UNIVERSITY OF MINDANAO

College of Hospitality Education

Hospitality Management and Tourism Management

Physically Distanced but Academically Engaged

Self-Instructional Manual (SIM) for Self-Directed Learning (SDL)

Course: THC 9: Multicultural Diversity in the Workplace for the Tourism

Professional

Name of Teacher: ARA MAE T. CUISON, MSFS, CGSP, CHIA

THIS SIM/SDL MANUAL IS A DRAFT VERSION ONLY; NOT FOR

REPRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTION OUTSIDE OF ITS
INTENDED USE. THIS IS INTENDED ONLY FOR THE USE OF THE
STUDENTS WHO ARE OFFICIALLY ENROLLED IN THE COURSE/SUBJECT.
EXPECT REVISIONS OF THE MANUAL.
 COLLEGE OF HOSPITALITY EDUCATION
Hospitality Management/Tourism Management
2nd floor, HRM Building, Matina, Davao City, Philippines
che@umindanao.edu.ph
Telefax: (082) 2977024

Page 2 of 25
 COLLEGE OF HOSPITALITY EDUCATION
Hospitality Management/Tourism Management
2nd floor, HRM Building, Matina, Davao City, Philippines
che@umindanao.edu.ph
Telefax: (082) 2977024

Course Outline: THC 9 – Multicultural Diversity in the

Workplace for the Tourism Professional

Author: Ara Mae Tirol Cuison

Email: acuison@umindanao.edu.ph
Student Consultation Online Consultation (thru Blackboard LMS)
Send a text message before the online
consultation.
Mobile: 09338591921
Phone: (082) 2977024
Effectivity Date: June 25, 2020
Mode of Delivery: Blended (On-line with face to face or virtual
sessions)
Time Frame: 54 Hours
Student Workload: Expected Self-Directed Learning
Pre-requisites: THC 3/ CBM 1
Co-requisites: None
Credit: 3 units
Attendance Requirements: A minimum of 95% attendance is required at
all scheduled virtual or face to face
sessions.

Course Outline Policy

Areas of Concern Details

Contact and Non-contact Hours This 3-unit course self-instructional manual is
designed for blended learning mode of instructional

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 COLLEGE OF HOSPITALITY EDUCATION
Hospitality Management/Tourism Management
2nd floor, HRM Building, Matina, Davao City, Philippines
che@umindanao.edu.ph
Telefax: (082) 2977024

delivery with scheduled face to face or virtual

sessions. The expected number of hours will be 54
including the face to face or virtual sessions. The
face to face sessions

shall include the summative assessment tasks

(exams).

Assessment Task Submission Submission of assessment tasks shall be on 3rd, 5th,

7th and 9th week of the term.

Assessment task should be done in real time

through the features in the Blackboard Learning
Management System, the schedule shall be
arranged ahead of time by the course coordinator.

Turnitin Submission (if necessary) For specific types of assessment tasks like essays,
write-ups or literature review, students’ outputs are
required to be submitted through Turnitin with a
maximum similarity index of 30% allowed. This
means that if your paper goes beyond 30%, the
students will either opt to redo her/his paper or
explain in writing addressed to the course
coordinator the reasons for the similarity. In
addition, if the paper has reached more than 30%
similarity index, the student may be called for a
disciplinary action in accordance with the
University’s OPM on Intellectual and Academic
Honesty.

Please note that academic dishonesty such as

cheating and commissioning other students or
people to complete the task for you have severe
punishments (reprimand, warning, expulsion).

Page 4 of 25
 COLLEGE OF HOSPITALITY EDUCATION
Hospitality Management/Tourism Management
2nd floor, HRM Building, Matina, Davao City, Philippines
che@umindanao.edu.ph
Telefax: (082) 2977024

Penalties for Late The score for an assessment item submitted after
Assignments/Assessments the designated time on the due date, without an
approved extension of time, will be reduced by 5%
of the possible maximum score for that assessment
item for each day or part day that the assessment
item is late.

