BCG Bulletin |
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| Diversity Issue | June 2007 | ||||||
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In this issue:
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“Un-comfort Zone”
When someone struggles with diversity, it is most often not because that person is racist, sexist or homophobic. Rather it is because psychologically people are most comfortable with individuals similar to themselves. This was cogently illustrated during a recent trip my husband and I took to Spain. Despite our enjoyment of the wine, museums and plazas, our ears perked up every time we heard other Americans speaking. We often had little directly in common with these tourists, but the comfort and familiarity of an American dialect drew us together. This same dynamic applies equally domestically. Whether at work, school or in social situations, most Americans associate with others who have similar traits, educational levels, backgrounds and experiences. This is not done to intentionally exclude others, but rather out of subconscious comfort. Because this dynamic works subconsciously, it can only be balanced out by conscious effort. Taking the time to learn more about people of different ethnicities and backgrounds enhances familiarity and brings those people into our comfort zone. Diversity training can facilitate this goal. Not just by teaching us about colleagues of different backgrounds, but perhaps more importantly by bringing us in closer contact with one another. Through this learning and exposure, individuals are often struck to learn how much they have in common with those whom they previously thought were so different. It takes time, and it takes effort, but the rewards are immeasurable.
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Blissful Ignorance? Work. Work is one of the few places in which people of different ages, education levels, cultures, religions and racial backgrounds are placed together for significant periods of time. For at least 40 hours each week this broad array of people and personalities come together to pursue collective success under stringent deadlines. Conflicts and stress abound. Accordingly, it is no surprise that Human Resource departments are mired dealing with personnel issues, that companies face productivity shortfalls and that “teamwork” often devolves into warfare. Most people believe they are “nice” and therefore assume they won’t have difficulties working with others. When an issue does arise, people are quick to conclude that the other person is to blame. We are all guilty of complaining to a friend or significant other about “Mr. X” who is impossible to work with because they are “[blank].” We should stop to consider that perhaps Mr. X’s way of doing things isn’t necessarily wrong, just different. Getting along with people who are different than us is not something that happens naturally. We spend the majority of our time with friends; people who most frequently are quite similar to us. Work is just the opposite, placing us in frequent, stressful and close contact with people who come from different backgrounds. Even the “nicest” people are unaccustomed to this dynamic and are totally unprepared to navigate its pitfalls successfully. Every individual has a unique personality and characteristics. However our age, gender, religion and cultural background -- our “kin-groups” -- help to define who we are. Kin-groups can provide general insights to who we are. Educating employees on kin-groups and their characteristics can decrease workplace conflicts. Specifically, providing people with general information about cultural norms, gender communication styles, religious principles, and other kin-group traits can decrease the number of employee disputes and increase collaborative work. For example, at a teambuilding seminar that I was conducting, a woman named “Betty” stated that she had a difficult time working with her all-male team because they were sexist. She stated that frequently when she brought up an idea, her male team members didn’t take her seriously, and failed to even give her eye contact.However, this issue probably could have been avoided had Betty known one of the major differences between male and female communication is that females look at someone in the eye --- times more frequently than men. These men probably were not sexist, but simply had a different communication style. Another person that I encountered during one of my trainings, Kumar, was annoyed because his cubicle-mate, Tyrone, teased him about being a “picky” eater. Kumar wouldn’t eat the sandwiches at company meetings. As a fundamental Muslim and hence a vegetarian, Kumar, couldn’t eat the variety of meat sandwiches that were offered. Tyrone certainly wasn’t trying to offend Kumar. What he simply meant to be light teasing was received as bigoted behavior. Incidents such as the ones with Betsy and Kumar happen daily; simple misunderstandings that are perceived as intolerance, racism or sexism. Indeed most of us have probably, albeit unintentionally, offended someone at work. Notwithstanding our offenses, most of us are indeed nice people. Yet most of us are also ignorant to different cultures. Accordingly, misunderstandings occur; feelings get hurt; and work teams are fractured. It is striking that most people will take the time to learn about a different culture before taking a vacation to another country, but fail to make the same effort to learn about the different cultures present at the place we spend most of our waking hours: work. |
