Workforce Diversity: A Spotlight on Employee Sustainability Excellence in India
Balachandar AISWARYA
Profilo Orcid, Gurusamy RAMASUNDARAM
Profilo Orcid, Paulin SUDHA
Profilo Orcid e Rajan POONDY
Profilo Orcid 
Pubblicato online: 12 dic 2024
Pagine: 273 - 294
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/fman-2024-0017
Parole chiave
© 2024 Balachandar AISWARYA et al., published by Sciendo
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
The dawn of global economic advancement and the adoption of the latest technology bring the world closer together than ever before. Based on this fact, business organizations and academic and business-related research are exploring the ways and means to serve their people better than before. One of the ways for organizations to achieve this is to attract and retain their best and most talented employees. An organization is likely to have different sociocultural and ethnic backgrounds bearing inexorable differences in ethnicity, religion, race, gender, size, personalities, physical abilities, age, and sexual orientation. By embracing diversity in the workplace, organizations tend to create a comprehensive and harmonious environment, which could eventually enhance the good reputation of the organization with people seeking jobs and able to attract the best workers in the market. Workforce diversity has been recognized as one of the vital resources and strategic competencies that would increase the value of the organizations over their competitors. Employees who come from diverse demographic backgrounds bring to the workplace some unique perceptions and experiences during teamwork or group tasks.
In the present highly competitive world, workforce diversity is a concept that incorporates employees and managerial acceptance and respect in the organization (Boone, et al., 2019). Workforce diversity depicts individuals understanding each other based on their unique characters, as well as recognizing their differences and similarities. Managers find it difficult to identify the elements that contribute to the effective management of workforce diversity and find out the necessary leadership tasks that can be performed to deal with issues related to workplace diversity effectively and efficiently (Barber, 2018).
Understanding the significance and the effects of workforce diversity on organizational outcomes, such as teamwork performance, work satisfaction, work performance of employees, organizational performance, and voluntary employee turnover, is the key to sustainability of an organization (Sungjoo and Rainey, 2010). This knowledge of understanding would help create efficient workforce diversity in the working environment, thereby improving the performance of employees as well as teamwork, which would lead to better employee sustainability.
Although numerous researchers have made theoretical and empirical contributions to the study of various sources of workforce diversities, the population of media employees (employees working in various television media organizations) has not been researched adequately. Very few theoretical or empirical studies have been conducted on the impact of workforce diversity on team performance and employee performance in various organizational settings in foreign countries. Very little research has been conducted on media employees, that too only in Western countries but not in India (Graver, et al., 2019). There is no previous research that links the workforce.
Diversities with Employee Sustainability in Television Media Organizations. Maintaining and managing diversity in the workplace would provide a competitive advantage to the organization because different perspectives can facilitate unique and creative approaches to problem-solving, thus increasing creativity and innovation, which in turn leads to better organizational performance (Allen, et al., 2004).
The media industry in India is a sunrise sector for the economy and is making amazing growth paces. According to the report by CARE ratings of Media and Entertainment 2022, the top three segments of the media industry, namely television, printing, and films, represent 75% of the total revenue generation of the media industry in India. Furthermore, it is reported that television media is the biggest segment in the industry in terms of revenue generation. “Unlike the global economy, which will see a shrinking contribution from the entertainment and media sector over the period (Shifnas, et al., 2016). In India, the sector’s growth rate will outpace the GDP growth rate. Being a relatively under-developed market in terms of per capita spend on entertainment and media will allow India to grow at 11.6% over the next five years and it is not surprising that India continues to be one of the fastest-growing entertainment and media markets globally” (Source: Global Entertainment and Media Outlook, 2018-22 Report).
In the present era, one of the critical issues faced in the present era is the management of a diverse workforce, improving teamwork, sustaining talented workforce, and thereby attaining effective organizational performance.
In the highly competitive and global business, it is a well-accepted fact that organizations that are managing and practicing a diverse workforce in their teams are performing better than those organizations that are not managing and practicing a diverse workforce. (Urbancova, et al., 2016). Many organizations, more than ever before, are employing a variety of strategies to increase performance by utilizing a diversity of their workforce. It is considered that the team that has a well-managed and diverse workforce outpaces the homogeneous team because it is likely to be more creative and effective at group decision-making, team cohesion, knowledge sharing, communication, and achieving the goals of the organization (Granero, et al., 2018).
When a diverse team is not managed properly, communication and trust among the team members (employees) can break down, which results in lower employee and teamwork performance. The workforce diversity would not only provide potential benefits, but also some obstacles. India has a heterogeneous population and a high level of workforce diversity, particularly in the organizations that are conducting their business globally, and the media industry is no exception to this (Lorincova, et al., 2018). Therefore, management of workforce diversity is a primary challenge in these organizations where an increasing number of women, people of different ages, racial minorities, people from different religions, cultures, and geographic areas, people with different work experiences, qualification, and languages, and persons with disabilities strive for employment and opportunity to take advantage of expanding their skills and talents.
The sustainability of employees in the workplace is a tactical objective for many organizations today. Workforce diversity has become a key component for organizations like media, which require attracting and retaining a highly skilled and talented workforce. Management of a diversified workforce is one of the important aspects of maintaining the sustainability of employees in an organization (Lorincova, et al., 2018). Even though the relationship between workforce diversity and performance in manufacturing and trading organizations has been well studied and documented especially in developed countries, the issue has not received adequate attention in the case of service organizations like media organizations, particularly those located in developing countries like India.
To assess the impact of workforce diversities on employee sustainability in the television media industry.
Today, the management of media organizations must focus on the importance of maintaining a diversified and inclusive workforce to attain better organizational performance. A diverse workforce is indispensable to improve innovation, nurture creativity, and provide directions for the implementation of business strategies. A diverse workforce is necessary to get innovative ideas, new services, and new products and is useful to motivate out-of-the-box thinking. People no longer live and work in a limited marketplace; they are now part of a worldwide economy, with competition coming from every part of the world. There are adequate research works conducted on workforce diversity, in all areas, but not much in the media industry, specifically in India and particularly in Chennai, one of the metropolitan cities of India, a hub for many of the industries which have diversified labor force.
Social exchange theory (SET) stands as a cornerstone in comprehending workplace dynamics, as highlighted by Cropanzano and Mitchell (2005). Its pervasive influence extends beyond organizational boundaries, permeating our interactions within familial, social, and relational spheres. Defined by Cropanzano, et al. (2017) as comprising an actor's initiation toward a target, followed by a reciprocal attitudinal or behavioral response, leading to a resultant relationship, SET captures the essence of interpersonal exchanges in diverse contexts.