However, if the late submission of assessment paper

has a valid reason, a letter of explanation should be
submitted and approved by the course coordinator.
If necessary, you will also be required to
present/attach evidences.

Return of Assignments/ Assessments Assessment tasks will be returned to you two (2)
weeks after the submission. This will be returned by
email or via Blackboard portal.

Assignment Resubmission You should request in writing addressed to the

course coordinator his/her intention to resubmit an
assessment task. The resubmission is premised on
the student’s failure to comply with the similarity
index and other reasonable grounds such as
academic literacy standards or other reasonable
circumstances e.g. illness, accidents, financial
constraints

Re-marking of Assessment Papers and You should request in writing addressed to the
Appeal program coordinator your intention to appeal or
contest the score given to an assessment task. The
letter should explicitly explain the reasons/points to
contest the grade. The program coordinator shall
communicate with the students on the approval and
disapproval of the request.

Page 5 of 25
 COLLEGE OF HOSPITALITY EDUCATION
Hospitality Management/Tourism Management
2nd floor, HRM Building, Matina, Davao City, Philippines
che@umindanao.edu.ph
Telefax: (082) 2977024

If disapproved by the course coordinator, you can

elevate your case to the program head or the dean
with the original letter of request. The final decision
will come from the dean of the college.

Grading System All culled from BlackBoard sessions and traditional

contact

The grading system has two basic grading schemes –

the numerical and the letter grade, the GPA is
calculated on a scale of 4.0 following based -15
grade equivalent and 75 as a passing mark. Below is
how the new grading scale works, going from the
numerical grade to the letter grade to the 4.0 scale
and description, and followed by the breakdown of
the total grade.

Scale 1 Grade Scale 2 Grade Description

96-100 A 4.0 High Distinction

90-95 B+ 3.5 Distinction

85-89 B- 3.0 Very Good

80-84 C+ 2.5 Good

75-79 C- 2.0 Average

<75 F 1.0 Fail

First Examination 10%

Second Examination 10%

Third Examination 10%

Final Examination 40%

Exercises/Activities/Research/Project 30%

Total 100%

Page 6 of 25
 COLLEGE OF HOSPITALITY EDUCATION
Hospitality Management/Tourism Management
2nd floor, HRM Building, Matina, Davao City, Philippines
che@umindanao.edu.ph
Telefax: (082) 2977024

Submission of the final grades shall follow the usual

University system and procedures.

Preferred Referencing Style APA 6th Edition.

Student Communication You are required to create a umindanao email

account which is a requirement to access the
BlackBoard portal. Then, the course coordinator
shall enroll the students to have access to the
materials and resources of the course. All
communication formats: chat, submission of
assessment tasks, requests etc. shall be through the
portal and other university recognized platforms.

You can also meet the course coordinator in person

through the scheduled face to face sessions to raise
your issues and concerns.

For students who have not created their student

email, please contact the course coordinator or
program head.

Contact Details of the Dean Dr. Florence Kristina M. Jimenez

Email: mellina_florencekristina@umindanao.edu.ph

Phone: 09224325186

Contact Details of the Program Head Prof. Jacqueline M. Cenizal

Email: jcenizal@umindanao.edu.ph

Phone: 09177705532

Page 7 of 25
 COLLEGE OF HOSPITALITY EDUCATION
Hospitality Management/Tourism Management
2nd floor, HRM Building, Matina, Davao City, Philippines
che@umindanao.edu.ph
Telefax: (082) 2977024

Students with Special Needs Students with special needs shall communicate with
the course coordinator about the nature of his or
her special needs. Depending on the nature of the
need, the course coordinator with the approval of
the program coordinator may provide alternative
assessment tasks or extension of the deadline of
submission of assessment tasks. However, the
alternative assessment tasks should still be in the
service of achieving the desired course learning
outcomes.

