Today s definitions of workplace diversity still revolve around racial and ethnic classifications. Influenced by this framework, many companies limit their diversity consciousness to these groupings. To be sure, the workforce will be changing. That will be a significant change and merits attention by both individuals in the workforce and corporate decision makers. While certainly there can be benefits to race and gender-based diversity training, the old definitions of diversity will be inadequate for the workplace of the 21st century.
People are far more robust than can be captured by racial and ethnic categories.
But diversity definitions will be expanding to encompass other aspects of individual uniqueness, such as diversity among age groups, different religions, economic backgrounds, educational opportunities, geographical cultures, or among people with physical disabilities. But workplace diversity in the 21st century will go beyond even this. Corporate and business necessity will force diversity considerations to evolve and encompass individual talents and preferences. The mere fact that more workers will be of a wider variety of backgrounds will push businesses to seek mechanisms to effectively accommodate and utilize that diversity. Linked to this is the globalization of markets.