DEVELOPMENT
Most western businesses are largely organised around a competitive orientation , it ’ s about survival of the fittest . This preference encourages a task focus . In Confucian Asian countries such as China , business interactions can typically involve long lunches and multiple courses that don ’ t involve any business talk as the emphasis is on building the relationship first .
Consider how your team members demonstrate their preference and if this varies across cultures in your group . Do some team members seek to establish rapport before getting to the task ? Or do others have a more direct approach ?
How to bridge a cultural divide
Do you find yourself dealing with culturally complex situations ? Giati Rabbani lays out three questions EAs can ask to help bridge cultural divides
THE EXPERT
Giati Rabbani is a welltravelled CQ Specialist , Trainer and Facilitator native to the UK , residing in Australia . When she ’ s not immersed with her clients designing and delivering training programs , she can be found in close embrace with new and exciting cultures across the globe .
Whether you are supporting a leadership team that manages across geographical borders or working with a culturally diverse team at home , your ability to influence and collaborate with others is crucial to your success .
Cultural sensitivity is the differentiator between creating cultural cohesion or allowing diversity to divide . Research demonstrates that cultural intelligence may be the single greatest difference between thriving in the 21st-century world and becoming obsolete . Forbes lists cultural intelligence among the top 10 most important skills every company will be looking for in 2020 .
Understanding your cultural values is the first step towards developing cultural sensitivity . All of us have cultural preferences that are shaped in childhood . These are not good nor bad , or right or wrong , but rather determine the way we prefer to work and live . By understanding your orientations , you can develop insights that help increase your interpersonal effectiveness and bridge gaps with people of different cultures .
Are you collaborative or expressive ? People who are cooperative will typically focus more on collaboration and establishing relationships before getting to the task at hand . Someone with a competitive orientation will tend to focus on the task and seek individual recognition for achieving results .
What is your communication style ? Consider how in Australia , it is culturally acceptable — in fact , expected — of individuals to express views in the workplace . Discussion and debate and even explicit expression of disagreement are the norm . In contrast , rarely in Japan , India , and South Korea would an individual openly communicate a difference of opinion in a group setting — especially where seniors are present . A convention of hierarchy holds strong in such cultures where leaders and elders within family , community , and business are held in high regard . The culture is one of promoting harmony and silence represents respect .
To obtain viewpoints from across a team , you may consider offering alternative ways for them to share information with you . Scheduling a private conversation before or after a team meeting can solicit input that may otherwise not be presented if they are averse to direct conflict or staying quiet in respect of the formal hierarchy within a group .
How expressive are you ? Emotions vary across cultures — both in expression and meaning . As we cross cultures and encounter emotional expression different from our own , we need to develop a deeper understanding of these emotional landscapes .
Consider how in Italy outward demonstration of passion and enthusiasm are the norm in the workplace . In Japan , for example , individuals are not emotionally expressive and can be extremely difficult to read . Their communication pattern is very indirect and far less verbose than that of Latin European or Latin American cultures . The Japanese do not gesture very much while speaking , their body language is largely restrained .
Interpreting true meaning can be challenging and calls for multiple open-ended questions to seek clarification . It is important to slow down , check in on your assumptions and clarify any visual gestures through open dialogue to avoid potential confusion . S
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52 Chief of Staff | Issue 2 2020