Instructional Help Desk Contact BSHospMgt@umindanao.edu.ph

Library Contact Ms. Brigida E. Bacani

Email: library@umindanao.edu.ph

Phone: 0951376681

Well-being Welfare Support Help Desk Ms. Danica Baja

Contact
Phone: 09755604961

Course Information: see/download course syllabus in the

Black Board LMS

Page 8 of 25
 COLLEGE OF HOSPITALITY EDUCATION
Hospitality Management/Tourism Management
2nd floor, HRM Building, Matina, Davao City, Philippines
che@umindanao.edu.ph
Telefax: (082) 2977024

CC’s Voice Hello future Hospitality/Tourism Managers! The next thing that you need to
work on is the strategy to efficiently manage diverse groups. This will be very
helpful to have a successful endeavor in your chosen career.

CO To become an efficient Manager, you need to identify various strategies to

bring together diverse groups within the workforce for more productive
working relationships and to identify strategies to achieve true cultural
diversity in the workplace which are the third and fourth course outcome
(CO) of this subject, respectively.

Let us begin!

Big Picture
Week 7-9: Unit Learning Outcomes (ULO): At the end of the unit, you are expected to:

a. Explain how to manage a global organization in a cross-cultural perspective.

b. Discuss training and development to establish effective cultural connection
c. Explain the implication of effective cross-cultural management to organizational progress in
the tourism and hospitality industry

Big Picture in Focus: ULOa. Explain the implication of effective cross-cultural

management to organizational progress in the tourism and hospitality
industry

Essential Knowledge
To manage effectively in a global or domestic multicultural environment, we need t recognize the
differences and learn to use them to our advantage, rather than either attempting to ignore differences
or simple allowing differences to cause problems. Rather managers should be taught how to respect the
differences at work and how to work with them to maximize the contribution of each employee.

Managing differences is a strategy of synergistic organizations. These types of organizations

recognize the impacts of cultural diversity that leads t both advantages and disadvantages. Managers
using synergistic approach believe that “our way and their ay of behaving and managing differ, but neither
is superior to the other”. Creative combinations of our way and their way may be the best approach to
organizing and managing. By adopting synergistic approach, managers and employees minimize the
potential problems by managing the impacts of cultural diversity, not by attempting to minimize the
diversity itself. In the same manner, managers maximize the potential advantages by managing the
impacts of diversity, rather than by ignoring them. Organizations which use the strategy of managing
differences train their managers and employees to recognize cultural differences and to use cultural
differences to create advantages for the organization.

Page 9 of 25
 COLLEGE OF HOSPITALITY EDUCATION
Hospitality Management/Tourism Management
2nd floor, HRM Building, Matina, Davao City, Philippines
che@umindanao.edu.ph
Telefax: (082) 2977024

To have an effective diversity management there are key components that you have to learn and
apply.
Key components of Effective Diversity Management Program

o Top management support

In an organization, any program will be successful with the support of the top
management. The commitment and support of the top management is essential in implementing
an effective process in managing a diverse workplace.
Top management support can be shown when they take personal accountability for the
success of the program from the very beginning and openly communicates their accountability
within the organization. They set clear objective and demands results, while maintaining a positive
atmosphere. Having clear objectives set by the management, gives the pram manager a mandate
to demand actions from the organization and to justify deadlines. It is important that they
communicate the priority of the program to the organization in a way that leaves no ambiguity. In
addition, they empower the program allowing it to operate with relative independence. To
preserve its independence, the program manager must ensue that the management remains ware
of the progress at any point of time. The management must be confident that the work will
proceed as expected, unless otherwise stated, and they will hear about the problems, if they occur.
When the program tasks are led punctually and communicated adequately, there is no need for
micromanagement. Respects the differences of the employees. Enables quick and flexible
decision-making. Open-minded. Is present in the program. The management showing up at the
key program events is often enough. The management presence indirectly indicates that the
program continues to be a priority. If the management stops being visible in the program, it may
lead to people making their own conclusions about reduced priority, after which they start
focusing on other things and the momentum dries up. Offers help when the program faces issues
requiring management support. The best examples are the cases where the management reacts
almost instantly, when problems arise. Is available when there is a need for sparring and for
ensuring that the work goes in the right direction.
o Recruitment and Hiring
Provide fair treatment and opportunities. The recruitment and hiring are based on their skills and
competencies. It is also advantageous to hire a diverse workforce with different capabilities that will
be useful to the organization.
o Talent Identification and Development
Talent identification should not affect the cultural diversity of the employee. The talents should be
developed through trainings to have a successful diverse workforce.
o Employee Support
To have the support of employees in the workplace it is essential to let them understand its significance
and their role in achieving success of the organization. Their engagement in a program can be achieved
is also connected to their satisfaction with their work and their degree of motivation.
o Fair Treatment

