Looking for a man in finance, six-five, blue eyes…

But what does diversity really mean?

Diversity in the workplace refers to the variety of differences among people in an organisation. It encompasses cultural, racial, religious, age, gender, sexual orientation and disability differences. Embracing diversity involves recognising, respecting and valuing these differences, to create a more inclusive and equitable environment. Diversity helps foster creativity and innovation, which in turn, benefits organisations and their employees.

There are several types of diversity, each contributing uniquely to the fabric of an organisation:

• Demographic Diversity: This includes attributes such as gender, race, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation and physical abilities. It also encapsulates cultural diversity - differences in beliefs, traditions and practices. Employees from different cultural backgrounds can bring a variety of perspectives and ideas influenced by their heritage, social groups and experiences.

• Cognitive or Educational Diversity: This refers to differences in thought processes, problem-solving approaches and perspectives. It encompasses the varied ways people think and approach tasks and challenges through different learnings or degrees (is a team made up of Commerce/Finance graduates from the top universities really providing a diverse range of thoughts/ideas?)

• Experiential or Functional Diversity: This includes differences in life experiences and backgrounds, such as education, upbringing, career paths (we’ve represented ex-electricians/military/professional athletes) and personal experiences. It contributes to a richer pool of ideas and perspectives within a team. Employees with varied professional backgrounds, skills, knowledge and areas of expertise can contribute to more innovative solutions, improved performance and add value in alternative ways.

By embracing and leveraging the unique contributions of a diverse workforce, organisations can foster innovation, improve decision-making and enhance overall performance. Diversity in the workplace is about providing equal opportunities so that employers can discover and work with talented people from all walks of life—not just those who attended the best universities, have the most prestigious connections, or are most likely to be your drinking buddies after work.

McKinsey has been examining diversity in the workplace for many years and when looking at metrics such as financial results and diversity in the workforce, the findings were clear:

• Ethnically-diverse companies are 35% more likely to earn above-average revenue

• Gender-diverse companies are 15% more likely to earn above-average revenue

• Teams with 50-50 gender diversity outperform other teams in quality of work

• 2 out of 3 candidates report that diversity is important in evaluating job offers

• More than half of employees believe their company should do more to improve diversity

Building a diverse team is not about recruiting people based on qualities they were born with or about giving underrepresented groups preferential treatment, but is instead about providing a better overall culture, performance and strategic advantage.

JMES have extensive experience identifying, attracting and placing candidates with diverse backgrounds for our clients. So if you are seeking a firm that can implement and manage a strategic and inclusive hiring process, or you are a candidate that values diversity in the workplace, you’ve come to the right place.