This document discusses culture and communication in the global workforce. It begins by defining culture and explaining how cultural norms, values, beliefs, and language make groups distinctive from one another. It then discusses how culture blends in work environments as companies take on multinational operations and managers must deal with diverse cultures. Effective cultural competency training is needed to avoid issues like miscommunication and conflict that can endanger productivity. Developing cultural competence allows one to understand, communicate with, and interact effectively across cultures in today's global business environment.
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Culture and Communication in the Global Workforce.ppt
2. What Is Culture?
• Cultural is broadly described as the set of:
i. Norms
ii. Values
iii. beliefs,
iv. Rites
v. Language
this are followed by a group of people.
This sharing values and beliefs make one group distinctive
from the other one hence contributed to diversity among
communities worldwide.
3. culture
• It is interesting to see how cultural blends within the
work environment.
• All managers are eager to see their business prosper.
• From ethnocentric perspective of the organization to a
polycentric one which is more visible today than even
before.
• Manager have to deal with people from different
cultures.
• This challenges just increases when companies start
their operations abroad and engage themselves in
multinational operations.
• Business must find out some or many benefits from
cultural integration.
• Since companies trade beyond traditional barriers, they
will have to consider the importance of cultural.
4. Culture
• Culture is not merely understanding one from a certain point
of view
• overcoming differences among different people working
together will certainly eliminate such gaps and favor good
work opportunities among workers.
• This is not an easy task and the need for sensitivity or
diversity training should be an all inclusive element for a
firm’s sustainability within its diversity programmed.
• Cultural will remain a pending issues in business seen from
what is generally taking place in the world with numerous
strife being caused by religious and cultural differences.
5. culture
• It is up to managers to see how sensitive issues
relating to culture can be best approached and how
they can avoid prejudice to people from different
cultures.
• Getting all cultures different on board does matter and
this is where there is a need to find out harmony
among the workers.
• It is right time to scorn off negative values on culture
and rather think how one can talk business globally by
valuing differences and making the best of
individualities in the cultural melting pot
6. MANAGING CULTURAL DVERSITY IN
WORKPLACE
•From our increasingly diverse domestic
workforce to the globalization of business,
culture competence is arguably the most
important skills for effective work performance
in this 21st century
7. What is culture diversity in the workplace?
• Culture refers to the values, norms and traditions that
affect the way a member of a group typically perceive,
thinks, interacts, behaves, and make judgement.
• Culture competence is the ability to interact effectively
with people from different cultures.
• This ability depends on awareness of one’s own
cultural worldview, knowledge of other cultural practices
and worldviews, tolerant attitudes towards cultural
differences, and cross-cultural skills.
9. • The more different cultures work together, the more
cultural competency training is essential to avoid
problems.
• Cultural problems can range from miscommunication to
actual conflict, all endangering effective worker
productivity and performance.
• Developing cultural competence results in an ability to
understand, communicate with, and effectively interact
with people across cultures and work with varying
cultural beliefs and schedules.
10. challenging in managing a multicultural
environment:
Communication
•Providing information accurately and
promptly is critical to effective work and
team performance.
•This is particular important when a project is
troubled and needs immediate corrective
action
•People in different culture vary in how for
example people from Asian cultures are
reluctant to give supervisors bad news while
those from other may exaggerate it.
11. Team building
•Some culture like united states are
individualistic, and people want to go it alone
and other culture value cooperation within or
among other teams.
•Team building issues can become more
problematic as teams are comprised of
people from a mix of these cultural type.
•Effective cross-culture team building is
essential to benefiting from the potential
advantages of cultural diversity in the
workplace
12. Time
•Culture differ in how they view time for
example they differ in the balance between
work and family life, and the workplace mix
between work and social behavior
•Other differences include the perception of
overtime, or even the exact meaning of a
deadline
•Different perception of time can cause a
great misunderstanding, and mishap in the
workplace, especially with scheduling and
deadlines
13. Cultural Diversity Trends
• Cultural diversity is a form of appreciating the differences in
individuals.
