The Importance of Cross-cultural Management Skills
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- Parent Category: Persönliches Wachstum
- Category: Persönliches Wachstum
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One of the key areas of change in the last 20 years has been in Equality and Diversity - in dealing with different cultures in the workplace - in the challenges that can provide but also in the richness that this can bring to the workforce.
We tend to see people from our perspective. If we are a white-christian male we will tend (naturally) to view the world from that viewpoint. We think that everyone shares those cultural beliefs that we have grown up with. We will assume that people will have the same cultural references that we do and share the same needs or belief systems. We may treat everyone equally under those guidelines. The same applies just as much to a black woman or chinese man.
We need to refocuss our ideal. We need to remember that each of us has our own unique set of views, or prejudices, of beliefs and needs. The more we can understand that the better the workforce will be and the more energy they will put behind their projects. This is not about 'political correctness' but simply about trying to understand one another. If one culture needs to pray at certain times then, as long as they are performing in their job well, where is the harm in letting them pray. If one set of people wish a certain religious holiday off (Christmas for example) then where is the harm in that also?
One of the keys to managing cross culture relationships is not in seeing diversity issues as problems but instead seeing them as positives - understanding what they can bring to the organisation and not finding fault with difference. Embracing difference means that we can learn from one another. Hearing things from a different viewpoint can shed new light on a project or market plan. Having different cultural backgrounds and opinions in meetings will help target different client bases, will help understand different agendas and help give angles that may not have been considered previously.
This applies across all cutures and it is vital that we promote a free an open culture in companies - where people are not scared to talk about their background and not afraid to ask. A great deal of the problems at management and lower levels is in a lack of understanding of different cultures or belief systems and because we do not understand we make errors and are scared to question people for fear of looking foolish. If, instead you work in an organisation that promotes diversity, that encourages employees to be open to questions and to talking about their roots then that leads to a much more unified workforce.
Companies can encourage this, sometimes a jamboree of some kind - where everyone gets together and talks about their own backgrounds so that everyone has some broad stoke understanding of each other. Sometimes though a smaller scale approach can work just as well - small meetings outings in neutral environments (taking into account cultural differences - some faiths for example may not want to meet in a bar, some cultures may not want to go out on a Friday night etc).
This understanding approach needs to be tackled from management level down as well as from grass roots up. If the management are not seen to respect equality, diversity and cross cultural skills then the people below them will not see it as important. Equally if intollerance is allowed at the base level then it will grow through the company.
Finally I should empahsize that this is not about simply one culture needing to work harder to embrace another, it is in it's broadest terms cross-cultural. Everyone of us needs to work to understand other cultures in the workplace and away from it. Very few of us know or understand the needs of someone who is not ourselves. Sometimes cultural difference may not be obvious, and it is often more than skin deep, history, location and physical health all play a part in our different make-ups. We do not come with labels, but when we understand each other we can create very positive futures for all of us.
