Managing diversity in Israel: Some applications for South Africa

Abstract

The management of diversity manifests itself in a very specific way in Israeli society. This is so because the management process occurs at two levels: a national-political level (first order processes) and the individual enterprise level (second order processes). The interactive nature of the two processes ultimately results in most diverse national groups working together productively towards both national-economic and individual goals. Inclusiveness is a property widely found in the average Israeli enterprise. The purpose of this paper is to describe the unique Israeli approach to the management of their diverse workforce, with a view to identifying possible applications for South Africa. The study shows that South Africa has a lot to learn before we can hope to succeed in effectively managing our diverse rainbow nation.