• The differences can be based on
i. Gender
ii. Age
iii. Sex
iv. Ethnicity
v. Sexual orientation
vi. Social status
Companies have realized the value in acquiring a diverse workforce.
14. • Leornardo(2013) identifies certain trends and example
that are likely to affect today’s workplace from a cultural
point of view such as:
i. The growth of minority workforce
ii. A growth of stereotyping and prejudice
iii. Companies are embracing is the addition of
sensitivity or diversity training.
iv. A large increase females in the workforce
v. Corporations are more open to hiring individuals with
disabilities and accepting different abilities
vi. An increasing in the ageing employmen pool of
workers.
15. Stereotyping
• in social psychology, a stereotype is an over-
generalized belief about a particular category of people.
Stereotypes are generalized because one assumes
that the stereotype is true for each individual person in
the category
19. Ethnocentrism
• Ethnocentrism is the act of judging another culture
based on preconceptions that are found in values
and standards of one's own culture
22. Cultural Relativism
• Cultural relativism is the idea that a person's beliefs,
values, and practices should be understood based on
that person's own culture, rather than be judged against
the criteria of another.
24. Two Diagnostic Models to Aid the
Multinational Manager
•Hofstede’s Model of National Culture
•7d Cultural Dimensions Model
25. Hofstede’s Model of National Culture
• One of the most widely used frameworks for analyzing cultural
differences is the model developed by cultural theorists known as
Geert Hofstede.
• In this model, the differences in cultural between countries have
been plotted along five dimensions, which can be used as a basis for
predicting the cultural differences between different country.
26. The five dimensions of Hofstede model
• POWER DISTANCE
• INDIVIDUALISM
• MASCULINITY
• UNCERTAINTY AVOIDANCE
• LONG-TERM ORIENTATION
27. MANAGEMENT PROCESSES LOW POWER DISTANCE HIGH POWER DISTANCE
Human Resources
Management
Management Selection Educational achievement Social class; elite education
Training For autonomy For conformity/obedience
Evaluations/Promotion Performance Compliance;
trustworthiness
Remuneration
Small wage difference
between management and
worker
Large wage differences
between management and
workers
Leadership Styles Participative; theory Y Authoritarian; close
supervision
Motivational Assumptions
People like work; extrinsic
and intrinsic rewards
Assume people dislike work;
Coercion
Decision
Making/Organizational
Design
Decentralized; flat
pyramids; Small proportion
of supervisors
Tall pyramids; large
proportion of supervisors
Strategy Issues Varied
Crafted to support the
power elite or government
POWER DISTANCE
28. Individualism
•The individualism dimension measures not
only the degree to which an employee
maintains her unique attributes, but also the
degree to which she becomes integrated
into the collective group
•An individualist employee has loose ties to
others in the organization.
29. MANAGEMENT
PROCESSES
LOW INDIVIDUALISM HIGH INDIVIDUALISM
Human Resources
Management
Management Selection Group membership; school
or university
Universalistic based on
individual traits
Training Focus on company based
skills
General skills for
individual achievement
Evaluation/Promotion Slow with group; seniority Based on individual
performance
Remuneration Based on group
membership/organizational
paternalism
Extrinsic rewards (money,
promotion) based on
market value
Leadership Styles Appeals to duty and
commitment
Individual rewards and
punishments based on
performance
Motivational Assumptions Moral involvement Calculative; Individual
cost/benefit
Decision
Making/Organizational
Design
Group; slow; preference
for larger organizations
Individual responsibility;
preference for smaller
organizations
30. Masculinity
•Measures the organizations' personality against
masculine and feminine stereotypes.
•A company with masculine culture operate
assertively and competitively
•A company with a feminine culture come across
more modest and caring.
