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DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. Which do you think is more important to team performance, surface-level or deep-level
diversity? Why?
Surface-level diversity refers to observable differences in people, including race, age, ethnicity,
2. How can diversity create a competitive advantage for a firm?
Diversity can enhance a firm’s competitive advantage because it enables all employees to contribute
3. If a subordinate came to you and said that they felt the company’s new diversity hiring
initiative was unfair and would compromise their well-deserved opportunities for advancement,
how would you respond?
I would say that the company makes sure that highly qualified job candidates are diverse. Then, I
4. What can leaders do to be effective when team members are from different cultures and have
different expectations about how the leaders should behave?
Leaders can develop cultural awareness. This requires honestly examining their prejudices and biases,
5. Identify at least three ways in which the globalization of business affects businesses in your
community?
Students probably will recognize that international business affects almost every aspect of business in
6. What roles do changing technologies play in your daily activities?
Communication is faster, easier, and a wide range of options is available. Privacy may be encroached
upon with greater ease than ever; unit costs of communication are lower. Entertainment is also more
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7. Do you think that concerns regarding ethics will become more or less important in business?
Why?
Concerns about ethics will likely remain fresh in the minds of current managers and business
8. What are your personal opinions about international outsourcing in the garment industry? Do
you think that lower prices are worth sending U.S. jobs to other countries? Explain your
answer.
If one has never lost one’s job due to international outsourcing the opinion might be very positive—it
can reduce labor costs, make the organization more efficient and competitive, and help develop
GROUP EXERCISE – What Does Culture Mean to You?
Learning Objective: Explain how societal culture affects how people interpret others and how others
interpret them.
Summary: This exercise is done as a class, and the instructor plays the role of class secretary. First
working alone, students think about what “societal culture” means. For 5 minutes, they think about their
own culture. They define a word and then write down the cultural dimensions to describe it. After 5
minutes, students share their ideas, which the instructor records. Students identify categories for placing
the ideas. They then answer the following questions as a class.
Task:
1. How might multiculturalism create a competitive advantage for an organization?
2. What categories are the most important to teams working in organizations?
3. What categories are the least important to teams working in organizations?
4. What does your list suggest that mangers wanting to promote a multicultural workplace might
do?
VIDEO EXERCISE
Ethical Decision Making at Black Diamond Equipment
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Summary: Black Diamond Equipment specializes in climbing and skiing equipment. The global
company looks for employees who share the company’s attitude, values, and passion toward outdoor
sports and ethical values. Black Diamond also promotes fair labor practices, sustainability, and low
environmental impact.
Task: As a class, watch “Black Diamond Equipment” and then individually consider the following
questions. After you have come up with your own ideas, form groups of four to five people and discuss
your insights. Be sure to nominate someone to serve as a spokesperson to share your ideas with the class.
1. How does Black Diamond integrate social responsibility into its culture?
The founders of Black Diamond began a culture of respect for people and the earth early in the
process of beginning the business. Social responsibility is fully integrated into Black Diamond’s
2. How does the global nature of the company and its markets influence how it thinks about
employee diversity?
Black Diamond naturally has to take a global view of its market in order to have a viable market size.
Selling to customers in one country would not be enough, Black Diamond needs that conglomerate
3. How would you describe Black Diamond’s ethics in terms of how it treats its employees at the
company’s factory partners in Vietnam, China, and Bangladesh? Do you think that it is
appropriate for firms like Black Diamond to scrutinize its partner factories like this? Why or
why not?
Black Diamond holds high ethical standards for the treatment of its employees in the company’s
factory partners. Black Diamond runs a certification program for these factories who must pass
Now What?
Imagine trying to write a project status report for Happy Time Toys with three other team members when
an older team member tries to take the project over, believing that you’re too inexperienced to do a good
job. What do you say or do? Go to this chapter’s “Now What?” video, watch the challenge video, and
choose a response. Be sure to also view the outcomes of the two responses you didn’t choose.
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OB Concepts Applied: surface-level diversity; relational demography; managing age in the workplace;
effects of age differences that violate social status norms; diversity as a source
of competitive advantage; relationship conflict; inclusion; information
processing; social categorization theory; stereotypes; culture of inclusion
Discussion Questions
1. What type(s) of barriers to inclusion exist for this group?
Relational demography refers to a group member’s similarities to and differences from other group
members. Bill is older and more experienced than Allison and Alex and perceives himself to be
The group is experiencing task conflict which refers to conflict over issues, such as deadlines and
work processes. Educational diversity is associated with greater task conflict (incorrect response #1).
Other sources of conflict include both surface-level diversity, visible differences in people, including
2. How can diversity be leveraged as a source of competitive advantage for this group?
Diversity can be a source of competitive advantage because group members can use their diverse
Alex suggests that the group divides up the report based on each member’s area of expertise. Allison
3. If you were the CEO of Happy Time Toys, how would you create a culture of inclusion to help
your company realize the benefits of not only age-related diversity but all types of diversity?
If diverse employees are excluded from decision making or are marginalized (incorrect response #2),
their potential contributions are not realized. Alex says to Bill, “You do have more experience than
Inclusion refers to the sense of being safe, valued, and engaged in a group regardless of differences
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It is essential that the company avoid barriers to inclusion such as stereotyping others based on age.
Bill thought Alex and Allison were “kids” who didn’t know anything. Alex and Allison thought Bill’s