Page 10 of 25
 COLLEGE OF HOSPITALITY EDUCATION
Hospitality Management/Tourism Management
2nd floor, HRM Building, Matina, Davao City, Philippines
che@umindanao.edu.ph
Telefax: (082) 2977024

The management should practice fair treatment to the employees. This can be strengthened with
policies that are already put in place so it can be documented and three will be guidelines that can be
easily followed for strict adherence.
o Manager Accountability
A manager should be fully aware of his duties and responsibilities. It is important that he or she should
be accountable with his or her actions and knows how to handle his or her team.

Self-Help: You can also refer to the sources below to help you further understand the
lesson.

1. Cutler, J. (2018). The Cross-Cultural Communication Trainer’s Manual: Volume Two Activities for
Cross-Cultural Training. Routledge

Let’s Check
Activity 1. You just finished the ULOa for this third CO now let us check what you have absorbed about
trainings in multicultural diverse industry. Give your answer to each item in 3 to 5 sentences.

1. What are the things to be considered when managing culturally diverse workforce?

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2. Why is the support of top management essential to have a harmonious working environment?

_____________________________________________________________________________________
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_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
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Page 11 of 25
 COLLEGE OF HOSPITALITY EDUCATION
Hospitality Management/Tourism Management
2nd floor, HRM Building, Matina, Davao City, Philippines
che@umindanao.edu.ph
Telefax: (082) 2977024

Let’s Analyze
If you are a manager in a multinational hotel company, how would you deal with a diverse multicultural
workforce?

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_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
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In a Nutshell
Managing a multicultural diverse workforce is quite challenging, there are factors that you need to
consider. Explain how these factors can be employed in a real-life situation.

_____________________________________________________________________________________
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_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________

Page 12 of 25
 COLLEGE OF HOSPITALITY EDUCATION
Hospitality Management/Tourism Management
2nd floor, HRM Building, Matina, Davao City, Philippines
che@umindanao.edu.ph
Telefax: (082) 2977024

Q&A List.
Do you have any questions or clarifications in relation to the lessons? If you have, then list them down
in the table below. You may raise these questions through Blackboard LMS. Then write the answers
after the questions have been answered.

Questions/Issues Answers

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

Big Picture in Focus: ULOb. Discuss training and development to establish

effective cultural connection

Metalanguage
In this section, there are essential key terms that you need to learn, which will help you achieve ULOc,
which will consequently lead to making the third CO. These terms will be encountered as we go through
the learning significance of multicultural diversity in the industry.

1. Congruence – This refers to agreement or harmony, compatibility

Page 13 of 25
 COLLEGE OF HOSPITALITY EDUCATION
Hospitality Management/Tourism Management
2nd floor, HRM Building, Matina, Davao City, Philippines
che@umindanao.edu.ph
Telefax: (082) 2977024

2. Feedback – This refers to the information given to a person’s performance which is used as a
basis for improvement.

3. Sensitive – This pertains to have or display a quick and delicate appreciation towards the
feelings of others.

Essential Knowledge
Culture across the globe are very diverse. Communication is the key, however, if there are a lot
of miscues then there will be ineffective working relationship. In the Tourism and Hospitality Industry, a
diverse working environment is not uncommon. That’s why being culturally sensitive is very important.
Communication is the key in a good working relationship to avoid miscommunication.

It is the management’s responsibility to train the employees to have a harmonious working

environment. The key is to have exposure to the different cultures. To appreciate different culture is to
know and understand it.