31. MANAGEMENT
PROCESSES
LOW MASCULINITY HIGH MASCULINITY
Human Resources
Management
Management Selection Independent of gender,
school ties less
important; androgyny
Jobs gender identified; school
performance and ties important
Training Job-Oriented Career oriented
Evaluation/Promotion Job performance with
less gender role
assignments
Continues gender tracking
Remuneration Less salary differences
between levels; more
time off
More salary preferred to less
hours
Leadership Styles More theory Y; More theory X;
Motivational Assumptions Emphasis on quality of
life, time off, vacations;
work not central
Emphasis on performance and
growth; excelling to be best;
work central to life; job
recognition important
Decision
Making/Organizational
Design
Intuitive/group; smaller
organizations
Decisive/individual; larger
organization preferred
32. Uncertainty Avoidance
•Measures employee’s comfort with unstructured
environments.
•Unknown situation where surprising events may
occur.
•Employee who likes to plan every minute of her
day will quickly get frustrated in an organization
with a low uncertainty avoidance.
33. MANAGEMENT
PROCESSES
HIGH UNCERTAINTY
AVOIDANCE
LOW UNCERTAINTY
AVOIDANCE
Human Resource
Management Seniority; expected loyalty Past job performance;
education
Management Selection
Training Specialized Training to adapt
Evaluation/Promotion Seniority; expertise; loyalty Objective individual
performance data; job
switching for promotions
Remuneration Based on seniority or
expertise
Based on performance
Leadership Styles Task oriented Nondirective; person-
oriented; flexible
Motivational Assumptions People seek security; avoid
competition
People self motivated;
competitive
Decision
Making/Organizational
Design
Larger organization; tall
hierarchy; formalized; many
standardized procedures
Smaller organizations; flat
hierarchy; less formalized
with fewer written
rules/standardized
procedures
Strategy Issues Risk adverse Risk taking
34. Long Term Orientation
• The long term orientation is measures long-term values, against
short term values such as respect for tradition, fulfilment for social
obligations and avoiding personal embarrassment.
• Employees with a high measures of a long-term orientation respond
well to a hierarchy based organizational structure where leaders are
highly respected.
• Employees with low measures of long term orientation demonstrate
personal stability and observe customers such as reciprocating (to
share the same feelings as someone else and to behave in a same
way as someone else) favors and gifts from others.
35. MANAGEMENT
PROCESSES
SHORT TERM
ORIENTATION
LONG TERM ORIENTATION
Human Resources
Management
Management Selection Objective skill assessment
for immediate use to
company
Fit of personal and
background characteristics
Training Limited to immediate
company needs
Investment in long term
employment skills
Evaluation/Promotion Fast; based on skill
contributions
Slow; develop skills and
loyalty
Remuneration Pay; promotions Security
Leadership Styles Use incentives for economic
advancement
Build social obligations
Motivational Assumptions Immediate rewards
necessary
Subordinate immediate
gratification for long term
individual and company
goals
Decision
Making/Organizational
Design
Logical analyses of
problems; design for logic
of company situation
Synthesis to reach
consensus; design for
social relationships
Strategy Issues Fast; measurable payback Long term profits and
growth; Incrementalism
36. Hofstede’s Dimensions By Countries
Exhibit 2.4
• Anglo cultures (US, GB, Australia)
• high on individualism and masculinity, low on power distance and uncertainty
avoidance
• Latin European
• high uncertainty avoidance
• Nordic
• low masculinity
• Far Eastern
• high power distance, low individualism
37. The 7 Dimension of Culture Cultural
• The 7 dimensions of culture is the most recognized cultural theory
model co-created by Trompenaars and Hampden-Turner (1997)
• The theory was created to help understanding and managing cultural
differences
• Trompenaars’ theory focuses on the way people think, their
foresights, behavior and future expectations
• He believed culture is a way a group of people solve problems.
39. Universalism Particularism
Focus on Rules
Contracts difficult to break
Trustworthy people honor
their word
Belief in is only one reality
"Deals" are obligations
Focus on Relationships
Contracts easy to modify
Trustworthy people adapt
to each other's needs
based on trust
Reality is relative to each
person's situation
"Deals" are flexible to the
situation and the person
USA UK
Czech
Rep.
