Strategic Management (Part 4): Cultural Intelligence
Cultural intelligence consists of knowing about your own and other people's
culture.
Cultural intelligence is an important step towards cultural competence.
Developing cultural intelligence and acquiring intercultural skills can help
you develop a successful career abroad.
Intercultural
knowledge may help you decrease your initial disorientation. You can try to
learn at least some of the rules of your host country before leaving home.
However, in a smooth transition from the phase of cultural awareness to the
second step of acquiring cultural intelligence, you should try to analyze your
relationship to your own culture first.
This article
treats cultural intelligence as an important second step towards cultural competence
for people living and working abroad. cultural awareness being the first step.
Cultural
Intelligence: Home Country
- What products are considered typical of my home
country? Which rituals are widespread and popular?
- How do some of its
most important systems and institutions work? (A system or institution can be
something as powerful as the role and status of the French President in the
national government – or something as seemingly small and personal as the
“average” family in Nigeria).
- Do you know some
norms and attitudes that influence the origins and workings of such
institutions? For example, if it’s common in a “typical” family to discipline
the children severely, it suggests that younger people should always obey their
(clearly superior) elders.
- And which basic
values do these beliefs reveal? The attitude towards filial obedience would
imply that power and hierarchy are extremely important to such a culture.
Once you have
asked yourself these questions about the culture you come from, you can try
finding some possible answers about the new culture you are soon going to live
in and thus start acquiring your necessary cultural intelligence.
Cultural
Intelligence: Clichés
In all likelihood,
you will probably start out with some disjointed clichés and stereotypes about
other countries and cultures. That’s not what you’d call cultural intelligence,
but it’s not necessarily all bad either: Stereotypes come into existence
because they are very simple to understand and easy to remember.
“All Germans are
hard-working and over-punctual” is a far shorter statement than, “generally
speaking, Germans tend to live in an achievement-oriented culture with a
mono-chronic approach towards time management.”
Reflecting on your
own culture and gathering information on your host culture should help you
understand where such stereotypes come from and how they can be replaced by
true cultural intelligence.
Cultural
Intelligence: Host Culture
The following
action points are useful steps on the way towards acquiring cultural
intelligence.
- Start
taking language classes. Even though non-verbal communication often transmits a
more powerful message than the mere words that are spoken, language skills are
greatly beneficial. They help you to be more communicative in everyday life, to
access more factual knowledge about living in that country, and to address
intercultural misunderstandings more effectively. Meet
other expats who have already lived in this country for a while and ask them
about their “best-practice” tips.
- Immerse
yourself in your new country’s rituals and products. You could, for example,
read travel guides on local traditions and festivities, try cooking some
recipes, or consume a bit of contemporary popular culture. What could such
things reveal about deeper cultural issues and how could they further your
cultural intelligence?
- Do
research online to acquire cultural intelligence on your host country or buy a
few books on expat living. The materials should explain some hard facts (e.g.
history, politics, economy), give you concrete advice on everyday situations
(e.g. table manners, etiquette in business negotiations) and address some of
the underlying cultural values.
- Take
seminars on cultural intelligence. However, please exercise some caution here.
There are no specified qualifications for intercultural trainers, so always ask
them for references from previous participants. Everything that promises you
miracles and perfection should be treated with caution.
Always remember:
Even interculturally effective persons sometimes make clumsy gestures,
especially in the beginning. However, you chances of avoiding them increase the
higher your level of cultural intelligence is.
Fuente: InterNations
Haciendo click en el link de abajo, accederás a los Contenidos del
Programa Ejecutivo en PENSAMIENTO ESTRATÉGICO
http://msg-latam-meic.blogspot.com.ar/2014/03/programa-ejecutivo-en-pensamiento.html
INICIA Lunes 21 de Abril de 2014 en UTN, Universidad Tecnológica Nacional
Consultar por opción IN COMPANY a: msg.latam@gmail.com
