Companies that fully utilize their employee affinity groups will emerge with a competitive advantage after the current economic downturn. Also known as resource groups or ERGs, such entities have become valuable assets in the face of rapidly shrinking but also increasingly multicultural markets.

Managers in charge of remote Latin American teams often report having difficulty getting their employees to meet deadlines, but this failure to complete projects on time may have little to do with the tired stereotype about Latinos always being late. Here are some ways to discover and handle the factors that could be causing continual delays with remote multicultural teams.

Hiring companies spend much time and effort — not to mention money — on recruiting Latino employees, but many Hispanic hires leave before organizations can fully benefit from their talents. Expert Graciela Kenig tells employers what they can do to reduce turnover and help Hispanic employees thrive.

Organizations wishing to attract Latinos and other diverse professionals for top-level management positions often find themselves competing for the same candidates — most of whom are already employed elsewhere. While such candidates are always are worth pursuing, it is also important to identify the talent that already exists within your organization. Here are some ideas for developing the leadership potential in your Latino employees.

Many hiring companies are discovering that finding and attracting management-level Latinos and other diverse talent can be a recruiting challenge, and candidate availability is only a part of the problem. These diversity recruiting tips will help you reach the management-level Hispanic candidates you need to remain competitive and meet your recruiting goals.

Most communication and teamwork challenges arise from three basic cultural preferences: our approach to work, the way we share information, and how we view time. All three of these preferences have an enormous impact on the effectiveness of multicultural teams.

Increasing diversity in an organization is a multi-layered process. The word process implies that it takes time and usually requires many revisions along the way.

How do you decide if a job candidate would be a good fit in your department or company? Or if an employee should be promoted to a very different department?

Managers and supervisors who work with multicultural employees often express frustration with the way some of these associates manage their time at work. Complaints often include an inability to meet deadlines (even when they said they could), being late for meetings, or a seeming lack of focus on a priority task.

With skilled labor shortages widely expected as a result of retiring baby boomers and an influx of young, less experienced workers, companies wishing to remain competitive will have to use creative approaches to talent sourcing and management.