Cisco, Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants, and The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated are all companies that made Fortune’s 2020 “Best Companies to Work for” list. Each of the companies has cultivated cultures that encourage and reward employees. As a result, people like their jobs and stick around. The cultures at these companies all have one thing in common; employees say you are made to feel welcome when you join the company. If all employees feel welcome, these workplaces are inclusive of everyone’s cultural backgrounds and values. This is the result of effective cross-cultural management.
I want to be a leader who has curated a robust global leadership toolbox by expanding my cross-cultural knowledge and improving my cultural intelligence. Workplace diversity is good; it results in more powerful performance and innovation. However, you must be the right manager to capitalize on diversity as a competitive advantage. The right manager appreciates and understands cultural differences with enough cultural awareness to lead people based on cultural values. They also possess the cultural intelligence required to facilitate the socialization of employees using effective cross-cultural communication. Finally, to capitalize on diversity in the workplace, the right kind of manager contributes to creating an open and unbiased organizational culture that embraces the value of diverse cultures.
Managers face four challenges when leading a multicultural team. These are direct versus indirect communication; trouble with accents and fluency; differing attitudes toward hierarchy and authority; and conflicting norms for decision-making (Brett, 2006). In Western cultures, people rely on direct communication to understand what others are thinking. In non-Western cultures, people rely on inferences and non-verbal communication to convey their thoughts. The two distinct communication styles can result in simple miscommunications in a diverse workplace. However, communication is essential for a team to complete deliverables and achieve goals. Overcoming obstacles created by direct versus indirect communication could be the most challenging aspect of a manager’s job.
Sources Cited:
Brett, J., Behfar, K., & Kern, M. (2006, November). Managing Multicultural Teams. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved April 7, 2023, from https://hbr.org/2006/11/managing-multicultural-teams