Cultural Diversity at Engineering Sector Workplace into Australia - Research Proposal Example

Training Staff to overcome challenges associated with cultural Diversity in the Engineering Workplace Contents Contents 2 1.0 Training staff to overcome challenges associated with cultural diversity at engineering workplace 2.0 Project summary Engineering firms in Australia are rated highly because of their unique features, and the complexity of the processes involved in their work. In recent times, the engineering sector in Australia has faced problems relating to multicultural diversity at work place. The main objective of this research project is to investigate vividly the main challenges, barriers and problems associated with diversity in engineering firms in Australia and to recommend ways of overcoming the challenges posed. The findings from investigation will help in identifying some of the most effective ways workers can embrace diversity in the workplace in the engineering sector and the human resource managers of various departments in the engineering sector could employ the identified findings. 3.0 Aims, significance and expected outcomes Aims The main aim of this research work is to evaluate the challenges, barriers and problems associated with diversity in the engineering sector in Australia. In addition, the responses from the investigation will be employed in identifying the factors that are responsible for the problems and challenges that arise because of diversity in the engineering sector. Significance The first ever major Australian research study on diversity in engineering, which was carried out as an ARC Discovery research project, aimed to investigate challenges and barriers associated with cultural diversity at workplace in engineering organizations in Australia between the years 2004 and 2006 (Cappelli & Keller, 2013). In that study, it was postulated that there existed some unique differences in output in a multicultural organization. One notable finding was that no firm had put policies in place to address this issue (Sharp et al., 2007; Greenberg,2015) n addition, the issue of diversity in the engineering sector has not been taken seriously by the government because most engineering firms are not established in one place. The government views this characteristic of engineering firms as a hindrance to imposing regulatory measures when it comes to the issue of diversity in the workplace (Franzway et al., 2007). Previous studies suggest that there can be a direct connection between diversity in the workplace and innovation, growth and the expansion of an organization’s economy. According to Mills et al. (2006), there are much higher development levels, as well as innovation, in those areas that embrace a greater level of diversity in Germany, compared to those that experience lower diversity levels. Franzway et al. (2004, 2009) postulate that innovation is, in one way or another, correlated with how good a company is in overcoming the challenges and problems associated with multicultural diversity at their workplace. In other words, internationally, diversity is a real factor in generating industrial innovation within teams. Furthermore, the rate at which the problems associated with diversity in the workplace have been rising in Australia, causing serious concern. The figure below illustrates the top challenges facing most organizations, according to Social Trends (2013). Retrieved from Social Trends (2013): http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2010/06/25/childlessness-up-among-all-women-down-among-women-with-advanceddegrees/. Courtesy of http://futuretrends.eiu.com/. Expected outcomes This research project is important because it will provide engineering practitioners with some insight into the problems and challenges associated with diversity in the workplace, their role in this trend and how they will be able to reduce management costs and inconveniences that arise from poor cultural diversity management. One of the notable expected findings is the role that diversity plays in enhancing organization performance in the engineering sector in Australia. Moreover, by establishing the connection between lack of innovation and the problems associated with diversity in the workplace, it is expected that there will be a closer correlation between innovation and those engineering firms that possess proper diversity management strategies than in those with lower cultural diversity. Multicultural diversity is one of the most significant attributes to organizational success, as the figure below indicates. Retrieved from Future Trends (2013): http://futuretrends.eiu.com/. Other research work relevant to the project Cultural diversity in the workplace is one of the fundamental principles in running an organization. A heterogeneous group of individuals delivers better critical analysis and better solutions than like-minded people do. Simply put, organizations should be established in a way that encourages diversity (Krizan, 2011; Greenberg, 2015). However, introducing a new culture, such as a new language, into the work environment can create barriers and challenges that must be dealt with. Linguistic and cultural differences can hinder an organization’s effective communication. In addition, those employees who may not be fluent in the main language that is employed at an organization may encounter difficulties when it comes to responding to customers’ and colleagues’ requests, as well as expressing their own needs (Ayre et al., 2011a, 2011b, 2011c). It is universally acknowledged that most engineering firms in Australia whose workers cannot communicate effectively with customers end up losing clients because