Eight Ways to Pitch Your Diverse Background as an Employment Asset

Posted on by Goodwill Omaha

It has become more common to hear employers talk about valuing workplace diversity and inclusion. For Baby Boomers and Gen-Xers, this meant including a certain number of people of different genders or races in the workplace. Today’s Millennial generation, however, prefers “cognitive diversity,” or the blending of different backgrounds, experiences and perspectives within a team.

As employers seek to hire people with diverse racial, sexual, class or religious backgrounds, you can drive the conversation about the value that your own diversity brings to a company.

Use these shifts in values to your advantage when applying and interviewing for jobs. Here are eight benefits of a diverse workplace that you can cite when talking with employers:

  1. Adaptability—Having a workforce of diverse experiences and backgrounds will better prepare organizations to adapt to unforeseen challenges and opportunities.
  2. Range of Service—A diverse workforce can impact the range of services the organization can provide.
  3. Varying Perspectives—Employing professionals from a variety of industries and backgrounds can bring new and different perspectives to the table.
  4. Learning and Growth—Having a diverse staff will create opportunities for people to get to learn more about different backgrounds and professions.
  5. Communication—A staff that can conduct business and provide customer service in multiple languages means opportunities to grow and expand into new markets.
  6. Increased Productivity—An organization with a diverse workforce can often increase productivity by tapping into the wealth of knowledge on staff.
  7. Increased Innovation—Having a wide variety of opinions, skills, experiences and backgrounds on staff is a great way to encourage innovation in the workplace.
  8. Satisfy a Diverse Customer Base—An organization whose staff represents its diverse customer base is a great way to create connections between the staff and the customer.
Blog shared from Goodwill Industries International
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Spread the Word to End the Word

Posted on by Goodwill Omaha

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Spread the Word to End the Word is an ongoing effort by Special Olympics, Best Buddies and our community supporters, like Goodwill, to inspire respect and acceptance through raising the consciousness of society about the R-word and how hurtful words and disrespect can be toward people with intellectual disabilities.

Using the term retard or retarded belittles people with intellectual disabilities. Spread the Word to End the Word is a day dedicated to educating people about the negative impact the “r” word has. By eliminating the “r” word from our culture, we can build a more inclusive and caring community.

March 1, 2017  all Goodwill locations will participate and advocate for eliminating the “r” word for our vocabulary.

Goodwill Impact 2016

  •  Goodwill’s Work Experience program enrolled 249 special education high school students from local high schools
  • Work Experience students earned a total of $279,820.25 in wages while gaining hands-on experience in a workplace setting
  • Work Experience is housed at nine locations throughout the Metro area
  • Our AbilityOne contract employs 122 individuals, 96 of which who identify as having a disability
  • AbilityOne employees service over 1.2 million square feet of property in federal buildings located in Omaha, Lincoln and
    Grand Island

Respectful and inclusive language is essential to the movement for the dignity and humanity of people with intellectual disabilities. However, much of society does not recognize the hurtful, dehumanizing and exclusive effects of the R-word.

Language affects attitudes. Attitudes impact actions. Make your pledge for #Respect today at www.R-word.org.

 

 

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