for the betterment of a company.
The learning have taught me that encouraging the element of the workplace diversity
can help in paving the path for the right kind of the organisational culture that can work for
welfare of employees. I saw an incident of racism while working in All Saints that had a great
effect on my mind. A black employee of the company had to face the discrimination as ne
came from a minority ethnic class. He became embroiled in the conflict as he belonged to the
minority class and the other employees were prejudiced against him. Leaders are responsible
for setting tone of business which helps in representing values of a company. In my view, I
should make improvements in my communication style that can help me in understanding the
point of view of other people in company. The creation of the bond among the employees can
help the company in overcoming the issues pertaining to diversity. The workplace programs

7WORKFORCE DIVERSITY
can be brought in that can provide training to people of minority group that can aid in the
long-term growth of a company.

8WORKFORCE DIVERSITY
References
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January 2020, from https://www.allsaints.com/
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