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Hurdles to Cross Cultural Business Communication International businesses are facing new challenges to their internal communication structures due to major reforms brought about through internationalization, downsizing, mergers, acquisitions and joint ventures. Lack of investment in cross cultural training and language tuition often leads to deficient internal cohesion. The loss of clients/customers, poor staff retention, lack of competitive edge, internal conflicts/power struggles, poor working relations, misunderstandings, stress, poor productivity and lack of co-operation are all by-products of poor cross cultural communication. Cross cultural communications consultants work with international companies to minimize the above consequences of poor cross cultural awareness. Through such cooperation, consultancies like Quintessential have recognized common hurdles to effective cross cultural communication within companies. Here we outline a few examples of these obstacles to cross cultural co-operation: Lack of Communication It may seem obvious to state that non-communication is probably the biggest contributor to poor communication. Yet it continues to prove itself as the major problem within most companies. Lack of communication with staff is not solely due to lack of spoken dialogue. Rather it relates to access to information. For example, not giving feedback (negative or positive), informing staff of decisions and actions that will affect their roles or failure to properly communicate expectations are all ways in which information can be withheld from staff. This will eventually result in an alienated staff base that feels divided from management and superiors. If managers are too selective in providing information, this can cause suspicion and jealousy among staff and will eventually result in internal strife instead of cohesion. A management which does not and will not communicate and interact physically with staff demonstrates a lack of interest, trust and respect. In the West it is often the case that communication lines are vertical. Staff report up to managers and managers up to senior levels and so on. Ideally lines of communication should run both ways. Those with a subordinate place in the communication process tend to feel estranged, indifferent and possibly even belligerent. Lack of communication in all its forms is unhealthy. Companies and managers must be aware of how, what and to whom they are communicating. Language Communication difficulties through language come in two forms: Use of inappropriate language Language carries with it subliminal meanings and messages transmitted through vocabulary, stress and tone. The wrong use of words or emotions hidden behind phrases can send messages that affect staff self-perception, confidence and attitude. Critical language causes poor interpersonal relationships and low self-confidence whereas supportive language and tones has the opposite effect. Foreign Languages These days, offices may have native speakers of over 50 languages all under one roof. It is important that the main language of the office is established, whether it be English, French or Spanish. Once this is constituted all employees should only converse in the main language. This avoids exclusion of staff who can not understand other languages. In addition, a company should ensure that all its employees are fully conversant in the main language. Language tuition should be seen as a necessity not a luxury. Culture International businesses with a highly diverse workforce in terms of nationality and cultural background face challenges from the differences in language, values, belief systems, business ethics, business practices, behavior, etiquette and expectations. Cross cultural differences can negatively impact a business in a variety of ways, whether in team cohesion or in staff productivity. As we have seen above, different methods of communication are just one area in which cross cultural differences are manifested. In such multicultural companies, objective help may be needed through a cross cultural consultant who will show teams and individuals how to manage communication and work together more cohesively and productively. Company Culture Company culture pertains to the internal culture of a company in terms of how it is managed. For example, does the company view its different departments such as sales, production, administration and HR as closed or open systems? A closed system is one in which a total lack of synergy exists between a sales and production department due to the structure and communication lines between the two. A consequence of such compartmentalization is that managers of departments have a tendency to become territorial. It is vital that team work, team building and team spirit are encouraged in order to create open systems. Such measures are especially valid in joint ventures and mergers whereby co-operation between two or more companies requires their total commitment to an open system. Understandably many companies are primarily focused on the financial and strategic side of company operations. International businesses are now realizing that many of their business problems have roots in man-management and communication. In summary, we can conclude that the biggest hurdle to effective cross cultural communication is a reluctance to invest in the expertise and resources needed to overcome the problems as outlined above. Cross cultural hurdles are easily negotiable with some objective and well-qualified assistance.
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Your significance is not in your similarity to others. It is in your differences. Mike Murdock |
View a sample of the Cross Cultural Business Etiquette Guide |
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| ©2007 Bryant Consulting Group, LLC All Rights Reserved. | |||||||