Originating in the early 20th century (Malinowski, 1922; Mauss, 1925), SET has found applications across disciplines such as social psychology (Homans, 1958; Thibault and Kelley, 1959; Gouldner, 1960), sociology (Blau, 1964), and anthropology (Firth, 1967; Sahlins, 1972). Homans (1958) introduced the concept of "social behavior as exchange," further refining it in subsequent works. Thibault and Kelley (1959) contributed to the "social psychology of groups," while Blau (1964) introduced "exchange and power," highlighting the ability of one party to influence another. Blau emphasized the economic aspect, contrasting with Homans' psychological focus on instrumental behavior.
The evolution of SET continued with Homans (1969) incorporating sociological and behavioral psychology concepts, advocating for further research. Anderson, et al. (1969) reinforced its economic implications, while Goode (1973) proposed convergence between role theory and exchange theory. Emerson (1976a) viewed SET not as a standalone theory, but as a framework encompassing various theories. SET has been applied to diverse areas such as commitment (Bishop, et al., 2000), organizational citizenship behaviors (Organ, 1990), supervisory and organizational support (Ladd and Henry, 2000), and justice (Tepper and Taylor, 2003). Mitchell, et al. (2012) introduced the concept of a social life cycle, elucidating the dynamic events and transactions between parties within SET's purview.
The psychological contract is a crucial aspect of the employer–employee relationship within an organizational framework, encompassing mutual obligations and expectations beyond mere monetary benefits outlined in formal employment contracts. This multidimensional construct varies based on individual perceptions and anticipations of entitlements from their employers concerning job roles and responsibilities.
Although Chris Argyris initially introduced the concept of psychological contract, he did not provide a precise definition, instead loosely referring to it as the "psychological work contract." However, it was Bernard (1938) who delved into the relationship between employers and employees, presenting the theory of equilibrium, which portrays an exchange-oriented dynamic between organizations and their members. According to Bernard, employees receive various inducements, including material rewards, personal growth opportunities, favorable working conditions, and a sense of belonging.
Menninger (1958) emphasized the importance of both tangible and intangible rewards provided by organizations, highlighting their role in fostering stability and loyalty among employees. Subsequent researchers such as Rousseau and Parks (1993) further explored the concept of the psychological contract, defining it as a set of mutual expectations governing the relationship between parties, often existing implicitly.
Schien (2015) supported the notion of mutual expectations and obligations between organizations and employees, emphasizing their perpetual presence. In addition, scholars investigated the impact of the psychological contract on employee behavior within organizational contexts, recognizing its relevance amidst evolving workforce dynamics.
Dr. Harry Levinson, an American psychologist, contributed significantly to understanding organizational issues and their effects on individuals and organizations. Levinson, et al. (1962) authored "Men, Management, and Mental Health," delving into the concept of the psychological contract to elucidate its implications for employee well-being.
Diversity is defined by Wambui, et al. (2013) as the “acknowledgement, understanding, accepting, valuing and celebrating differences amongst people with respect to age, class, ethnicity, gender, physical and mental ability, race, sexual orientation, spiritual practice and public assistance status.” According to Saxena (2014), workforce diversity is “simply similarities and differences among the workforce in terms of cultural background, age and physical abilities, gender, race, religion, and sexual orientation.” Diversity involves how individuals see themselves and others. These observations influence their performances.
Maintaining and managing diversity in the workplace would provide a competitive advantage to the organization because different perspectives can facilitate unique and creative approaches to problem-solving, thus increasing creativity and innovation, which in turn leads to better organizational performance (Allen, et al., 2004). Out of various diversities found in the workplace, six diversities, namely gender diversity, age diversity, socio-behavioral diversity, cultural diversity, physical ability diversity, and personal diversity, are taken into consideration for this research.
Sustainability in the workplace is one of the strategic objectives for most of the organizations today. Employee sustainability is a critical issue for organizations because the long-term health and success of an organization depends on the sustainability of the key employees. Almost all organizations are concerned about their ability to sustain those key employees as they are in great demand and are very difficult to replace. Failure to sustain those key employees will increase organizational issues like wastage of cost and time of training and losing knowledge of the talented employees. Hence, sustaining employees in the organization is essential as it brings implications for organizational competitiveness and effectiveness.
Diversity may be defined as the differences among people due to the dimensions of difference, either physically, socially, or psychologically. Diversity indicates a mixture of people who bring a variety of views, ideas, backgrounds, perspectives, values, and benefits as assets to the groups and organizations with which they interact.
Cox and Blake (1991), in their research article, advocated that organizations should value diversity to increase organizational effectiveness. The diversified workforce offers various benefits like creativity, problem-solving, and flexible adaptation to change that may lead to competitive advantage. The factors that are likely responsible for the workforce diversities are political, economic and social factors (Joyendu, et al., 1999). The reason which includes positive and negative impacts of cultural diversity is clear, measurable, and defined as the experimental examination of the impacts of cultural diversity in an organization are really challenging (Thomas, 1999). The three reasons why an organization should encourage cultural diversity are moral end to uphold historical discernment, hold cultural diversity to attain the market share of a culture or national group, and to promote cultural diversity as a resource for learning (Ely and Thomas, 2001). The researchers established that the integration and learning paradigm was a superior form of managing cultural diversity. A study on “the impact of workplace diversity on employee performance” reported that different educational backgrounds and levels seem to influence employee performance positively as they motivate mutual learning with a wider range of intellectual resources and skills (Webber and Donahue, 2001).
Functional diversity can be used by employing two different formulations including dominant functional diversity and intrapersonal functional diversity to compare the different formulations of functional diversity. Frink, et al. (2003) conducted a study on diversity and its relationship with organizational performance. It was also recorded that there were no significant direct impacts of either racial or gender diversity on business performance (Kochan, 2003).
Mor-Barak (2005) emphasized that the internal dimensions of workforce diversity could include aspects of diversity over which a person had no control, and these are the first things all of us see in other people, such as race or gender, and on which we make many convention-based decisions, even though some or most of them focus on “physical ability.” Dahlin (2005) reported that a lower level of diversity can certainly enhance organizational performance due to the relationship of diversity with innovation. At the same time, a high degree of diversity might lead to negative consequences on organizational performance since it can create conflict and cliques due to social categorization.
A research survey was conducted by Dike (2013) and the results showed that workplace diversity played an operative role in some organizations. Young and Nam (2013) conducted research on “Effects of workforce diversity in various attributes on internal processes and performance at the organization level” and employed the diversity perspective questionnaire (DPQ). DPQ comprises vignettes and things to quantify an organization’s way of dealing with diversity. The results of the studies revealed that five diversity viewpoints – reinforcing homogeneity, color-blind, fairness, access, and integration and learning – pick up a more profound comprehension of diversity administration in organizations.
Women make up half of the population in the country, so it is important that they have equal representation in the workplace. However, as one of the most visible types of diversity, having a workplace that is gender diverse is not just about the number of women and men in the company. Gender diversity issues are still quite prevalent in most of the organizations (Yi, et al., 2018). These issues include the gender pay gap, career start and progress, and misconceptions about whether women perform their jobs as well as men do. Hence, managers and organizations need to explore the strengths that both women and men bring to an organization and the barriers they face in contributing to the fullest of the organizational efforts.