the customer opts to transfer his business dealings elsewhere (Lewis, 2007; Mills et al., 2006, 2009, 2011a, 2011b). If an organization is working to move from a homogenous workforce to a workforce that is more culturally diverse, some portion of the workers may resist the change (Gill et al., 2005a, 2005b). They may, for example, have difficulty in adapting to the new workers’ ways of doing things to the extent of resenting their presence. Such resistance to change is one of the serious challenges faced by managers in establishing a working environment that encourages harmony and teamwork (Gill et al, 2008a; Gill et al, 2008b). In this case, workers’ morale may be hit hard if the management does not find a solution (Mills et al., 2009; Franzway et al., 2009; Sharp et al., 2011). The management style of an organization may also incur challenges because managers may need to adapt their management strategies to encompass people from diverse cultures (Bastalich et al., 2003, 2007). For instance, engineering workers of Latin American descent believe that questioning a supervisor’s decision is not normal and that instructions should be followed to the letter (Bastalich et al., 2007; Joseph, 2014). In this case, a supervisor who encourages comments and opinions may be frustrated with what they can categorize as lack of input from the workers of Latin American descent. Owing to this fact, there is a need to establish ways of letting them know that their opinions are valued (Congress & Gonzalez, 2013). 4.0 Project plan, methods and techniques Project plan The proposed project will carry out a primary research study in which information and data will be collected through survey interviews of a group of engineering firms in Australia. Survey interviews were preferred because they encompass the employment of both qualitative and quantitative approaches in data collection, thus making it easier to triangulate information over a wider scale. The project will be conducted in stages, as in the diagram. Preparation of project proposal Data collection Data analysis Project report writing Report submission Research questions The following are some of the research questions that were asked: 1. What are some of the factors that cause challenges associated with diversity in the workplace? 2. What do you think the company must do in order to solve the problems associated with multicultural diversity? 3. What difficulties do you experience in dealing with people from different cultures? 4. What role do you think you have played in the current challenges posed by cultural diversity? Research hypothesis From the interviews and literature reviews, it was hypothesized that there is a greater relationship between cultural diversity and an organization’s success. In addition, those organizations that have poor multicultural diversity management strategies always struggle with the challenges associated with it. Furthermore, giving workers a sense of belonging encourages acceptance of cultural diversity, thereby limiting the problems caused by it. Limitations of the project The vast number and range of engineering firms in Australia makes it extremely difficult to access all of them. Therefore, there will inevitably be some uncertainty about the applicability of the opinions of those surveyed, given that every firm has its own management structure. In addition, the unwillingness of some staff members to co-operate fully may mean that the emailed questionnaires produce unexpectedly poor results. Sampling The project will use random sampling to identify the group of individuals to be interviewed. The workers will be grouped according to the engineering firm they work for, their job rank and their area of specialty. Random sampling was chosen because it eliminates respondent bias, giving every individual a chance of being chosen. Data collection The data and information from the survey interviews will be collected using quantitative and qualitative approaches. In simple terms, a qualitative data collection technique will be used to collect information from directors, executives and managers on the role they have played in the challenges and barriers associated with diversity. This qualitative information will be collected by employing semi-structured survey interviews because they give room to probe interviewees in order to get more information. Closed-ended survey interview questions were used to collect the quantitative data. These questions were measured using a five-point Likert scale, which represented the frequency of appearance of the terms rare, sometimes, always and often. Questionnaires were employed during the survey interview because they allow data and information to be collected over a large scale within a short period. Data analysis Qualitative data will be analysed using content analysis because this approach makes it possible to identify similarities and differences between variables by grouping them according to their themes, line by line. That is to say, content analysis will ensure that the challenges that were associated with cultural diversity were quantified and grouped according to their themes and how they were related to one another. Microsoft Excel will be employed in analysing statistical information. The effects of potential barriers, challenges and problems associated with cultural diversity in the workplace in engineering firms in Australia will be analysed and evaluated using an ANOVA table (analysis of variance). 