Course description

The UN sustainability agenda, set for 2030, focuses on three pillars of sustainability: social, environmental, and economic sustainability (WCED 1987; UN 1992). Social sustainability is about, among other things, identifying and managing positive and negative business impacts on people and making sure that individuals and groups are not discriminated or exploited through their employment. In this course, we focus on social and economic sustainability in the light of current debates on gender, diversity and inclusion.

This course offers students cutting-edge knowledge on Diversity Management and Inclusion applied to a work setting.  It specifically equips students to addresses Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of economic and social sustainability, in particular, SDGs 5, 8, and 10. How employees are treated in organizations is partly the result of macroeconomic systems of politics, labour markets, and education systems, but also organizational strategies. This course therefore trains the students to analyse and understand work processes in organizations and the interconnection to more wide-ranging societal and global processes as well as strategic goals in the organisations to achieve more equality, diversity and inclusion.

Three major themes structure students’ learning in this course: Equality, diversity and inclusion. Equality- and the related concept of equity- is about the equal treatment and providing equal opportunities to all employees regardless of demographic background, including sex and gender identity, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation, religion and dis/ability. What does it mean in different international contexts? What measures work to achieve more diversity, and what not? Diversity is about the demographic composition in firms, and particularly leadership positions. Why is diversity an important goal to achieve in firms, what are structural hinders to this goal? Inclusion is about building on diversity, making best use of the talent or employees with different background in organisations and society at large. What is an inclusive organization? How can you be an inclusive leader? This course presents main concepts and theories to analyse the topics equality, diversity and inclusion as well as examples and case studies to discuss and understand how inclusion and exclusion are (re)produced in work life on the individual, group, organizational, and societal levels.

Course content:

1. Conceptualisations of EDI (Equity, Diversity, Inclusion)
2. Theoretical explanations for labour market segmentation and segregation, equity and equality, group interactions and power.
3. Diversity and the Law: understanding the EU anti-discrimination, harassment and bullying directives and case law, Equal Employment Opportunity and Gender Equality legislation.
4. The 'business case' for diversity.
5. Dimensions of diversity and outcomes experienced at work including gender, ethnicity, work/life balance, cultural diversity, workers with disabilities, religious and sexual diversity and age.
6. Best practice organisational interventions.
7. Managing Diversity in practice in organisations: Challenges and opportunities.

Learning Objectives

Upon successful completion of the course, the students should be able to

• Acquire a basic understanding of the implications of diversity in organisations characterised by pluralism and heterogeneity (internationalism)
• A theoretical analytical framework regarding the current issues on equality, diversity and inclusion (reflective critical thinking).
• Understand the difference between conceptualizing ‘gender/diversity as a category’ and ‘gender/diversity as doing’ (= the way we assign and assume gendered/racialized/classed meanings in our activities).
• Deepen participants’ understanding of social and organisational mechanisms of inclusion and exclusion, and of sustainability. Learn to have conversations about difference in an appropriate manner (responsible citizenship).
• Enhance participants’ readiness, awareness, and skills in order that they may take on roles as leaders and as change agents, encourage respectful behaviour and inclusivity, and effectively manage gender and diversity (comprehensive, sustainable leadership).
• Improve participants’ skills in organisational analysis, problem solving, and communicating ideas to improve gender and diversity management practices in a real organisational setting (business embeddedness).

Attendance is compulsory

The final grade will be based on:

1. Group assignment: 60%

Presentation of results of a practice oriented topic. The presentation takes place in the last session (30 minutes presentation and discussion per group).

Evaluation criteria

• Theoretical perspectives and analytical competence (45%)
• Critical perspective and practical recommendations (45%)
• Argumentation and format (10 %)

Deadline: 18.01.2024

2. Individual assignement: 40%

Two individual reflection assignments based on the practical case and the literature

Evaluation criteria

• Theoretical perspectives and analytical competence (65%)
• Critical perspective and practical recommendations (25%)
• Argumentation and format (10 %)

Deadline: 18.01.2024

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References

• Hayes, Theodore L., Oltman, Katherine A., Kaylor, Leah E., & Belgudri, Aishwarya. How leaders can become more committed to diversity management, (2020), Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research,. Vol. 72, No. 4, 247–262 Remark: https://psycnet.apa.org/

• Kirton, Gil & Greene, Anne-Marie (2015), The Dynamics of Managing Diversity: A Critical Approach. Butterworth-Heinemann (312 p). Remark: Tillgänglig för kursstudenter gratis genom ebook central på HKR-biblioteket.

• Klarsfeld, A (2010), International handbook on diversity management at work: country perspectives and equal treatment. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar (346 p). Remark: Tillgänglig för kursstudenter gratis genom ebook central på HKR-biblioteket.

• Konrad, Alison M., Prasad, Pushkala, & Pringle, Judith K (2006), Handbook of workplace diversity. London: Sage Publications (part III, Dimensions of workplace diversity) (568 p). Remark: Tillgänglig för kursstudenter gratis genom ebook central på HKR-biblioteket.

• Moss, Gloria (2012), Lessons on profiting from diversity. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan (296 p). Remark: Tillgänglig för kursstudenter gratis genom ebook central på HKR-biblioteket.

• Samdanis, Marios, & Özbilgin, Mustafa. The Duality of an Atypical Leader in Diversity Management: The Legitimization and Delegitimization of Diversity Beliefs in Organizations (2020), International Journal of Management Reviews. Vol. 22, 101–119, DOI: 10.1111/ijmr.1221

• Schwabenland, C. (2012), Metaphor and dialectic in managing diversity. Basingstoke : Palgrave Macmillan (256 p). Remark: Tillgänglig för kursstudenter gratis genom ebook central på HKR-biblioteket.

Additional sources and references

Risberg, A., & Pilhofer, K. (2018). Diversity and difference research: a reflection on categories and categorization. ephemera, 18(1), 129–146. http://www.ephemerajournal.org/contribution/diversity-and-difference-research-reflection-categories-and-categorization

Essed, P., & Trienekens, S. (2008). ‘Who wants to feel white? ’Race, Dutch culture and contested identities. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 31(1), 52-72.

Romani, L., Holck, L., & Risberg, A. (2019). Benevolent discrimination: Explaining how human resources professionals can be blind to the harm of diversity initiatives. Organization, 26(3), 371-390.

Rohini Anand, Leading Global Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

marie-therese.claes@wu.ac.at