Cultural Intelligence: Enhancing Cross-Cultural Collaboration

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Overview

Today's workplace is more diverse than ever, so it is essential to develop skills that allow us to facilitate intercultural relationships at work.

When working or socializing with people from different cultures, even from their own country, we must be patient, adaptable, and open to learning and listening. These characteristics are part of cultural sensitivity, which is defined as "an awareness of, and willingness to, investigate the reasons why individuals of another culture act as they do".

Cultural sensitivity allows the identification of certain nuances in customs that help to build better relationships with people from different cultures. In the workplace, empathy is a significant trait and skill that facilitates cultural sensitivity and political correctness. Empathy allows you to place yourself in the other person's perspective.

Cultural intelligence (CQ) is an advanced aspect of cultural sensitivity and is understood as "an outsider's ability to interpret someone's unfamiliar and ambiguous behavior the same way that people from that culture would". It is also described as "the capability to function effectively across a variety of cultural contexts, such as ethnic, generational, and organizational cultures"

This webinar will examine that principles and characteristics of cultural intelligence and provide clues to help you develop your own. It will also share some strategies to help minimize cultural barriers and practice empathy and cultural sensitivity.

Why you should Attend

Thanks to the internet and the massive rise of remote work, the world is more connected than it's ever been. Emails and the plethora of video conferencing software have allowed businesses to transfer and share information across borders, leading to a more culturally diverse office environment.

While it isn't rare to have culturally diverse employees in the modern age, it’s easy to forget that the people around you have perceptions and perspectives different from your own.

Cultural intelligence can play a large role in how your employees evaluate your company culture. By bridging cultural gaps that come from traditions, disciplines, and nationalities, you can help your employees gain a new outlook on how to speak, act, and work with others.

In the workplace, the aim is to work with your colleagues to achieve a common goal. For this reason, employees are expected to practice cultural intelligence and embrace a multicultural approach in their workplace. However, some of your employees may need help on this matter.

That doesn't imply that your employees are saying insensitive things on purpose. If they are, more severe action should be taken. Regardless of intent, different types of unconscious bias at work can lead to lasting effects, like employee turnover, bullying, or general intolerance.

Cultural intelligence helps people develop an in-depth passion for learning and understanding a person's background. Although implementing a cultural intelligence program may take a lot of work, it's worth the effort because your business will benefit from the following:

Higher productivity, efficiency, and acceptance of different ideas and perspectives
General workplace harmony, leading to less infighting between groups and office politics
Improved corporate brand investment, especially on an international scale
An increased ability to speak and interact with culturally diverse customers
A workplace that looks at people based on their merits and strengths

Areas Covered in the Session

What is Cross-Cultural Collaboration?
What is the difference between collaboration and cross-cultural collaboration?
How to deal with "turf protection"
How to communicate more effectively in cross-cultural groups
How to find "common ground" within groups
Dealing with stereotypes and bias

Who Will Benefit

Society for Human Resource Management
SHRM local chapters
Association for Talent Development
College and University Professional Association for Human Resources
HR People + Strategy
Human Capital Institute
International Association of Administrative Professionals

Speaker Profile

Greg Chartier is Principal of The Office of Gregory J Chartier, a Human Resources Consulting firm and is a well-known management consultant, educator and speaker and author of the recently published What Law Did You Break Today? His practice is based on the Business Partner Model of Human Resources, which places its’ emphasis on outsourcing, the use of technology to gain efficiencies and the improvement of managerial skills.

Greg is a thought-provoking professional speaker and his wisdom and insights into management and leadership make him an electrifying speaker and seminar leader. His seminars are customized to reinforce company mission, vision, values and culture and the content is practical for team leaders, managers, supervisors and executives. His philosophy is simple: management is a skill and you can be a better manager by developing your skills.

He has a Bachelors Degree from The Citadel, the Military College of South Carolina, an MBA from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and his Ph.D. in Human Resources Management from Madison University. Greg is certified by the Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM) as a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SCP) and as both a Senior Professional and a Global Professional in Human Resources (SPHR and GPHR) by HRCI, the Human Resource Certification Institute. He is a former Board Member of the Business Council of Westchester, where he was the Chair of the Human Resources Council and a member of the Executive Committee. He is a national member of SHRM and a local SHRM chapter, the Westchester Human Resources Management Association. He was also a member of the Board of the Child Care Council of Westchester.

Greg is involved in the Certification Program for Human Resources Management at Pace University, which includes the preparatory program for the Human Resources Professional Examinations and the Essentials in Human Resources Management Program and well as the Continuing Education Programs including HRCI and SHRM recertification. He is also a member of the faculty of the New York Medical College in Valhalla, NY.