Nigeria Mexico
South
Korea
Differences:
Management Implications:
Use procedures applied to
all
Formalize business
practices
Announce changes
publicly
Treat all cases similarly
Use informal networks to
create understanding
Make changes subtly and
privately
Treat each case based on
its unique circumstances
40. Individualism Collectivism
Focus on "me" or "I"
Individual achievement
and responsibility
Individual decision
making
Focus on "we"
Group achievement and
responsibility
Decision making by
groups
UK
Czech
Rep.
Nigeria Egypt Japan
Differences:
Management Implications:
Use individual incentives
such a pay for
performance
Plan for turnover
Provide for individual
initiative
Focus on group morale
and cohesiveness
Expect low turnover
Set group goals
41. Neutral Affective
Do not reveal thought or
feelings
Control over emotions
admired
Physical contact and
expressive gestures
avoided
Feelings and thoughts
reveal verbally and non-
verbally
Emotional expression
uninhibited
Animated expression and
gesturing admired
Touching is common
Sweden UK
Czech
Rep.
Norway Mexico China
Differences:
Management Implications:
Act under control to show
status
Keep dialogue to the point
Avoid appearing
detached, which suggests
distance
Expect strong
commitment to positions
Tolerate emotional
outbursts
42. Specific Diffuse
Direct in relationships
Blunt and precise in
communication
Principled moral
reasoning
Indirect and subtle in
relationships
Ambiguous or evasive in
communication
Situation-based moral
decision making
Sweden UK
Czech
Rep.
Norway Mexico China
Differences:
Managerial Implications:
Use of objectives and
standards
Separate private and
business lives
Give clear and precise
directions
Attempt continuous
improvement
Mix private and business
lives
Use ambiguous directions
to give employees latitude
43. Achievement Ascription
Use title only when
relevant
Superiors earn respect
through job performance
Mixture of age and gender
in management
Use of titles common and
expected
Respect for superior
shows commitment to
organization
Background and age main
qualification for
management
Norway Austria
Ireland Japan
Hong
Kong
Argentina
Differences:
Managerial Implications:
Emphasize rewards and
respect based on skills
and accomplishments
Senior level managers
defer to technical and
functional specialists
Emphasize seniority
Use personal power of
superior for rewards
Emphasize the chain of
command
44. Past/Present Future
Communication
references history and
origins of country,
business, and family
Respect for past glory and
elders
History provides a context
for present actions
Communication refers to
potential achievements
Planning important
Potential for future
advantage emphasized
Hong
Kong
Israel Russia Korea
Hong
Kong
Differences:
Managerial Implications:
Emphasize and be
sensitive to history and
tradition
Avoid strict deadlines for
completion of tasks
Motivate by emphasis on
opportunities
Set specific deadlines
Enjoy the moment
Planning seldom results
in execution
Immediate impact most
important
Past Present Future
Past and Present Future
45. How to maintain cultural synergy
•Affirmative action - Initiating proactive
behaviors and action in making equal
employment opportunity to everyone
•Workforce diversity - Creating an inclusive
work environment that values all employees
•Global diversity -Putting differences to work
in the market place, workplace and
community
46. Benefits of having a cultural diversity in
workplace
•Diversity is beneficial to both associates and
employees
•Diversity in the workplace can reduce lawsuit
•Diversity encourage flexibility and creativity
•Diversity increase marketing opportunities
•Diversity develop business image
47. Contribution of cultural diversity towards
organization’s success.
Staff potential is recognized and developed.
• When each person is valued for his or her distinctive skills,
experiences and perspectives that contribute to organization
creating a diverse, inclusive work environment
• it is a journey of continuous renewal and it is important significance
to moves forward into the 21st century which it can building its
winning global workforce and workplace
48. Productive is valuing different perspective, skills,
• Diverse work force helps the company realize its full potential and
recognizing and developing the talents of each individual brings new
ideas to organization
The company benefits from the creativity and innovation
• that result when people who have different experiences,
perspectives and cultures work together.
• This is what drives invention and high performance at organization.
49. Conclusions
• Culture has a variety of levels that affect multinationals
• Models provide starting point to understand culture
• Learning another culture is a never ending process