Age diversity refers to personnel differences about different age groups in the organization. Age diversity brings a lot of different and unique characteristics because it influences the communication, learning, and working style which affects the overall organizational performance (Cekada, 2012). Treating and managing employees differently (e.g., in hiring and firing, promotion, and compensation decisions) because of their age is one of the important issues in most of the organizations.
Employees from different socio-behavioral backgrounds, such as economic stability, that is, the income level of the family, class of family, family status, etc., are likely to have different attitudes toward certain aspects of life and work. For example, someone who grew up in poverty could hold a different perspective on society than someone who comes from a wealthy family. Reaching out to different classes may require the use of varying methods, such as recruiting through newspaper ads versus online job search sites (Rozman, Grinkevich and Tominc, 2019).
Employees often have a strong emotional connection to their heritages and religions, making this a hot point in diverse workplaces. Ely and Thomas (2001) suggested that organizations could accept cultural diversity as a moral end to correct prominent discrimination. Second, an organization could embrace cultural diversity to gain access to the markets of a cultural or national group. Third, an organization could promote cultural diversity as a resource for learning.
Some people think disabilities are only physical and related to mobility. However, employees can have disabilities that vary from vision and movement to thinking and learning. To promote diversity in the workplace, organizations can ensure they implement and accommodate people with disability to be productive at work. There are various theories relating to disability in the workplace, which include medical, moral, social, and post-modernist viewpoints. Particularly, social psychology theories (e.g., social identity and self-categorization) have served as a basis for work on disability.
Working with people who think differently can lead to innovative ideas and effective teamwork. If the organization is made up of employees with different personality types, it is possible to bring better work performance from their employees. Therefore, many organizations compel their employees to take personality tests up on hiring to see how they will fit in with the rest of the organization and what kind of skills, weaknesses, and ideas they might bring.
Employees’ sustainability denotes the hierarchical arrangements and practices employed as a part of the organization to keep the key employees from leaving the organization. Employee sustainability is the action by a business to attract and keep employees to meet the organizational goals. The sustainability of employees should be the primary focus of the organization to maintain a strategic distance from the volatility and high cost of selecting an expert and qualified workforce for the organization.
Davies and Sikalieh (2000) conducted a study to analyze the influence of personality dimensions on organizational performance including employee retention. They found that diversity-friendly environment along with effective mentoring and support programs provides promotion opportunities, which leads to the retention of more diversified employees. When employee retention is achieved through effective diversity management as a strategy, it enhances competitive advantage for an organization. The sustainability of employees improves an employer’s brand, which in turn leads to related benefits including a broader and better available labor pool, reduces employee turnover, and enhances employee sustainability. Employees’ sustainability is influenced by work embeddedness, job satisfaction, and organizational responsibility. Satisfied employees tend to be more dedicated to an organization and more inclined to go to work, remain with an organization, arrive at work on time, perform well, and take part in practices accommodating to the organization (Mitchell, et al., 2001).
Indian television market has an opportunity to cater to 100 million homes as 197 million homes out of the total 298 million had TV sets as of 2021. In the year 2021, television viewership in India grew at the rate of 16% year after year. In the financial year 2021, the television market generated a revenue of Rs. 651.90 billion (USD 10.11 billion). As of 2021, about 67% of TV-owning individuals were present in Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, and Kerala. Total viewership in these five states grew 8% year-on-year to reach 359 million in 2021.
In the financial year 2020, broadcasters’ subscription revenue was Rs. 107.00 billion (USD 1.66 billion) and is forecasted to reach Rs. 224.00 billion (USD 9.68 billion) in the financial year 2024. In the financial year 2018, broadcasters’ advertisement revenue was Rs. 224.00 billion (USD 3.48 billion) and is forecasted to reach Rs. 425.00 billion (USD 6.34 billion) in the financial year 2025.
According to the Report of CARE ratings, industry research – media and entertainment – TV segment report (2023), the top three segments, namely television, print, and films, account for 75% of the total revenue generation, with the television segment dominating the pie with a 45% revenue share of USD 10.19 billion, followed by print with USD 4.68 billion and films with USD 2.4 billion. Television is the biggest segment in this industry in terms of revenue generation. (Source: CARE Ratings, TV segment Report, 2023).
In general, media and entertainment jobs include reporters, correspondents, broadcast news analysts, writers and authors, editors, photographers, graphic designers, translators, film and video editors and camera operators, broadcast and sound engineering technicians, announcers, producers and directors, and performers from actors to musicians and composers. The workers who are behind the scenes and focused on the business side are public relations people, talent agents and representatives, marketing managers, entertainment lawyers, and distribution workers, among others.
Working in the media is fast-paced and extremely competitive. If the job pressures are handled, the media work can be a very exciting way to make a living. Apart from this, there are thousands of different roles in which we can explore industry. Employers in media look for a wide range of people with different technical and personal skills. Generally, the employees are expected to be confident and enthusiastic and should be able to build relationships with a bunch of different co-workers/team members and with the public.
Competition for relatively few places is intense, and candidates need to demonstrate a proven interest or basic experience in their desired area. This is often best achieved through relevant work experience. The types of skills valued by employers include the ability to think creatively, work well under pressure, think on your feet, strong communication skills, and an understanding and knowledge of the industry. For many jobs, a degree is not a requirement. However, well over half of the workforce are graduates and are expected to have degree-level qualifications. Networking and speculative approaches are often the most effective ways to find jobs in the media, with only 30% of vacancies filled through advertising.
A structured questionnaire is considered the research instrument for the present research. The research instruments – questionnaire and personal interview – were employed to gather primary data relating to the perception of the various diversities and their influence on employee sustainability.
Secondary data were also collected from different research articles, journals, reports, magazines, newspapers, books, online sources, websites of media organizations, etc. Both open-ended and closed-ended questions were given and used in data collection and analysis. A pilot study was conducted to measure the validity and reliability of the questionnaire. The reliability test revealed the overall Cronbach’s alpha value to be 0.866, which is above 0.7 and therefore well acceptable. A sample size of 440 was finalized for conducting this research. Convenience sampling is the most common and popular sampling technique out of all nonprobability sampling techniques. The researcher prefers this sampling technique because the exact population, that is, employees of various television media organizations, is unknown, and it is fast, inexpensive, easy, and the subjects are readily unavailable. Even though convenience sampling was followed, the researcher tried to follow a pattern in selecting the television media organizations as well as employees working in various sections/divisions/departments in organizations to ensure that a representative sample of the population was included. Each respondent was given information about the purpose of collecting the information before delivering their completed questionnaire.
