Communication
Why are we still talking about intercultural communication?
Today’s workplace is extremely culturally diverse. Long gone are the days where intercultural communication training was simply for those travelling abroad to close deals in foreign countries or expats needing to adjust to the local ways of living and working in a new country.
Why are we still talking about intercultural communication?
We’re not only working across national borders now but across cultural contexts.
But despite intercultural teams and working relationships becoming the norm, there’s still a lot of scepticism around why being an efficient intercultural communicator is useful and how to work effectively in this environment. Why can’t we just be kind to everyone and move on?
Put simply, kindness alone doesn’t lead to workplace productivity.
Intercultural communication is often up against misunderstandings that impact our ability as a society to adopt the skill:
“Today I’m dealing with a French colleague, tomorrow with a Japanese client, there’s no way I can learn and remember everything about every single culture…”
“Can we really generalise about nationalities? Times have changed, the world keeps shrinking…”
“In my company, everyone speaks excellent English. There are no communication issues.”
“Generational differences present a much bigger challenge than culture.”
In reality, the ability to be an effective communicator with and across different cultures isn’t something that you either have or don’t have, nor is it learnt overnight. It takes appreciation, understanding, openness and practice to perfect especially in a business setting.
Because of such misconceptions, I know that there is still a need to be talking about culture.
What Defines Normal Behavior? A Perspective through the Lens of Intercultural Communication
Having spent 20 years living and working outside of my home country and dealing on a daily basis with international companies, I know that our values, beliefs, and attitudes at work can be heavily influenced by our perception of ‘normal’.
Working with clients, I see regularly the failed assignments, unsuccessful marketing campaigns, low motivation and misunderstandings leading to poor performance; all due to the fact that we might have a different expectation of ‘appropriate’ behaviour: how to run meetings, give feedback, negotiate, write emails, persuade or do small talk.
To maximise the success and productivity of businesses, it’s in our collective best interest to address the void leading to these types of common issues.
Navigating Intercultural Communication: Understanding Cultural Noise
So what happens in an intercultural exchange to lead to bad results?
Communication, understood as an exchange of meaning, involves a sender and receiver of a message. This exchange includes both verbal and non-verbal signals. The message is then sent through the channel (email, interaction, presentation). This all happens in the context. The so-called ‘cultural noise’ can break down the exchange as it distorts the message.
Understanding how every kind of interaction can be influenced by culture noise is a very powerful tool. It all starts with awareness of the differences.
The next step is working on attitudes such as openness or acceptance; strategies for a more effective communication which result in more successful interactions. This should be embedded at every stage of the relationship-building process; from the early days of a joint venture or project to team building of existing teams.
Successful international companies around the world invest time and resources into understanding and practising these techniques to incorporate them into their strategy.
So, why are we still talking about intercultural communication?
Because it makes a difference. For individuals, business teams and companies as a whole.
Kasia Lanucha(Opens in a new window) is an Intercultural Trainer and Coach at the Centre for Languages and Inter-communication at the University of Cambridge’s Department of Engineering. Her work focuses on helping organisations improve their cultural awareness.
Kasia leads a short online course with the University of Cambridge Online(Opens in a new window) for both individuals and businesses who want to better integrate intercultural communication in their workplace. Find out more here: https://bit.ly/3V7Anye(Opens in a new window)
