What is the managerial perspective on linguistic diversity in the workplace at Dublin airport?

Authors

Buja, Marianna

Issue Date

2016

Degree

MBA in Human Resource Management

Publisher

Dublin Business School

Rights

Items in Esource are protected by copyright. Previously published items are made available in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher/copyright holder.

Abstract

This research paper presents a managerial outlook on the complex matter of multilingual employees in the workplace at Dublin Airport. The current global diaspora largely contributes to the broad scope of linguistic variations within an organisation, albeit the academic resources examining the scale and the impact of the aspect are quite limited. According to numerous researchers, such diverse workforce presents the management with a particular challenge in order to achieve consistency in communication processes (Lauring, Selmer, 2011, pp. 324-343). Considering the continuous growth of cultural diversity in the workplace, it is of high importance that the organisational leadership undergoes a major transformation towards a better understanding, recognition and engagement with different languages among its members, encourages openness towards the peculiarity and development of linguistically diverse skills (Thomas, Ely, 1996). Accordingly, the above supports the choice of managerial level of interviewees for this document. The research therefore, conducted among numerous Human Resource Managers and Line Managers based at Dublin Airport, explores the impact of linguistically diverse employees on social interactions within the organisation, examines the issue of adequate policies and procedures and delivers a complex viewpoint on the phenomenon of linguistically versatile workforce. Author keywords: Linguistic diversity, workplace, social interactions, corporate language, career progression