Many astute CEOs  and business decision makers know  that diversity in the workplace really matters, especially in today’s competitive business world. It brings different perspectives when it comes to generating new ideas or coming up with a different plan to move forward.

In recent  years, various studies have shown that diverse staff such as in age, gender, sexual orientation, disability, people of different ethnic backgrounds gives  organizations an edge over their competition.

In the Mckinsey report called Diversity Matters, organizations that are ethnically diverse  are 35 per cent more likely to perform better than companies  with only gender-diverse companies which are only  15 percent more likely to have performed above the national industry median.

The  report looked at over 366 public companies   in the United States, Canada,  Latin America and United Kingdom.

Now just because an organization has a diverse staff does not mean that productivity and profits will occur over night. The management must  know how to leverage the strengths of each employee and then help them showcase their talent.

A large  number of organizations often have a diverse staff, and usually they often end up working at lower levels which often defeats the purpose. Organizations need to have qualified people  from diverse backgrounds at all levels, especially in the boardrooms where decisions are made.

Diversity in the workplace needs to be taken seriously by all levels in an organization, and must be treated as a business plan and not only as a cultural element.

Companies that take diversity seriously have a better chance of not only surviving but also thriving financially in tomorrow’s global climate.