A good training program should be put in place to address the possible conflicts between
culturally diverse employees. Cultural sensitivity training has been employed by companies in Japan, India
and Germany. They send their employees to another country to understand a certain culture and go back
to their home company and share their experience.

Every culture has differences and here are some that you need to know to identify a good training
and development plan for your future employees to have an effective working environment.

Assess the need of the Workforce

Before you plan a training program for the company, it is important to know the needs of the
employees. Identify the different cultures present in your workforce and know their issues. If they are
having miscommunication then a positive communication training program is more applicable. If there is
discrimination then it is important to place a policy against such issues so that they will know how to
behave properly and introduce a culturally sensitive program.

Communication

Several cultures have a different perspective in accepting feedbacks. It is important to be

straightforward but sensitive enough to different cultures. This is why it is very important to get to know
the person and his/her culture to be able to communicate effectively.

An example:

After receiving a positive performance review, Sabine, a Frenchwoman on a two-year assignment

in Chicago, thought work was going well—so much so that she wanted to extend her stay in the
States.

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 COLLEGE OF HOSPITALITY EDUCATION
Hospitality Management/Tourism Management
2nd floor, HRM Building, Matina, Davao City, Philippines
che@umindanao.edu.ph
Telefax: (082) 2977024

Meanwhile, her boss Jake had a very different impression. He thought Sabine wasn’t working out
at all. Although she had boundless energy and enthusiasm, her work was often sloppy. He had
talked to her about it, but she seemed oblivious. Unless her performance improved, he would have
to let her go.

How could two people have such vastly divergent perspectives on the same situation? In this case,
it comes down to cross-cultural miscommunication, according to Erin Meyer, a professor at the
French business school INSEAD and author of The Culture Map (PublicAffairs, 2014), a book about
effective business communications in a multicultural world.

Situations like this should be dealt with properly to avoid any future conflicts. Communication is
the key and in communication it is essential to relay the right message efficiently.

In the example above, it could have been better if they know about the cultural issues present.
American managers often accentuate the positives and minimize the negatives, couching their criticism
in encouraging language to soften the blow. By contrast, French managers tend to gloss over the positives
and provide direct, blunt feedback.

The significance of an effective training programs in multicultural communication and sensitivity

has been in high demand nowadays. This is because the management want to avoid misunderstanding
and finds a way to increase their corporate competitiveness globally. However, there is no one way to
address this, but experts agree on two points:

• The commitment to improving internal and external cross-cultural communications must

become part of the company’s culture and apply to everyone equally, from the CEO down.
• Many existing programs offer little more than etiquette training—such as whether you should
bow or shake hands—while failing to address deeper issues that impact communications.

Cultural Practices

Cultural sensitivity should also be addressed. It is important to introduce different cultures to employees
and teach them how to be sensitive in when they are around their coworkers. Experience is very
important. Exposure to different cultures should be encouraged and role playing can be practiced to let
them get the feel of a culturally diverse workplace and how to act in awkward situations. There should be
time wherein different cultural practices are introduced to them and let them understand that being
different is not bad. Instead, there should be respect in the differences in others and there is no need to
influence others to have the same practices.

Cultural Congruence

Another thing is to have cultural congruence in the workplace. To have work culture is important to have
a common objective in the company so that employees can work together for a common good, for the
success of everybody. This is done by employing company culture and common practices.

Cultural Differentiation

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 COLLEGE OF HOSPITALITY EDUCATION
Hospitality Management/Tourism Management
2nd floor, HRM Building, Matina, Davao City, Philippines
che@umindanao.edu.ph
Telefax: (082) 2977024

Accepting the differences in culture in a company is also important. You can not force everybody to have
something in common. Each person has their unique attributes. Every culture has their distinct
characteristics and skills that are valuable to a company.

To be able to design a good training program, it is important to identify first the needs of the workforce
and let them have an exposure of different cultures. Experts also suggest to have a common corporate
culture and at the same time respecting the differences of each other to be successful in the company.

Self-Help: You can also refer to the sources below to help you further understand the
lesson.