A well-structured questionnaire was designed to collect the primary data efficiently. A questionnaire is a research instrument consisting of a series of questions and other prompts to collect data from the respondents. In this research, information regarding the demographic profile of the respondents, the profile of the media organization, the work profile of the respondents, workforce diversity, and employee sustainability is translated into simple questions to obtain respondents' views on the above concept. The most widely used measure for the consistency of a scale is Cronbach’s alpha (Hair, et al., 2006). The primary data was collected via a questionnaire with a sample of 440 employees working in various divisions/departments of select broadcasting television channels The sampling units were employees working in various divi-sions/departments of television media organizations. The sample size was determined by using the formula of Cohran, which allows us to calculate an ideal sample size, given a desired level of precision and confidence level and an estimated proportion of the attribute present in the population. The details are given on (1) and (2).
p = percentage picking a choice or response (0.5) c = confidence interval (0.05)
1.962(0.5)(1-0.5)
From the above formula, it is understood that an ideal sample size for the unknown population is 384, and therefore, 384 or more than 384 can be taken as the sample size for the research. Even though the researcher approached 500 respondents to collect the data, the sample size was finalized as only 440 due to the response rate and for administrative purpose. Therefore, the present research considered 440 samples as good and ideal for the study.
From Table 1 it is inferred that based on gender of the employees, a significant majority of the employees (291, 66.10%) were male and 33.90% (149) of them were female employees. The age of respondents ranged 20–54 years; 81.60% of the employees belonged to the age group between 20 and 35 years and the remaining 18.40% came under the age group between 36 and 54 years. Concerning the qualifications of the employees, 44.80% (197) were undergraduates and postgraduates in media courses. 38.40% (169) had other undergraduation and postgraduation degrees, and the remaining 16.80% (74) had completed school and diploma education. In terms of the monthly income of the employees, 45.50% (200) of them were getting a salary of Rs. 25,001–Rs. 50,000. 33.40% (147) came under the salary group up to Rs. 25,000, 14.10% (62) were receiving salary of Rs. 50,001–Rs. 75,000, and the remaining 7% (31) of the employees were earning a salary of above Rs. 75,000 per month. As far as the marital status of the employees is concerned, 59.10% (260) of the employees were married and the remaining 40.90% (180) were unmarried.
| FACTORS | OPTIONS | FREQUENCY | (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gender | Male | 291 | 66.10 |
| Female | 149 | 33.90 | |
| Age in years | 20–35 | Open-ended question | 81.60 |
| 36–54 | (scale variable) | 18.40 | |
| Qualification | School level/diploma | 74 | 16.80 |
| UG/PG in media | 197 | 44.80 | |
| Courses | 169 | 38.40 | |
| Other UG/PG | - | - | |
| Monthly salary (INR) | Up to Rs. 25,000 | 147 | 33.40 |
| Rs. 25,001–Rs. 50,000 | 200 | 45.50 | |
| Rs. 50,001–Rs. 75,000 | 62 | 14.10 | |
| Above Rs. 75,000 | 31 | 7.00 | |
| Marital status | Married | 260 | 59.10 |
| Unmarried | 180 | 40.90 |
Table 2 explains that job experience of the employees in the present working media organizations ranged from 1 to 22 years; 93.60% of the employees had 1–10 years of experience in their present job and the rest of them (6.40%) had 11–22 years of job experience in the present media organization. As far as the nature/type of media work is concerned, 63.90% (281) of the employees belonged to office work, 18.60% (82) belonged to both field and office work, and the remaining 17.50% (77) of the employees belonged to only field work. In terms of working shifts of the employees in the various media organizations, 46.90% (206) were serving in rotating shifts, 41.10% (181) belonged to general/day shift, and the remaining 12% (53) were working in night shift.
| FACTORS | OPTIONS | FREQUENCY | (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Job experience in present media organization | 1–10 years | Open-ended question (scale variable) | 93.60 |
| 11–22 years | 6.40 | ||
| Nature/place of work | Field work | 77 | 17.50 |
| Office work | 281 | 63.90 | |
| Both field and office work | 82 | 18.60 | |
| Working shift in media organization | General/day shift | 181 | 41.10 |
| Night shift | 53 | 12.00 | |
| Rotating shifts | 206 | 46.90 | |
| No. of members in the teamwork | 3–15 | Open-ended | 37.70 |
| 16–35 | question | 16.60 | |
| 36–50 | (scale variable) | 45.70 | |
| Normal working hours in a day | Up to 8 h | 138 | 31.40 |
| 9–10 h | 213 | 48.40 | |
| Above 10 h | 89 | 20.20 |
The number of members working in the team in media organizations ranged from 3 to 50; 45.70% of them belonged to a team consisting of 36–50 members, followed by teams consisting of 3–15 members (37.70%) and 16–35 members (16.60%). Regarding normal working hours in a day in media organizations, 48.40% (213) of the employees were working 9–10 h, 31.40% (138) served up to 8 h, and the rest of them (89, 20.20%) worked above 10 h.
From Table 3, it is inferred that the employees’ understanding on the various workforce diversities is above average level since majority of the calculated mean values of the workforce diversities dimensions are above 3.00 (60%) out of 5.
| Workforce diversity | Mean | SD | |
|---|---|---|---|
| My organization includes all members of different ages in itsprocess and actions | 440 | 3.92 | 0.802 |
| I am positive about the age differences in my workplace | 440 | 4.06 | 0.694 |
| At work, I experience healthy relationships with people ofdifferent age groups | 440 | 4.05 | 0.738 |
| My organization gives equal treatment when it comes to difference of age, educational background, and other such aspects | 440 | 3.87 | 0.717 |
| My superior treats me more favorably than other co-workersbecause of my age | 440 | 3.14 | 0.795 |
| People believe fairness means treating everyone the sameway irrespective of gender differences | 440 | 4.22 | 0.634 |
| Opportunities for career growth and advancement for womenexist in our organization | 440 | 4.09 | 0.693 |
| Stereotypes of women do not hinder the advancement ofwomen in my organization | 440 | 4.07 | 0.683 |
| Women are promoted to management positions at the same rate as men in my organization | 440 | 4.21 | 0.748 |
| My organization has a similar standard for evaluating theperformances of men and women | 440 | 3.88 | 0.606 |
| Knowing more about the cultural norms and diverse groups would help me to be more effective in my job | 440 | 4.11 | 0.710 |
| I am comfortable working with individuals who are differentfrom me in their cultural backgrounds | 440 | 3.97 | 0.623 |
| 1 am not confused by the behavior of employees fromdifferent backgrounds | 440 | 3.97 | 0.725 |
| Different languages that are used to communicate do notcreate confusions among employees | 440 | 3.90 | 0.698 |
| I am interested in learning about the many cultures that have existed in this world | 440 | 4.10 | 0.738 |
| My organization concerns about the employee’s socialnorms and values | 440 | 3.91 | 0.697 |
| Employees’ habits or way of thinking may be different because of their background, but when it comes to working, we are pretty much the same | 440 | 4.09 | 0.703 |
| I think that diverse viewpoints add value to our team, workgroup, and organization | 440 | 3.94 | 0.674 |
| Members of the organization are similar in terms of theirattitudes toward organizational goals | 440 | 3.72 | 0.596 |
| I am positive about this socio-behavioral differences in myworkplace | 440 | 4.09 | 0.721 |
| A worker with a disability was given the same response andrecognition as other workers | 440 | 3.83 | 0.721 |
| An equal career opportunity is presented to a worker with adisability like his fellow workers | 440 | 3.86 | 0.761 |
| Persons with disabilities can teach me great things I couldnot learn elsewhere | 440 | 3.71 | 0.669 |
| This organization really inspires the very best in me in the way of performing the job | 440 | 4.15 | 0.759 |
| I am better at managing multiple roles than the other averageperson | 440 | 4.20 | 0.720 |
| Members of the organization are similar in terms of theirpersonal values | 440 | 3.70 | 0.758 |
| I feel I have the skills necessary to perform my role in the organization | 440 | 4.28 | 0.615 |
| I am self-assured about my capabilities to perform my workactivities | 440 | 3.89 | 0.718 |
| The speed at which the organization did its work activities denotes the level of its quality | 440 | 3.80 | 0.753 |
| I have the skills necessary to simultaneously have a successful career and family roles | 440 | 4.42 | 0.628 |
The overall mean score of the various workforce diversities is 119.24, which is 79.49% (119.24/150 × 100). The employees’ understanding on the various workforce diversities is above 79% in the media organizations, which denotes that the employees of various media organizations have considerably good approach toward diversified working environment.