5.0 Relevance of skills and experience I am currently pursuing a Master’s Programme in the field of Project Management. I also possess a degree in the field of Mechanical Engineering and Technology (MET), which will put me in a better position to understand engineering structures and the expectations of an engineering firm. Furthermore, over the last three years, I have been working in an executive position as a machine controller at an engineering firm. While there, I noticed some challenges when it came to communicating with people from a culture different from my own. Issues of language barriers also extended to customers. The experience I gained from this executive position moved me to research the factors that can help curb the challenges associated with cultural diversity in the workplace. I believe my Project Management skills will enable me to comprehend the challenges and problems associated with cultural diversity in the workplace as well as the strategies that can be implemented to curb these problems. Moreover, my workplace experience will be helpful in obtaining interviews from people because I was working in an engineering field. 6.0 Proposed timing The project is expected to take a year. The first stage of the project is the preparation of the research proposal, which will be carried out in the first two months. The second stage will involve data collection, which encompasses the emailing of survey interviews and questionnaires to a selected group of workers from Australian engineering firms; this stage will be conducted within the next two months. After the data and information have been collected, data and content analysis will be conducted for about one and half months in order to identify variables that are responsible for the challenges posed by diversity in the engineering firms. The report will be prepared in the next two months and fifteen days after data analysis, and then the report will be finally submitted on September 6, 2015. The stages and processes are shown in the table below. Project activity Start 1st Jan 2015 Time(Months) End 6th September 2015 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Project proposal preparation Collection of data and information Content and data analysis Writing of the project report Report submission (September 6, 2015) 7.0 Reference Ayre, M. E., Mills, J. E., & Gill, J. (2011a). Two steps forward, one-step back: Women engineers in Australia. International Journal of Gender, Science and Technology, 3(2). Online at http://genderandset.open.ac.uk/index.php/genderandset/article/view/157/334 Ayre, M. E., Mills, J. E., & Gill, J. (2011b). “I like the challenge”: A study of women engineers who have stayed in the profession. Paper presented at the 15th International Conference of Women Engineers and Scientists, Adelaide, July 19–22. Ayre, M. E., Mills, J. E., & Gill, J. (2011c). Not all women leave: Reflections on a cohort of “stayers” in civil engineering. American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference, Vancouver, Canada, June 26–29. Bastalich, W., Mills, J., Franzway, S., Gill, J., & Sharp, R. (2003). “I had this real feeling that it was a boys club.” Proceedings of 14th Annual Conference of Australasian Association for Engineering Education, 499–506. Bastalich, W., Franzway, S., Gill, J., Mills, J., & Sharp, R. (2007). Disrupting masculinities: Women engineers and engineering workplace culture. Australian Feminist Studies, 22(54), 385–400. Cappelli, P., & Keller, J. (2013). Classifying work in the new economy. Academy of Management. Congress, E. P., & González, M. J. (Eds.). (2013). Multicultural perspectives in social work practice with families. New York: Springer Publishing Company. Franzway, S., Gill, J., Mills, J., Sharp, R., & Bastalich, W. (2004). Towards a feminist politics of work: Revisioning a research project on women engineers. Paper presented at the 2004 Conference of The Australian Sociological Association (TASA), December 8–11. Available on CD-Rom. Franzway, S., Sharp, R., Gill, J., & Mills, J. (2007). What does it matter? The problem of gender equity in engineering. Keynote address, FEMMSS2 Conference, Feminist Epistemologies, Methodologies, Metaphysics, and Science Studies. Phoenix, Arizona, February. Franzway, S., Sharp, R., Mills, J. E., & Gill, J. (2009) .What does it matter? The politics of ignorance and the problem of gender equity in engineering. Frontiers: A Journal of Women’s Studies, 30(1): 89–106. Future Trends (2014).Global economic future trends. Retrieved from http://futuretrends.eiu.com/. Gill, J., Mills, J., Franzway, S., & Sharp, R. (2005a). “I wanna be an engineer!”: A tale of high achieving women, professional power and the ongoing negotiation of workplace identity. Redress, Journal of the Association of Women Educators, 14(2): 13–22. Gill, J., Mills. J., Sharp, R., & Franzway, S. (2005b). Education beyond technical competence: Gender issues in the working lives of engineers. Global Colloquium on Engineering Education, September 26­–29, Sydney, Australia. On CD Rom. Gill, J., Mills, J. E., Franzway, S., & Sharp, R. (2008a). “Oh you must be very clever!”: High-achieving women, professional power and the ongoing negotiation of workplace identity. Gender and Education, 20(3): 223–236. Gill, J., Sharp R., Mills, J. E., & Franzway, S. (2008b). “I still wanna be an engineer!” Women, education and the engineering profession. European Journal of Engineering Education, 33(4): 391–402. Greenberg, J. (2015). Diversity in the workplace: Benefits, challenges and solutions. Retrieved from http://www.multiculturaladvantage.com/recruit/diversity/diversity-in-the-workplace-benefits-challenges-solutions.asp. Joseph, C. (2014). Cultural & language barriers in the workforce. Retrieved from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/cultural-language-barriers-workforce-11928.html. Krizan, A. 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