Diversity Management in the Public Sector for Sustainable, Inclusive Organizations: Ideals and Practices in Northwest Florida

Abstract

Diversity management in the workplace is essential for ensuring a high quality, representative public service and strengthening organizations' sustainability. For the public sector to remain effective and productive, the management of today’s dynamic workforce requires a perspective that values and welcomes diversity. The promotion of diversity in the public sector helps to ensure sustained competitiveness and success. This study explores managing diversity in the public sector and how public organizations' human resources have engaged with diversity. Semi-structured interviews with 37 officials working in Human Resource departments in the public sector, primarily in Northwest Florida, USA, were conducted by student researchers. A grounded theory approach to understanding the interviews was conducted, using two-cycle coding. Interviewees indicated that diversity recruitment and diversity education ensured high inclusion levels concerning race/ethnicity, age, and gender in the public sector, echoing the literature on the topic; this showed the importance of maintaining such emphases. Analysis of the interviews indicated continuing challenges with attaining the ideals of diversity. By providing attention to workforce diversity and insights into diversity management in the public sector organizations in the United States deserving of additional attention, this study contributes to understanding managing diversity to attain public sector success.

Keywords:

• Diversity education diversity management
• diversity recruitment
• public administration
• qualitative research

Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to the following individuals, who participated in this study as interviewers as part of the Spring 2020 Public Sector Human Resources course at the University of West Florida: Stephen Terry, Brittany Olshefskie Lopez, Venette Pierre, Jenny Cassidy, Deborah Aldridge, William Miller, Tony Templeton, Sabrina Carter, Randy Sears, Miesha Lott, Shanita Council, Holley Snaith, Shana Beiro, Holley Jaxon, Taxie Lambert, Mary Hartshorn, Kristen Gilley, Jenna Jordan, S. Nathan Kervin, Gabby Bustamante, and Lisa Widener.