Towards inclusive small rural businesses – understanding diversity management for an immigrant workforce

Rural businesses in many European countries are facing growing workforce challenges due to demographic shifts, including aging populations and outmigration. Policymakers increasingly promote immigrant recruitment as a solution to labour shortages yet rural small businesses - often deeply embedded in homogenous local cultures - face unique challenges in integrating a diverse workforce. While diversity management is widely studied in large organizations, research on how small businesses perceive and implement diversity management remains limited. This study explores how rural small business owner-managers in Finland approach diversity management when employing immigrant workers. Based on the analysis of 22 owner-manager interviews, our findings identify three distinct approaches to diversity management, reflecting varying levels of proactivity in recruitment, employee engagement, and workplace integration. By highlighting the ways in which small business owner-managers make sense of diversity management, this study advances understanding of inclusive practices in rural labour markets and contributes to the broader discourse on diversity management in small businesses. Furthermore, the study offers practical guidance for small rural businesses by outlining concrete measures to strengthen diversity and immigrant inclusion in everyday management and workplace practices. At the policy level, the study highlights the need to improve local integration conditions, provide clearer support for small businesses and promote best-practice models that encourage inclusive and sustainable rural labour markets.