Dictated Diversity
Reading time: 2 minutes. As a faculty member in a respected B-School, I frequently engage with management theories and concepts. These ideas are mostly shaped by Western philosophies, which, in my view, do not fully capture the realities of the East. Because of these theories and concepts, management education today tends to cling to Western ideas, leading to a shallow understanding of the human mind, culture, civilization, and society. Lately, I have been reviewing papers on Diversity, Inclusion, and Equality in management journals. Almost all of them lack a deep (sociological) understanding of diversity and inclusion. The Western idea of diversity focuses mainly on gender, sexuality, and race, but misses the broader idea of "human differences." Around the world, there are many types of diversity—like caste, religion, and language—that Western management theories often overlook. Take China and Japan, for example. These societies are heavily Westernised but remain deeply xe...