Global Diversity and Inclusion at Royal Dutch Shell
Royal Dutch Shell (RDS) corporation operates within the global oil and gas industry and is conducts operations in 35 countries. The corporation began restructuring efforts in early 2000s under then CEO, Jeroen van der Veer, which included incorporating a more diversified and inclusive working environment that correlated with its cross country explorations in the oil and gas market. Diversity is defined by Merriam Webster as “the inclusion of differing types of people in a group or organization.” RDS placed heightened interest on Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) by placing upper level management over programs thus giving the concept a heightened level of visibility. The center of RDS’s D&I concept were three main areas: Talent, Leadership, and Competitiveness. Within the talent concept, the theory is that in competitive career fields, the talent pool is further reduced by competing interest.
RDS reasoned that by recruiting young promising and motivated talent, grooming those individuals thorough proper mentorship, training, and overall organizational involvement stands to provide positive returns to the corporation. Likewise, in fostering an environment that allows the voice of every member to be heard stands to improve the decision making abilities of leaders. Lastly, RDS became a more transparent organization through the use of its competitive approach of allowing the up and down approach of business execution to be shown. In doing this, RDS created an environment of expectation from all involved. During RDS transition from Jeroen van der Veer to Peter Voser, who coincidentally work as the CFO, the diverse and inclusive ideology became marred by focusing on improving the corporations gains through restructuring. The problem with this move was that the face of diversity had taken steps 3backwards when the Executive Committee (EC) became an white, all male platform.
In evaluating the case study, the drastic change that occurred in RDS top management as seen through the selection of the EC was done largely because of Voser’s desires to build a team of his vision and not based off of the company’s established policies. According to an article entitled “ Diversity and Inclusion: A Work in Progress,” the authors asserts that Division and Inclusion remains a “hot-button” topic due largely because of the disparities in “compensation and treatment” in comparison to white males “counterparts.” (Heff, pg. 52) In the case of RDS, D & I became a “hot- button” issue after years of progress was staled with the company’s restructuring efforts. The articles continues by adding the “Diversity is essentially based on representation and relationships.” With the lack of diversity represented in the EC, the corporation ethical principles stands to be tarnished.
In response to whether Voser should respond to the negative reactions to the composition of the new EC, it is in the best interest of RDS for him or an upper level management representative to respond prior to the situation getting too far out of control. In doing so, the situation is mitigated immediately from potential revenue lost or lost in seasoned employees due to ethical principles.
RDS should set goals based off of environmental factors weighed against the proper implementation of said goals using the defender strategy.
RDS should review the 1700 managers at the the different levels by developing an organizational business strategy that offer the most effectively in executing its goals in order to determine the validity of said manager employment with the corporation.
The pros of using D & I aspirational targets to manage workforce composition is that diversity occurs in the area of gender, nationality, and inclusion.
The cons of using D & I aspirational targets to manage workforce composition is that reverse discrimination can occur as well as the premise that gender and nationality, and not best qualified, were the deciding factors for employment.
In assuming that candidate for employment has roughly comparable capabilities and comes from D & I targeted groups, the totality of the environmental factors be weighed during the hiring process.