Table 4 shows the employee sustainability is above average level since most of the mean values of the variables are above 3.50 (70%) out of 5. The overall mean value of the employee sustainability is 61.30, which is 81.73% (61.30/75 × 100). This indicates that the employee sustainability in the television media organizations is above 81%, which is appreciable.
| Statements | Mean | SD | |
|---|---|---|---|
| My organization’s values and culture provide a good fit with thethings that I value in life. (ES1) | 440 | 4.20 | 0.79 |
| I have very strong ties with my present job which would be very difficult to break. (ES2) | 440 | 4.24 | 0.63 |
| My organization’s culture and norms make me feel comfortable in my work environment. (ES3) | 440 | 4.08 | 0.69 |
| One of the major reasons to work for this organization is that leaving would require considerable personal sacrifice as anotherorganization may not match the overall benefits I have here. (ES4) | 440 | 4.07 | 0.68 |
| I can gain experience in various work areas to excel my experience and skills in my organization. (ES5) | 440 | 4.21 | 0.74 |
| My supervisor encourages me to broaden my perspectives byhelping me to see the big picture. (ES6) | 440 | 3.88 | 0.60 |
| My supervisor provides me with constructive feedback. (ES7) | 440 | 4.20 | 0.63 |
| My supervisor provides me with resources so I can perform mywork more effectively. (ES8) | 440 | 4.08 | 0.69 |
| I have significant autonomy in determining how I do my work. (ES9) | 440 | 4.07 | 0.68 |
| My current work motivates me to know whether I performedwell at the end of the day. (ES10) | 440 | 4.21 | 0.74 |
| I am certain about what my future career picture looks like inthis organization. (ES11) | 440 | 3.88 | 0.60 |
| I am certain about my job security in this organization. (ES12) | 440 | 3.70 | 0.75 |
| When someone praises this organization, I feel like a personalcompliment. (ES13) | 440 | 4.24 | 0.61 |
| My supervisor cares about and responds to the issues that are most important to me. (ES14) | 440 | 3.89 | 0.71 |
| I am willing to put in a great deal of effort beyond that normally expected to help this organization be successful. (ES15) | 440 | 4.32 | 0.62 |
H0: There is no significant difference between male and female employees concerning the employees’ sustainability in television media organizations.
To compare the significant differences between male and female employees concerning the employees’ sus tainability in television media organizations, the independent-sample t-test was applied.
From Table 5 we understand the
| STATEMENTS | GENDER | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MALE | FEMALE | |||||||
| Mean | SD | Mean | SD | |||||
| (ES1) | 291 | 4.23 | 0.775 | 149 | 4.14 | 0.822 | 1.142 | 0.255 |
| (ES2) | 291 | 4.26 | 0.594 | 149 | 4.13 | 0.700 | 1.992 | 0.047* |
| (ES3) | 291 | 4.11 | 0.662 | 149 | 4.03 | 0.744 | 1.198 | 0.232 |
| (ES4) | 291 | 4.11 | 0.673 | 149 | 3.79 | 0.693 | 1.938 | 0.033* |
| (ES5) | 291 | 4.28 | 0.635 | 149 | 4.07 | 0.916 | 2.483 | 0.014* |
| (ES6) | 291 | 3.95 | 0.582 | 149 | 3.71 | 0.644 | 2.894 | 0.019* |
| (ES7) | 291 | 4.26 | 0.594 | 149 | 4.03 | 0.700 | 1.992 | 0.037* |
| (ES8) | 291 | 4.11 | 0.662 | 149 | 4.03 | 0.744 | 1.198 | 0.232 |
| (ES9) | 291 | 4.12 | 0.675 | 149 | 3.79 | 0.693 | 2.786 | 0.015* |
| (ES10) | 291 | 4.29 | 0636 | 149 | 4.07 | 0.916 | 2.523 | 0.010* |
| (ES11) | 291 | 3.98 | 0.582 | 149 | 3.71 | 0.644 | 2.894 | 0.009** |
| (ES12) | 291 | 3.78 | 0.756 | 149 | 3.60 | 0.758 | 2.349 | 0.023* |
| (ES13) | 291 | 4.33 | 0.551 | 149 | 4.10 | 0.717 | 2.167 | 0.031* |
| (ES14) | 291 | 3.93 | 0.732 | 149 | 3.81 | 0.682 | 2.644 | 0.011* |
| (ES15) | 291 | 4.28 | 0.601 | 149 | 4.29 | 0.661 | 0.105 | 0.916 |
** 1% level of significance
* 5% level of significance
Therefore, it is concluded that there is a statistically significant difference between the male and female employees with respect to the employees’ sustainability in television media organizations.
H0: There is no significant difference between married and unmarried employees with respect to the employees’ sustainability in television media organizations.
To compare the significant difference between married and unmarried employees with respect to the employees’ sustainability in television media organizations, the independent-samples
From Table 5 we see that the
Therefore, it is concluded that there is a statistically significant difference between married and unmarried employees with respect to the employees’ sustainability in television media organizations.
H0: There is no significant difference in the qualification of the employees with respect to the employees’ sustainability in the television media organizations.
