ABSTRACT
Less than a mile from our university is a branch of a major organization that currently employs 815 people in the Washington, DC area. At present, their workers speak at least 36 languages, representing a wide variety of cultures. Managers supervise a staff where about 65% are foreign-born. No, we are not talking about one of those well-known international organizations housed in DC —their staff would be even more diverse-we are talking about the Washington Hilton, a large hotel dependent on the collaborative efforts of men and women from around the world to serve and satisfy their equally diverse customers. For the Hilton, and many other organizations throughout the U.S., cultural diversity is not merely a concept for the future, it is today’s reality.
