Why Workforce Diversity Is Key to a Small Business's Success

The word "diversity" fits into all industries. In fact, it’s one of the keys to success. Many businesses can and have benefited enormously from a diverse workforce. Whether it's women smashing the glass ceiling in the fintech sector such as Guste Sadaunykaite of TransferGo, or Martine Rothblatt breaking gender barriers in the pharmaceutical industry, the message is clear: Diversity is the key to success in life and in business.

Diversity comes in a range of ways. Age, race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, disability, among others, are all classed by law as protected characteristics. You are protected by law under the Equality Act 2010 for these characteristics and a business should never discriminate against an employee for any of them.

In the current era of economic globalization, diversity within a business can have a positive impact. As a result, many companies are working towards creating a more diverse workforce.

Productivity

A diverse workforce can benefit a small business in many ways, including the productivity of the workforce. Each employee will bring his or her own unique strengths and weaknesses, and this helps create a diverse mix of skills, strengths, and weaknesses. And when employees teach their skills to other employees, this in turn, increases each employee’s skill-set.

Having a gender diverse workforce has been proven to be a positive for small businesses. Research by Cornell University, found that businesses with founding female partners have up to a 30 percent increase in their long-term returns. In addition, the research also found that women in executive positions are more likely to drive their companies towards stronger financial performance. Women tend to be more competitive and innovative which therefore can help drive a company.

Creativity and new ideas

Brainstorming meetings can be more successful when you have diversity in your workforce. Creativity flows more freely when a company has employees from different backgrounds; fresh and innovative ideas are more likely to be discussed if diversity is present within the team.

Positive business reputation

For a business to succeed, its reputation must be positive and strong. Since diversity is a key to success in a modern-day environment, having a diverse small business can aid future employees to choose your business, and for future customers or clients to favor your company over others. The likelihood of positive "word of mouth" between customers is more likely if your company has a positive reputation and brand image.

Profits

Your company's bottom line can really benefit from a diverse workforce. Having a diverse workforce can be a contributor to higher profits for a company, as a mixture of different elements such as productivity, creativity, and a positive business reputation, all help contribute to increased sales.

If these factors are taken into consideration, and a small business become a more diverse business, this, in turn, can increase customers, sales, employee satisfaction, reputation, and profit, resulting in a thriving and successful company.