"H5 – Hypothesis 5:There is a statistical significant variation in how management is addressing challenges toeffectively address workplace diversity and gender inequality.2.5 Rationale for choice of research questionMultiple organisations are already experiencing the negative effects of managing diversity poorlywhile, at the other extreme, there are organisations that are reaping the benefits of managing iteffectively Mazur (2010). Diversity management, within the framework of human resourcemanagement, could be described as a an inclusive managerial process that is both intentionaland methodical for the purpose offorming an organisation in which every employee is affordedan opportunity to contribute to the organisation’s positive strategic alignment, and where thereis no employee exclusivity based on race, gender or age. Generally, diversity managementencompasses the management of the ever-increasing range of issues that confront people inpresent-day business and social affairs (Bowen et al., 2013). Due to the escalating mobility of the workforce in the past 20 years, organisations in the industryhave realised that recruiting, managing and securing a diverse workforce are vital objectives tosustain a suitable combination of skills and expertise. Moreover, local and internationalbusinesses have revolutionised the manufacture of products and services that satisfy a diverseconsumer market and to guarantee that there is value for stakeholders. Therefore, the expansionand supervision of human activities is imperative to the sustainable growth and profitability oforganisations globally (Okoro & Washington, 2012).2.6 Research methodology12 | P a g e The research paradigm that has been selected is the pragmatism method (Halcomb and Hickman,2015), because it aligns and complements the rationale for my research topic. It was identifiedthat a constructivist paradigm could have been selected, since it provides the ontology that thereality is articulated by the interviewed individuals and groups with no single truth (Creswell andPoth, 2017). However, the pragmatism ontology highlights the fact that the raw essence ofworkplace reality is continuously changing, debated and interpreted within the context of itsapplication to the various work situations, and is unpredictable in nature. Hence pragmatism wasfound to be more suitable for fulfilling the identified research question and objectives (Creswell,2013). The pragmatism method will have a substantial impact on the research question since itidentifies the problems experienced by employees inthe industry, but will also provide multipleperspectives on resolving the prevailing issues and bringing change to the industry’sorganisational policy framework (Halcomb and Hickman, 2015).The epistemology of pragmatismfocuses on establishing the best method which resolves the problem of ethnic discrimination.Hence a framework can be developed for managers to use as a guideline for effective change andtransformation (Creswell and Poth, 2017).Source:http://research-methodology.net/research-philosophy/pragmatism-research-philosophy/13 | P a g e It can be deduced from the above application that for the research to effectively explore theworkplace issues encountered by ethnic professionals across the industry both methods need tobe used in conjunction with each other (Wright, 2016). It can also be justified that a mixedresearch method will be an appropriate methodology for this research as it can effectivelyinteract with the research questions of this study while efficiently addressing the resultantquestions conveyed (Easterby-Smith et al., 2012).The mixed research method will consist of two methods, namely quantitative and qualitativemethods (Halcomb and Hickman, 2015).Quantitative data in previous research studies hasreflected a sense of accuracy and reliability due to its epistemological positivism paradigm(Easterby-Smith et al., 2012).2.7 Strengths and weaknesses of the chosen methodologyThe strengths and weaknesses of the mixed research method offset the limitations of not onlyquantitative but also qualitative research (Creswell, 2013). According to previous literaturejournals when the quantitative research is unable to explain the wide psychological context ofhuman behavior, then the qualitative research proves to be more effective. However, on thedownside, qualitative research can be subjected to researcher bias and lack effectiveness in thegeneralisation of the findings for the broader audience (Easterby-Smith et al., 2012).Thequantitative research method proves to be more effective with regard to the shortcomings of thequalitative research method (Halcomb and Hickman, 2015). Hence, the combination of thequantitative and qualitative research allows the study to overcome the weaknesses of bothresearch methods.14 | P a g e The mixed research method further justifies being more effective particularly for this study ofissues associated with ethnicity in the industry, as it provides a more comprehensive approachinto this particular research problem, compared to any other research method (Morgan, 2013). Itfurther provides the researcher with the ability to articulate instruments that are specific andrelevant to this study (Creswell and Poth, 2017). Apart from these major benefits of the study,the mixed research method will provide a more in-depth explanation of the findings along withthe research procedure. However, there is a more profound weakness of the mixed researchmethod, because it requires more resources and time due to the complexity of the design, henceonly a quantitative approach can be considered for this research topic. Furthermore, thecombination of two research methods can become problematic and sophisticated in itsinterpretation of data and overall analysis (Creswell, 2013). Despite the potential weaknesses,the use of the mixed research methodology can yield more accurate research results withstronger conclusions only if the researcher has no time constraints and has research assistants asan option (Creswell and Poth, 2017). 2.8 Types of data collection for this research methodologyTwo types of data will be collected through the mixed research methodology. The research willinitially collect the secondary data with the use of the qualitative approach. With the ethicalconsideration in place, the research will make use of the most recently published journal articlesfound in popular and credible academic databases for the objective of this research topic, hencesaving time and resources (Halcomb and Hickman, 2015). After evaluating the post collection ofthe secondary data, the research will focus on the quantitative approach by actively engaging inthe collection of the primary data from participants (Creswell and Poth, 2017). 2.9 Population15 | P a g e "