To explore significant difference in the qualification of the employees with respect to the employees’ sustainability in the television media organizations, the oneway between-groups analysis of variance (ANOVA) was applied.
Table 7 shows the
| STATEMENTS | MARITAL STATUS | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MARRIED | UNMARRIED | |||||||
| Mean | SD | Mean | SD | |||||
| (ES1) | 260 | 4.23 | 0.821 | 180 | 4.06 | 0.746 | 2.238 | 0.024* |
| (ES2) | 260 | 4.29 | 0.639 | 180 | 4.11 | 0.612 | 3.091 | 0.002** |
| (ES3) | 260 | 4.17 | 0.695 | 180 | 3.96 | 0.667 | 3.305 | 0.001** |
| (ES4) | 260 | 4.18 | 0.661 | 180 | 3.91 | 0.679 | 4.199 | 0.000** |
| (ES5) | 260 | 4.32 | 0.700 | 180 | 4.05 | 0.786 | 3.746 | 0.000** |
| (ES6) | 260 | 3.90 | 0.561 | 180 | 3.86 | 0.667 | 0.641 | 0.529 |
| (ES7) | 260 | 4.29 | 0.639 | 180 | 4.11 | 0.612 | 3.091 | 0.002** |
| (ES8) | 260 | 4.17 | 0.695 | 180 | 3.96 | 0.667 | 3.305 | 0.001** |
| (ES9) | 260 | 4.19 | 0.663 | 180 | 3.91 | 0.679 | 4.253 | 0.000** |
| (ES10) | 260 | 4.33 | 0.701 | 180 | 4.05 | 0.786 | 3.797 | 0.000** |
| (ES11) | 260 | 3.90 | 0.561 | 180 | 3.86 | 0.626 | 0.622 | 0.522 |
| (ES12) | 260 | 3.81 | 0.787 | 180 | 3.55 | 0.687 | 3.642 | 0.000** |
| (ES13) | 260 | 4.22 | 0.598 | 180 | 4.36 | 0.632 | 2.367 | 0.018* |
| (ES14) | 260 | 3.96 | 0.713 | 180 | 3.83 | 0.722 | 1.986 | 0.038* |
| (ES15) | 260 | 4.27 | 0.619 | 180 | 4.31 | 0.626 | 0.601 | 0.548 |
** 1% level of significance
* 5% level of significance
| VARIABLE | QUALIFICATION | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| School/di-ploma (74) | UG/PG in media courses (197) | Other UG/PG (169) | |||
| Employees’ sustainability | 60.73 | 64.80 | 60.43 | 23.042 | 0.000** |
| 5.089 | 5.115 | 4.523 | |||
** 1% level of significance
In addition to reaching statistical significance, the real variation in the mean score among the qualification groups is also large (M = 60.43–64.80). The mean score of the employees’ sustainability in the television media organizations in case of UG/PG qualification in the media course group (M = 64.80) is more than those of other groups. Therefore, it is inferred that the employees’ sustainability is more in case of employees who have UG/PG qualification in media courses than in other groups in the television media organizations.
Therefore, there is a significant difference in the qualification of the employees with respect to the employees’ sustainability in the television media organizations.
H0: There is no significant difference in the salary of the employees with respect to the employees’ sustainability in the television media organizations.
To explore the significant difference in the salary of the employees with respect to the employees’ sustainability in the television media organizations, the oneway between-groups ANOVA was applied.
Since the P-value is lesser than significant value (0.05) in the employees’ sustainability in the television media organizations (0.035), the null hypothesis is rejected. This is deduct from Table 8.
| VARIABLE | MONTHLY SALARY (INR) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Up to Rs. 25,000 (147) | Rs. 25,001–Rs. 50,000 (200) | Rs. 50,001–Rs. 75,000 (62) | Above Rs. 75,000 (31) | |||
| Employees’ sustainability | 58.36 | 60.95 | 61.03 | 63.48 | 2.908 | 0.035* |
| 6.041 | 5.531 | 4.376 | 3.390 | |||
* % level of significance
In addition to reaching statistical significance, the real variation in the mean score among the salary groups is also large (M = 58.36–63.48). The mean score of the employees’ sustainability in the television media organizations in case of the “above Rs. 75,000” salary group (M = 63.48) is more than in other groups. Therefore, it is inferred that the employees’ sustainability is more in case of employees who are receiving above Rs. 75,000 as monthly salary than in other groups in the television media organizations.
Therefore, there is a significant difference in the salary of the employees with respect to the employees’ sustainability in the television media organizations.
H0: There is no significant relationship between the workforce diversities and employee sustainability in the television media organizations.
Pearson product-moment correlation was run to examine the significant relationship between the workforce diversities and employee sustainability.
In Table 9 as the
| Variables | Relationship | Remarks | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age diversity and employee sustainability | 440 | 0.177** | 0.000 | Positive | Sig |
| Gender diversity and employee sustainability | 440 | 0.946** | 0.000 | Positive | Sig |
| Cultural diversity and employee sustainability | 440 | 0.190** | 0.000 | Positive | Sig |
| Socio-behavioral diversity and employee sustainability | 440 | 0.247** | 0.000 | Positive | Sig |
| Physical ability diversity and employee sustainability | 440 | 0.166** | 0.000 | Positive | Sig |
| Personal diversity and employee sustainability | 440 | 0.367** | 0.000 | Positive | Sig |
** Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (two tailed).
Out of six workforce diversities that exist in the television media organization, gender diversity has more relationship with employee sustainability (r = 0.946) when compared to other workforce diversities. Out of six workforce diversities, physical ability diversity has less relationship with employee sustainability (r = 0.166) when compared to other diversities and the same is significant.
Therefore, it is concluded that there is a significant relationship between the workforce diversities and employee sustainability in the television media organizations.
In multiple regression analysis (MRA), the dependent variable is employee sustainability and the independent variables are workforce diversities like age diversity, gender diversity, cultural diversity, socio-behavioral diversity, physical ability diversity, and personal diversity.
MRA was carried out to find out the best linear combination of employees’ understanding on workforce diversities.
Table 11 shows the combination of three out of six workforce diversities (independent variables) predicts the employee sustainability (dependent variable) in television media organizations with an F-value (6, 433) = 1083.183 and with P-values which are lesser than 0.001 and 0.05 (sig. value two tailed).
| Items | Mean | SD | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age diversity | 19.13 | 2.168 | 440 |
| Gender diversity | 20.48 | 2.191 | 440 |
| Cultural diversity | 20.05 | 1.985 | 440 |
| Socio-behavioral diversity | 19.75 | 1.787 | 440 |
| Physical ability diversity | 19.74 | 2.226 | 440 |
| Personal diversity | 20.09 | 1.724 | 440 |
| Model | R | Adjusted |
Sth error of the estimate | Change statistics | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R2 change | F change | df1 | df2 | Sig. F change | |||||
| 1 | 0.968a) | 0.938 | 0.937 | 1.289 | 0.938 | 1083.183 | 6 | 433 | 0.000 |
a) Predictors: (Constant), age diversity, gender diversity, cultural diversity, socio-behavioral diversity, physical ability diversity, and personal diversity.