1. Chebium, R. (2015). How to Create an Effective Cross-Cultural Training Program. Retrieved from:
https://www.shrm.org/hr-today/news/hr-magazine/pages/010215-cross-cultural-training.aspx
2. Singh, A. (2020). Cross Cultural Training. Retrieved from
https://trainingindustry.com/magazine/issue/cross-cultural-training/
3. Cutler, J. (2018). The Cross-Cultural Communication Trainer’s Manual: Volume Two Activities for
Cross-Cultural Training. Routledge

Let’s Check
Activity 1. You just finished the ULOb for this third CO now let us check what you have absorbed about
trainings in multicultural diverse industry. Give your answer to each item in 3 to 5 sentences.

1. Why is communication important in training and development of a workforce?

_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________

2. What is cultural sensitivity and why is it important in a culturally diverse work environment?

_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________

Page 16 of 25
 COLLEGE OF HOSPITALITY EDUCATION
Hospitality Management/Tourism Management
2nd floor, HRM Building, Matina, Davao City, Philippines
che@umindanao.edu.ph
Telefax: (082) 2977024

_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________

Let’s Analyze
Design specific activities for a culturally diverse workforce employing the mentioned elements in this
unit.

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_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________

In a Nutshell
Training is the key to a produce a workforce that would succeed in the Tourism and Hospitality industry,
explain how to train such workforce in a culturally diverse environment.

_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________

Page 17 of 25
 COLLEGE OF HOSPITALITY EDUCATION
Hospitality Management/Tourism Management
2nd floor, HRM Building, Matina, Davao City, Philippines
che@umindanao.edu.ph
Telefax: (082) 2977024

Q&A List.
Do you have any questions or clarifications in relation to the lessons? If you have, then list them down
in the table below. You may raise these questions through Blackboard LMS. Then write the answers
after the questions have been answered.

Questions/Issues Answers

2.

2.

3.

4.

5.

Keyword Index
The following terms and concepts discussed in this unit are important for you to remember. To help you
retain the lessons, please review the terms below.

Congruence

Feedback

Page 18 of 25
 COLLEGE OF HOSPITALITY EDUCATION
Hospitality Management/Tourism Management
2nd floor, HRM Building, Matina, Davao City, Philippines
che@umindanao.edu.ph
Telefax: (082) 2977024

Sensitivity

Big Picture in Focus: ULOc. Explain the implication of effective cross-cultural

management to organizational progress in the tourism and hospitality
industry
Metalanguage
In this section, there are essential key terms that you need to learn, which will help you achieve ULOc,
which will consequently lead to making the fourth CO. These terms will be encountered as we go through
the learning significance of multicultural diversity in the industry.

1. Adaptability. This is a skill that pertains to a person's ability to change his/her actions or approach
in doing things to match a new situation. This is a soft skill that every employer seeks for in an
employee.

2. Creativity. It can be defined as the ability to create, recognize ideas, possibilities, or alternatives,
which may be essential in communicating with others, solving problems, and entertaining
ourselves and others.

3. Innovation. In the business aspect, especially in the hospitality and tourism industry, it pertains
to making an idea or invention into an efficient service or product that will create more value for
guests to pay for. The concept should be consistently replicated and must address a specific need.

4. Market. This refers to an area or location where two or more parties gather to have an exchange
of goods and services. This may be a gathering of sellers and buyers where they conduct their
business.

5. Marketing. This pertains to the management and study of relationships in the market. This
process involves identifying, forecasting, and satisfying the needs and wants of customers.

6. Opportunity. This is an appropriate or favorable time or circumstance to attain a goal. It is also

known as a good position, chance, or prospect for advancement or success.

Page 19 of 25
 COLLEGE OF HOSPITALITY EDUCATION
Hospitality Management/Tourism Management
2nd floor, HRM Building, Matina, Davao City, Philippines
che@umindanao.edu.ph
Telefax: (082) 2977024

7. Productivity. It is defined as a measure of the efficiency of a person completing a task or of

production. It is getting important things done consistently. Another way to describe productivity
is the measure of output per unit input, such as labor, capital, or any other resource.

