Significant of cultural diversity on business performance in the parts manufacturing organisation in South Africa

Abstract

Organisations are in the midst of cultural change and transformation. Thus, the global market demands that they remain competitive, flexible and relevant in order to adequately react to culturally diverse changes in their human resources. This sentiment describes the importance of cultural diversity in organisations. Hence, this study examines the significant of cultural diversity on business performance in the automotive parts manufacturing organisations in South Africa. The study was quantitative in design, with the participation of middle-level managers in two large automotive parts manufacturing organisations in the eThekwini District Municipality in KwaZulu-Natal (in South Africa). Of the 168 individuals identified for participation, 118 participated in the study, representing a 70.2 per cent response rate. Descriptive and t-tests, using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), were used to analyse data. Study results indicate that a culturally diverse workforce is associated with greater organisational performance, improved strategic decision-making and innovation. The original value of this study is its essence in providing opportunities and challenges of cultural diversity on business performance in the parts manufacturing organisations in South Africa.