In Table 13 it is evident that out of six independent variables of workforce diversity, gender diversity (0.908) is the strongest influencing factor in predicting the dependent variable – employee sustainability. The beta weights suggest that gender diversity only contributes the most (0.908 or 91%) to predict the employee sustainability in television media organizations. Gender diversity may have a standardized regression coefficient of 0.908. It means for every increase in one unit of standard deviation of the gender diversity, scores on employee sustainability increase by 0.908 standard deviations, controlling the scores of other variables in the equation. From the unstandardized coefficient, it is found that the one-unit increase in gender diversity would increase the employee sustainability by 2.123 units.
| Model | Sum of squares | df | Mean square | F | Sig. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Regression | 10,801.917 | 6 | 1800.320 | 1083.183 | 0.000a |
| Residual | 719.674 | 433 | 1.662 | - | - | |
| Total | 11,521.591 | 439 | - | - | - | |
Predictors: (constant), age diversity, gender diversity, cultural diversity, socio-behavioral diversity, physical ability diversity, and personal diversity.
| Model | Unstandardized coefficients | Standardized coefficients | t | Sig. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| B | Std error | Beta | |||
| (Constant) | 4.793 | 0.971 | - | 4.937 | 0.000 |
| Age diversity | 0.032 | 0.033 | 0.093 | 1.944 | 0.046 |
| Cultural diversity | 0.018 | 0.041 | 0.007 | 0.436 | 0.663 |
| Socio-behavioral diversity | 0.032 | 0.043 | 0.011 | 0.762 | 0.447 |
| Physical ability diversity | -0.023 | 0.035 | -0.010 | -0.654 | 0.513 |
| Personal diversity | 0.591 | 0.042 | 0.199 | 13.943 | 0.000 |
Age diversity (0.093) and personal diversity (0.199) also predict the employee sustainability significantly, but lesser than gender diversity. Socio-behavioral diversity (0.011) and cultural diversity (0.007) have positive values. However, they do not influence the employee sustainability significantly.
Physical ability diversity (-0.010) is found to have a negative value, and it has no considerable significant effect on employee sustainability.
Table 11 shows the adjusted R2 value was 0.937. This indicates that 94% of variance in the employee sustainability in the television media organizations can be predicted from the independent variables – workforce diversities. Remaining 6% of the variance is unexplained.
There is a significant difference between the demographic variables and employee sustainability in the television media organizations. The research found that employee sustainability is more for male employees than female employees. Employee sustainability is more for married employees than unmarried employees in the television media organization. Hence, it is identified that the male and the married employees of the media industry are highly engaged and have greater sustainability toward their working organization, as reported in other studies (Kramar, 2022).
Other demographic variables like qualification, monthly salary (above Rs. 75,000), and age of the employees have a strong influence on employees’ sustainability. However, the size of team (number of members in a team) has no significant influence on employee sustainability, contrary to the earlier studies (Girish, 2023). It is also found from the descriptive statistical analysis that the overall employee sustainability in the television media organizations is above 81%, which is observed as the outcome analyzed through workforce diversity and teamwork performance.
The research revealed that out of six workforce diversities, age diversity and physical ability diversity are acknowledged comparatively lesser by the employees working in television media organizations. This indicates the importance of adequate inclusion of age and physical ability criteria in the various employee work- and welfare-related policies. The overall understanding of the employees about the workforce diversities is good in the television media organizations. The management of these organizations should take steps to give some preferences or priorities to the senior employees and the employees with physical disability in recruitment, promotion, etc.
Periodical monitoring and evaluation of workforce diversity should be conducted by the television media organization through a survey, one-to-one meeting, etc. The management of television media organizations should evaluate the outcome or influence of workforce diversity on the teamwork performance of employees as well as overall organizational performance. This would help them to identify the barriers that prevent the effective implementation of workforce diversities, as it is useful to take appropriate steps to reduce those barriers and obstacles. The research found that the size of the team (number of members in a team) did not influence the workforce diversities, teamwork performance, etc. Therefore, the management should focus its attention more on the effective allotment of members in a team to encourage the teamwork performance. The organizational culture of the television media organization should promote inclusiveness of workforce diversities, which would reduce the higher turnover rate and increase the employee sustainability or retention.
From the research, it is found that understanding on workforce diversities, employee sustainability is lesser in case of employees belonging to small size of television media organizations (up to 100 employees) and their operation at the state level. Therefore, the management of these television media organizations should try to improve workforce diversities and thereby increase the teamwork performance by way of bringing necessary changes in their human resource (HR) practices.
The research found that the understanding on workforce diversities, employee sustainability is lesser in case of employees belong to field work (outside the organization). Therefore, the management should diversify workforce in all the media work-related areas or work assignments (field work, office work, technical work, etc.) and implement job rotation, which would improve the employee sustainability (Eusanio, et al., 2019). The television media organizations should follow such recruitment and placement policies, through which smart persons with excellent skills and experience can be hired and placed without any discrimination of age, gender, race, culture, etc. The management should allow employees to have opportunities for interaction and networking through social events or teambuilding activities, which would increase the workforce diversity effectively.
From the exploratory factor analysis (EFA), it is found that group cohesiveness factor contributes more to teamwork performance and communication factor contributes lesser to teamwork performance when compared to others. This indicates the importance of maintaining the group cohesiveness more effectively and improving the level of communication among the members of the team as well as between the members and the team leader or head of the team in television media organizations.
The television media organizations should develop and implement an equal opportunity employment policy, which would increase the workforce diversities and teamwork performance as well as employees’ retention. The management should offer flexible work schedules, leave options, meal choices, recreational activities, and other welfare benefits, which would increase the workforce diversity as well as employee sustainability. Employees at all levels should be given proper and necessary training and education on the importance of implementation of workforce diversity and its influence on the work and organizational outcomes.
This research provides information that could be useful to the HR department of the organizations that come under indoor media industry, particularly television media industry, to know the employees’ understanding on various workforce diversities and their impact on teamwork performance, employees ‘sustainability, and organizational effectiveness. The management of television media organizations may consider and implement the following suggestions to fulfill the needs of their employees and improve the overall organization.
From the research, it is found that demographic variables like gender, age, qualification, marital status, monthly salary, etc. have an influence on the employees’ understanding of workforce diversities and employees’ sustainability. The research showed that female employees, unmarried with lesser qualification (school level/diploma) and lower salary, have low level of perception or understanding of the various workforce diversities and employees’ sustainability. However, the research indicated that a substantial portion of the respondents consisted of female employees, having school education, and receiving lesser salary, and their understanding is also important and should not be ignored.
