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1. Course Description

As organizations grow from domestic to international to transnational entities, one of the issues they have to grapple with is managing the increasingly diverse workforce. Organizations are now realizing that diversity is no longer just an issue with maintaining compliance, but also a means to develop superior human capital and therefore leverage a competitive advantage in the market place. Managers struggle with effectively handling people whose values and beliefs, orientations, life styles, etc. are very different from their own. It is becoming increasingly more important for the HR professional to understand workforce diversity and inclusion so that workers feel more committed to accomplishing the mission and objectives of their organization.

This course aims at enabling students understand the nuances and complexities in the domain of diversity and inclusion. Using an experiential and case based approach, students will get a chance to look at their own stances related to diversity, gain insights into organizational challenges in the area and understand the complexities of building inclusive organizations.

2. Student Learning Outcomes
To enable students
· To understand the complex nature of diversity and inclusion
· To gain insights into diversity perspectives at individual, group and organizational level
· To understand the different kinds of diversity that exist in an organization and issues that arise with each kind
· To become aware of strategies to make the organization more inclusive

3. Required Text Books and Reading Material
· Several books will be referred to through the course.
· Additionally articles from research/ professional journals and chapters from different books will be circulated in soft or hard copy form.
· A list of journals will be circulated and students will be expected to read the relevant articles from the journals.
· The session-wise reading list will be circulated once the course begins.

4. Tentative Session Plan

SESSION	TOPIC	READINGS, CASES, etc.
1 & 2	Diversity and Inclusion at the Workplace – Theoretical perspective	· Case discussion: Differences at Work · Teacher’s notes
3 & 4	Prejudice and Stereotyping - Individual level	· Teacher’s notes · Experiential activity
5	The dynamics of Prejudice and Stereotyping at the Group level	· Teacher’s notes · Experiential activity
6	The dynamics of Prejudice and Stereotyping at the Organization level	· Teacher’s notes · Experiential activity
7	Understanding Diversity & Discrimination at the workplace · The Diversity in Diversity · How it impacts the organization	· Teacher’s notes · Class slides
8, 9 & 10	Diversity of Gender · Myths and stereotypes related to gender · Sexual discrimination at the workplace · Changing gender roles · Work life integration	· Teacher’s notes · Experiential activity · Case discussion
11 & 12	Diversity of Sexual Identity and Preference · Myths and Facts · LGBT issues at the workplace · Cultural patterns	· Teacher’s notes · Case discussion
13 & 14	Diversity of Age and Ability · Understanding Ageism · People with physical disability · People with mental disability	· Teacher’s notes · Class slides
15 & 16	Diversity of Caste, Religion, Culture, Language, Region · Cultural prejudices and stereotypes · The multicultural workforce – national and international · Cultural values and patterns	· Teacher’s notes · Case discussion
17 & 18	Organizational practices in D & I	· Student presentations
19	Building an Inclusive Organization · Assessing D & I practices in the Organization · Building awareness and commitment in the organization · Building skill of managers to handle D & I effectively	· Teacher’s notes · Experiential activity
20	Building an Inclusive Organization · Affirmative action policies · Designing organizational practices in D & I	· Teacher’s notes · Class slides

5. Evaluation:
· End Term exam 40%
· Quizzes 20%
· Class Participation 10%
· Presentations / Assignments 30%
· Quizzes may be announced or unannounced.
· Assignments will include both in-class and out of class work.
· A note on the assignments will be put up on AIS once the course commences.