8. Profitable. This refers to something with a financial gain or benefit. It is something beneficial or
useful. In this unit, valuable is used to describe a company’s beneficial increase.

9. Retention. It is the condition of keeping something. In the hospitality industry, a good company
with a harmonious working environment has a high level of employee retention.

Essential Knowledge
SIGNIFICANCE OF MULTICULTURAL DIVERSITY IN THE INDUSTRY

1. INSPIRES CREATIVITY AND DRIVE INNOVATION - Our culture poses a significant influence on how
we perceive the world. A workplace with cultural diversity has varied viewpoints and broad
professional experience which inspires colleagues to have a different perspective of the world.

With diverse minds in a team, it brings creativity and innovation, which aids in solving
problems in meeting customer needs in new and stimulating ways. For example, in a hotel,
modern and different ways of accommodating varied guests can be implemented. With diverse
minds brainstorming together, it will fuel out-of-the-box ideas that would help businesses
become more prosperous and productive.

2. LOCAL MARKET KNOWLEDGE LEADS TO MORE COMPETITIVE AND PROFITABLE BUSINESS-

Multicultural diverse workforce provides a significant edge in venturing into new markets. Int he
hospitality and tourism industry, services and products can easily be adapted to succeed globally.
A thorough understanding of the local laws, regulations, and customs, including the landscapes,
will help the business thrive. Furthermore, with local connections, native language skills, and
cultural understanding will lead to enhance international business development. Additionally,
more competition means more profitable and progressive.

3. CULTURAL SENSITIVITY, INSIGHT AND LOCAL KNOWLEDGE PROVIDES HIGH QUALITY, TARGETED
MARKETING- With the understanding between cross-cultural, and with local market knowledge
leads to a more effective marketing strategy and resources. For example, in websites and
brochures, a native speaker in the workforce can contribute to making high quality and culturally
sensitive translations.
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 COLLEGE OF HOSPITALITY EDUCATION
Hospitality Management/Tourism Management
2nd floor, HRM Building, Matina, Davao City, Philippines
che@umindanao.edu.ph
Telefax: (082) 2977024

This includes knowledge in the market niche, which is greatly valued, especially in their
design and imagery. This means that a billboard in Davao may not be appreciated in Manila or
internationally. A great print ad in Bohol may not be understood in Zamboanga due to cultural
and local dialect differences.

Marketing may be more productive with a diverse workforce wherein there are local
marketing geniuses on board.

4. CULTURALLY DIVERSE TALENT POOL PROVIDES ORGANIZATION WITH THE BEST TALENT More job
hunters prefer to work in companies with diversity. Competitive global markets, having a business
that caters to a multicultural and inclusive workplace, makes you more attractive to the right
candidates. It is important to include diversity in your hiring process will widen your talent pool
of prospective workforce.
Maintaining a pleasant environment for a multicultural workforce will also increase
employee retention. Diversity includes religion, gender, ethnicity, and religion.

You can expect more loyalty in a diverse workplace. Primarily when employees are
provided with an environment wherein, they are respected, and their unique ideas are valued.
This caters mutual respect between employees who have the same values for diversity.
Providing an inclusive atmosphere is an efficient way to bind employees and teams across the
business.

5. DIVERSE SKILLS BASE PROVIDES AN ORGANIZATION TO HAVE A BROAD RANGE OF PRODUCTS AND
SERVICES - If you have a culturally diverse talent pool, a wide range of skills and experience are
more accessible. Globally oriented organizations can easily leverage expertise and experience
their international employees provide.

A more extensive skills base with a more potential diverse offering of services can
enhance your business and become more adaptable to the international competition. When you
say adaptability, it pertains to faster and more efficient planning and development and
execution. An organization or company with cultural and cognitive diversity can easily spot
disparity in the market. They can also have more ideas and experience to make a new or
adapted product or service to meet the dynamic behavior of consumers, consequently leading
to success.