Demographic characteristics of employees is one of the vital factors that determines the working environment of the organization, particularly diversified work environment like media organizations. Therefore, the management of television media organizations should introduce appropriate policies and follow good HR management strategies to attract these segments of employees and improve their understanding better than before.
The research revealed that out of six workforce diversities, age diversity and physical ability diversity are acknowledged comparatively lesser by the employees working in television media organizations, which agrees with previous studies (Rezapouraghdam, et al., 2019). This indicates the importance of adequate inclusion of age and physical ability criteria in the various employees’ work- and welfare-related policies. Even though the overall understanding of employees on the workforce diversities is good in the television media organizations, the management of these organizations should take steps to give some preferences or priorities to the senior employees and the employees with physical disability in recruitment, promotion, etc.
Providing and managing a diversified work environment or diversified workforce and improving the work performance, increasing employees’ retention, and thereby enhancing organizational effectiveness are the challenging HR issues for the management of any service-oriented organization, specifically television media organization, one of the mass media and entertainment providers in India. This has captivated the attention and attraction of the HR managers, academicians, and researchers to provide academic and practical implications to the media industry. The present research is an endeavor to understand and explore the employees’ understanding of various workforce diversities and their impact on employees’ sustainability in India. This research is also an exertion to contribute afresh with a new outlook to the field of HR management and organizational behavior with special reference to mass media, particularly television media industry in India. The research is based on the analysis of various workforce diversities and their impact on employees’ sustainability.
Industry particularly Television Media Industry. The qualitative and diversified work environment provided by the television media organizations not only increases teamwork performance of the employees, but also improves their sustainability and overall effectiveness of the organization and makes the internal customers, that is, employees become brand ambassadors for the television media org animations without additional cost. The research findings have several practical and managerial implications.
The diversified workforce is an important indicator of employees’ sustainability in the organization in television media industry. This means that the employees who perceived more on the diversified work environment would have more intention to stay in the organization.
The research provides implications that the contribution of workforce diversities, particularly gender diversity, to the employees’ sustainability is significant and favorable. Based on the study, it can be said that the television media organizations can perform better when they implement the workforce diversity in their organizations, which would also increase the sustainability of employees.
The findings of the research indicate a strong relationship between the workforce diversity and employees’ sustainability (Ranjani, et al., 2022). Therefore, the management of the television media organizations may use this finding of the research to provide better work environment to their employees and thereby improve the employee retention and overall performance of the organization. It is also believed that the findings of this research would certainly motivate subsequent research toward a greater understanding of the role of workforce diversity in increasing employees’ retention.
The major limitation of the research was to gather the data from the respondents, that is, employees from the television media organizations, which is very difficult because of their nature of work and busy working schedule.
Due to the time and financial constraints, the survey is of limited scale and scope, such that the results of the analysis may not be fully representative of the views of the employees of the television media organizations in Chennai district.
It is important to note that employees’ understanding and views on diversity, etc. may vary from time to time and from place to place. The research was conducted under the assumption that the information given by the respondents will be reliable, which may not be true sometimes. The outcome of the research cannot be generalized as the data will be collected only from a section of employees and not from all the employees.
The research is chiefly concentrated only on the employees working in television media organizations. Hence, it becomes difficult to judge the role of workforce diversities and its effectiveness across other similar media organizations like radio, newspapers, etc.
The authenticity of the responses that are given by the respondents cannot be perfectly reliable as the attitude and the mindset of the respondents need not be the same one way or the other.
Finally, these limitations may decrease the ability of generalizing the results of this research to other industrial settings.
Hence, the theoretical and methodological limitations of this research should necessarily be taken into consideration when designing and undertaking future research. These limitations should be accepted and should provide directions for future research.
The present research has been conducted to study and analyze the employees’ understanding of various workforce diversities and their impact on employees’ sustainability in television media organizations in India. However, due to the above limitations, the results and outcomes of the current research provide more opportunities to future researchers. The following recommendations have been suggested by the present researcher for further research.
The current research is descriptive and is empirical in nature, and the same would provide a valuable contribution to the academic as well as managerial purposes. It is highly recommended to conduct more such research for generalization of the results. The future research direct itself for carrying out such research. This would make the subject of research findings more meaningful and useful to improve the present level of employees’ understanding on the workforce diversities in media industry.
In addition, the proposed outcomes are required to be validated for their application across the other types of the media organizations such as print media, outdoor media, etc. and standards need to be identified for others to adopt for improvement. A comparative analysis of workforce diversities and their outcomes relating to broadcast media (television, radio, etc.) and print media (newspaper, magazines, etc.) companies can be conducted. The future research may also be conducted by comparing television and radio belong to same broadcast media for application of the results of the present research.
Even though the present research has considered and included important variables to explain the workforce diversities, other variables, if any, having impact on employees’ sustainability should be considered in future research.
The scope of research was limited to selected employees working in television media organizations in Chennai district only. Parallel research can be also carried out in the other parts of the state of Tamil Nadu, as well as in other parts of India for comparison purposes. The present research has relied on quantitative methodology and is therefore restrictive. Therefore, more of qualitative methodology of data collection should be undertaken in future to provide wider perspective to the present research.
Psychological judgment of the employees on workforce diversities and their impact on teamwork performance, sustainability, and organizational effectiveness will change over time. Therefore, cross-sectional research might not be able to explain the empirical changes in models and the causality of the understanding of the employees of television media organizations in Chennai. In due respect, longitudinal studies, which continually measure the same sample units of population (television media employees) over a period, are recommended to be used in future research.
India is the fifth largest and one of the fastest growing entertainment and media markets globally and is expected to keep that thrust in the years to come. The country has a large broadcasting and distribution industry, comprising approximately 900 satellite TV channels, 6000 multi-system operators, around 60,000 local cable operators, seven DTH operators, and few IPTV service providers.
In this scenario, analyzing the employees’ understanding on workforce diversities and their impact on employees’ sustainability would be useful not only to the media industry, but also to the overall growth of the country, since the media industry is one of the important contributors to the gross domestic product (GDP) and an important provider of employment opportunities.
From the research carried out, it is concluded that the demographic variables like gender, marital status, qualification, salary, age, etc. and work/media-related variables like size of media organization, region of media organization, type of programs/channels broadcasted, nature/place of work of employees, etc. have a strong influence on the employee understanding of workforce diversity and sustainability.
Workforce diversity has strong, positive, and significant interrelationships within it. Out of six workforce diversities, gender diversity contributes more to predicting employee sustainability than others. Physical ability diversity, socio-behavioral diversity, and cultural diversity do not predict employee sustainability.
The management of television media organizations still has to take more prominent steps to provide a diversified work environment that leads to improved diversified workforce to increase employees’ sustainability. The television media organizations should redesign their HR policies to promote a diversity-friendly work culture and environment.