Executive Summary
Retaining a Diverse Work Force With Internal Marketing:
A Practical Tool for Tomorrow's Work Force
By David
G. Allen, Ashley
Kilburn, and Brandon
Kilburn
from the Summer 2005 Journal
©National Association of Colleges and Employers.
All rights reserved.
Note: This research was supported by a grant from the NACE Foundation. Full results of the study are available through the NACE Store.
Organizations are concerned about maintaining a diverse work force, and are investing more resources in recruiting and retaining diverse workers. The labor force is becoming increasingly diverse, and universities continue to produce a diverse population of graduates. Research suggests that diverse employees may face unique challenges in the workplace, such as greater interpersonal conflict and harassment, less supportive co-workers or supervisors, additional performance pressures, and/or heightened perceptions of blocked career paths.1, 2 These stressful and challenging work conditions may be intensified among young entrants into the work force. As their expectations of the job are not met, they become more likely to turnover.3, 4 Organizations may therefore realize a loss of unique knowledge, experiences, and perspectives to pilot organizations into the future.
Although realistic job previews may significantly increase the likelihood of job survival, there is significantly more that organizations can do to retain diverse employees.5, 6 Past research has suggested the following retention strategies as specifically helpful in retaining a diverse work force: implementing mentor programs, accommodating the special needs of diverse employees, forming multicultural teams, providing diversity training for traditional employees, forming organization-supported network groups for diverse employees, and promoting diverse employees into key positions within the organization. These are good starting points, but still treat diverse employees as a monolithic group with similar needs and values. This article suggests an orientation beyond that of traditional approaches to retaining these highly valuable employees. By applying an internal marketing orientation (IMO), organizations could establish and strengthen internal relationships targeted at specific employee segments within the organization, which may be a critical tool in gaining focus in organizational retention efforts.
In the broadest sense, IMO employs marketing strategies and practices already being used by organizations in their interactions with customers, and applies them to internal relationships with employees. Activities that accompany IMO are designed to help organizations identify employee segments. These segments are comprised of employees who possess similar characteristics, needs and desires, and/or job experiences. IMO therefore enables organizations to tailor their retention strategies to specific employee segments. The following discussion pinpoints those activities most helpful for identifying similarities and/or differences that exist among an organization’s diverse work force.
Copyright Notice: This article appeared in the Summer 2005 issue of NACE’s Journal. NACE members have the permission of the National Association of Colleges and Employers, copyright holder, to download and photocopy this article for internal purposes only. Photocopies must include this copyright notice. Those who do not hold membership, or who wish to use the article for other purposes, should contact Claudia Allen, callen@naceweb.org, 800/544-5272, ext. 129. Electronic reproduction of this article is prohibited.
