Final answer:
Pitney Bowes aligns with Thomas and Ely’s Learning-and-Effectiveness Paradigm, taking diversity beyond surface-level compliance to a strategic advantage. They demonstrate preconditions for this shift through committed leadership, a strategic diversity vision, and structural alignment. The approach's strengths lie in innovation and market insight, but it also faces challenges including complex management and resistance to change.
Step-by-step explanation:
Thomas and Ely's three paradigms for managing diversity within organizations are the Discrimination-and-Fairness Paradigm, the Access-and-Legitimacy Paradigm, and the Learning-and-Effectiveness Paradigm. Pitney Bowes, a global technology company, is known for adopting the Learning-and-Effectiveness Paradigm, which integrates deep-level diversity and inclusion into its core business practices. This approach views diversity as a resource for learning and adaptation, leading to business effectiveness and competitive advantage. The preconditions for making a paradigm shift, as applied to Pitney Bowes, include leadership support, strategic vision for diversity and inclusion, and structural changes aligning with diversity goals.
The strengths of adopting such an approach like the Learning-and-Effectiveness Paradigm include fostering creativity, innovation, broader market understanding, and enhancing problem-solving by leveraging a diverse workforce. However, there are limitations such as the potential for complexity in management, resistance to organizational culture change, and the need for continuous commitment to diversity objectives.