Offshoring, travel, the internet – it all means that no matter where we live, our world is multicultural and our relationships increasingly global. No organisation, workplace or individual is an island – to succeed, we need to be actively connected.
This presents both a problem and an opportunity. The problem is that few of us receive any formal training in operating successfully across cultures. The opportunity is that for those who do learn the skills, a real global competitive advantage awaits.
Being able to work with different cultures is now a critical part of business and managerial success. Many managers have to create systems where difference cultures can work together, and this is taking most managers way outside their comfort zone. Why? Few organisations actively train their managers in cross-cultural understanding.
The biggest single cultural dimension that blocks communication and collaboration between westerners and Asians is called “absolutism versus relativism”. It is impossible to understand each other without knowing what this difference means.
The “absolute” cultures of the west derived this trait from the Greeks, who believed we could find absolute truth, good and so on. This means most westerners believe you can find the one best way to do something, the one great plan, the perfect contract, the way.
The “relative” cultures trace their origins way back past the Greeks and grow up believing that relationship is central, and that things are partially good and bad, we can plan but who knows, nothing is ever perfect and in most conflicts the answer becomes relative.
Right away you can see the seeds of misunderstanding and potentially conflict. The westerner looks for certainty and guarantees - the Asian accepts uncertainty, impermanence and change.
The western manager will focus more on rules than relationships, while their Asian counterparts value relationships over rules. The westerner believes legal contracts are fixed, the Asian that legal contracts can be modified. Honouring your word is a high value in the west, while moving with changes is equally high in Asia. The westerner is always searching for the one agreed truth in any situation, while the Asian takes several perspectives and can live with contradictions.
Because of these cultural differences, westerners find that the process of business development is more time consuming in India and much of Asia. Good managers know they need to check and double check, go over the basics more often, summarise and re-summarise to ensure they have the fullest picture – and then be prepared for surprises as they implement. Truly multicultural managers – whether from the east or the west – will learn and show the ability to change and be flexible. This creates a much more trusting and collaborative environment than being a stickler for the original plan. For many westerners, this is uncomfortable territory.
The challenging news is that there is more discomfort ahead in this small or “flat” world. For example, westerners will find in most Asian companies that decision making is a collective operation. The westerner’s experience, as Director or Manager of a division, is that once their yearly budget and programs are agreed by the board, they get on with it largely uninterrupted. Their Asian counterpart involves the collective in almost every decision – even where the yearly budget and program are already set.
One resulting challenge is that the western manager who likes to be “hands off’ on detail will find an Asian workforce that wants the manager involved and looks for regular feedback.
The origin of this difference is – do you view yourself primarily as an individual or as a member of a group? For citizens of Japan, China and India, the answer is certainly that they see themselves within the context of the group.
There are some practical approaches either side can take from the outset. Asking yourself questions you’ve never asked before is part of the process of becoming multicultural - What is the right thing to say? What is the right way to say it? What is my body language saying? What impact am I having?
There is also a fine balancing act here, because while it is important to face up to differences, it is not wise to harp on it – in fact, it can be an advantage in public to focus on all the things in common, of which there will be many. Some people from both the west and the east find it offensive to hear about differences, so the skilled manager acts with the knowledge of difference but can also find points of unity for the cross-border team.
A well-trained cross-border manager tries to create a place where everyone can work together, a culture that is flexible for all parties. This occurs when the manager knows the differences but finds the commonalities.
Tolerance becomes a core workplace value and for many this is a new or unusual experience. To achieve a workplace of tolerance, the manager needs to make sure everyone understands there are different cultures at work here, and that success comes from getting along. Simple things like accepting the need for some workers to take special religious holidays can replace potential resentment with understanding.
The cross-border manager cannot compromise here - leading by example and making it clear that success in this organisation means going down a path of open-mindedness, acceptance and tolerance.
Language is also a challenge - even though English is the global language of business, it is not equally understood and keeping it simple is more difficult than it sounds. It is therefore a mistake to ever assume that you have been understood when speaking in English with someone whose first language is different from your own.
The cross-cultural manager has to work hard keeping communication clear, simple and unambiguous. The best know the importance of checking and rechecking to see that things have been understood.
Communication differences are not just an east or west thing, the picture is more complex than that. For example, key differences are in how we express emotions - in “neutral” cultures emotions are kept in check while in “affective” cultures emotions are expressed openly. Neutral cultures include the UK, Japan, Australia and the USA while affective cultures are India, Brazil, Italy and Spain.
A manager who is used to keeping emotions in control might be uncomfortable with a team where some occasionally express emotions with great strength – but they can realise that in many of these “affective” cultures, the harmony that follows us quite powerful.
Finally, an overlay of complexity between the west and much of Asia is found in this question - does the individual control their environment (west) or must they respond as best they can to external factors out of their control (Asia)?
This difference has a big impact in the workplace, with the westerner believing “What happens to me is my own doing”, whereas their Asian colleague will see themself as one small part of a greater universe where things out of their control influence outcomes. Many commentators note that “climate change” is much bigger topic in the west than in Asia – partly due to this cultural view.
All of these differences are confronting and ultimately defeating to those unprepared, which is why good organisations are developing managers who can be effective across borders, relating to a large variety of cultures and enjoying “unity in diversity”.
Stephen Manallack is a published author and speaker in India. His new book is Soft Skills for a Flat World (Tata McGraw-Hill). EMAIL stephen@manallack.com.au