6. DIVERSE TEAMS ARE MORE PRODUCTIVE AND HAVE BETTER PERFORMANCE - The wide range of
experience and skills brought about by a diverse workplace make for more successful problem-
solving capability, subsequently leading to more productivity. A diverse workforce with an open -
mind, respect, and acceptance is happier and productive.

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 COLLEGE OF HOSPITALITY EDUCATION
Hospitality Management/Tourism Management
2nd floor, HRM Building, Matina, Davao City, Philippines
che@umindanao.edu.ph
Telefax: (082) 2977024

Compared to a homogenous team, it would be much easier to handle, but they may
settle the status quo. However, with diversity and healthy competition, pushing a team
positively may lead to excellent results. An atmosphere of healthy competition fosters the full
optimization of the organization's processes for higher effectiveness.

7. MORE OPPORTUNITY FOR PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL GROWTH - Essentially, an inclusive and
culturally diverse business will attract talented, ambitious, and globally-minded professionals.
They will value the opportunity for professional and personal growth.

Working with a wide variety of cultures can be quite an enriching experience that allows
others to learn about perspectives and different paradigms around the globe. Catering fellowship
with people with similarities and differences will help you to have a global experience, and gain
to abandon prejudices. An ethnocentric perspective, and these are quite valuable in our industry.
Having a diverse set of team members can be professionally stimulating. It exposes you to a wide
variety of new skills and methods to work and have an international network that directs you to
be unique and exciting endeavors.

Self-Help: You can also refer to the sources below to help you further understand the
lesson.

1. Importance of Diversity in the Workplace. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ONP5QM1DsFU

2. Diversity: 5 Reasons Why Workforce Diversity is Good for your Workplace.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8aLQytUM5dU
3. Sweet, W. 2011. Hospitality, Ethics, and Multiculturalism. International Journal of
Philosophy,40(1), 41-50

Let’s Check
Activity 1. You just finished the ULOc for this fourth CO now let us check what you have absorbed about
the significance of multicultural diversity in the industry. Give your answer to each item in 3 to 5
sentences.

1. How does multicultural diversity in a workplace result in more innovation and creativity?
__________________________________________________________________________________
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__________________________________________________________________________________

2. How can companies increase their profit with diverse team members?
Page 22 of 25
 COLLEGE OF HOSPITALITY EDUCATION
Hospitality Management/Tourism Management
2nd floor, HRM Building, Matina, Davao City, Philippines
che@umindanao.edu.ph
Telefax: (082) 2977024

__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________

3. Explain how cultural sensitivity lead to a better marketing strategy?

__________________________________________________________________________________
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__________________________________________________________________________________

4. Why does culturally diverse business provide more opportunity and personal growth to their
employees?
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__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________

5. Cite an observation from your daily experience where multicultural diversity became an important
aspect in the hospitality and tourism industry.
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________

Let’s Analyze
Activity 1. In the hospitality and tourism industry multicultural diverse workforce is beneficial especially
in dealing with the customers that are also culturally diverse. How can they improve the quality of service
to their guests?

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_____________________________________________________________________________________
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_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________
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Page 23 of 25
 COLLEGE OF HOSPITALITY EDUCATION
Hospitality Management/Tourism Management
2nd floor, HRM Building, Matina, Davao City, Philippines
che@umindanao.edu.ph
Telefax: (082) 2977024

_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________

In a Nutshell
Multicultural diverse workforce not only poses issues but is also important in improving productivity of
businesses in the hospitality and tourism industry. Aside from what you have learned in this unit, give one
significance that was not discussed.

_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________
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_____________________________________________________________________________________
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_____________________________________________________________________________________
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Q&A List.
Page 24 of 25
 COLLEGE OF HOSPITALITY EDUCATION
Hospitality Management/Tourism Management
2nd floor, HRM Building, Matina, Davao City, Philippines
che@umindanao.edu.ph
Telefax: (082) 2977024

Do you have any questions or clarifications in relation to the lessons? If you have, then list them down
in the table below. You may raise these questions through Blackboard LMS. Then write the answers
after the questions have been answered.

Questions/Issues Answers

3.

2.

3.

4.

5.

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