ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to identify the relationship between increased diversity in workplace and employee performance. An interdependent, diverse work environment is a necessary component of a successful organization, and if management and other employees cannot adjust differences within the cultures of the people, chaos will soon follow. In order for an organization to remain competitive, management must know how to manage diversity and employee performance. The design of this study was to completely analyze the questionnaires which contain the findings from the field and the literature review in order to give a congruent recommendation on how to utilize diversity aspects in order to improve on the performance of the workforce. From the analysis it was concluded that diversity has both a negative and positive impact to the organization. For example on the negative side, diversity causes ill feelings among the employees. Miscommunication at workplace and misunderstanding at the workplace. On the positive side diversity help an organization to gain competitive advantage, new ideas get way in to the organization and it also promotes creativity. It was recommended that the management should do the following: secure top management support and commitment, assessing the workforce, attracting employees, developing employees and retaining employees in order to cultivate a diverse workforce.