Cultural Diversity: Managers Intercultural Communication Perspective - Research Paper Example

Communication is an inherent part of a manager’s role, taking up the majority of the manager’s time on the job. Effective intercultural communicationlargely determines the success of international transactions or the output of a culturally diverse workforce. (Deresky, P. 145) Critically discuss this statement. Cultural Diversity: Managers’ Intercultural Communication Perspective Introduction The value of communication to our everyday life is immeasurable. There is no need of putting more emphasis on its importance because everyone knows it. People make use of communication every time everywhere in their day-to-day relations: family and friend interactions, classes at school, work interviews, business conferences and meetings; they all employ the process of communication. However, it must be noted that communication will seem useless if delivered ineffectively. In fact, Gerald Ford accorded that “nothing in life is more important than the ability to communicate effectively” (cited in Baldoni, 2003, p.xiii). Effective communication is not at all easy as it sounds. People communicate in many ways than one, utilizing different media, duly affected by many factors like personal or cultural references and such. One concrete example of this is in the workplaces. There, several people with different personalities and backgrounds are involved, working together as one. This issue is not anymore new. This has been considered integral in the performance of the people behind the management departments. The managers are leaders of organizations. As they lead them, they do several roles such as planning, decision-making, organizing, leading, motivating, communicating and many others (Dixon, 2003, p.v). Many leaders refer to communication as the most critical and most essential of all; the rest of the responsibilities will not be accomplished without it. As the leaders, it is the managers’ duty to influence the members’ behaviors to work together for the benefit of the organization as a whole. Thus, it should be one of the managers’ goal to build a foundation of a structured state in these workplaces by using proper communication in exercising their functions with which being able to deal with differences that these people have. Communication: Interacting with Others There are many definitions that describe the word ‘communication.’ The Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary defines communication as a “process by which information is exchanged between individuals through a common system of symbols, signs or behaviors.” People make use of the process of communication in one way or another as it is their only means of letting others know their thoughts. Everyday, humans either use words; produce sounds; body gestures, or touches to give others the hint of the matters in the mind where thoughts and feelings dwell. People need to work on communication because they cannot exist without it; everything that they do needs its application. With the aid of communication, we are benefited with many advantages. Samovar, Porter, and McDaniel summarized them into four major points. Communication for them is useful because it (1) allows a person to gather information about other people; (2) helps in fulfilling the social need of the human beings; (3) assists them in knowing the self better; and lastly, (4) induces other people to do what another wants them to do (2009, p.15). Being a process, elements are to be present and steps are to be taken first to achieve communication. It is made up of key components. These are: the content of the message the sender wants to communicate about, the sender of the message, the medium used in sending it, its receiver and the interpretation of the received information done by the receiver (University of North Texas, n.d.). Yet, even if the elements of communications are complete, there still arise many problems that could prevent good communication between persons. Many components and factors are still to be considered before we benefit from the use of it. Some of these are dependent on the sender’s part, others on the receiver, and even others in the process of transmission itself. These problems range from noise, language or personal barriers, to the inability to encode the message that is to be sent and the receiver’s incapability to interpret what the sender wanted them to. There will always be hindrances in the exchange of information. Though, it is in the hands of the senders and the receivers of the messages to play their part well to be able to deal with these hindrances and to effectively communicate. Culture, Its Implications on Communication and Vice Versa “Culture is the way we live” (Kalman, 2009, p.4). It defines the ways people do the things in their activities of daily living; thus, their identity. It determines their right and wrong, how they dress up, what they eat, the way they act on certain situations, and how they talk to and converse with others – almost all aspects of a person’s life is controlled by his or her culture. It is one of the foundations of one’s self. Culture, moreover, is specific. Different people living in different places have different perspectives, practice differentiated values, and make use of things in different ways; this is why people are expected to see others doing and believing in several things with likeness because they belong to the same group living in a certain place in the same way people who do not have the same background and origin are likely to believe and do things differently. Culture, then, is the collective identity of the people in a certain society like that of a human beings’ genetic information that possesses and describes their bodily make-up and makes them unique from the others. The book Communication between Cultures sees the interconnection of the words ‘culture’ and ‘communication’ in a rather inseparable state (Samovar, Porter, McDaniel, 2009). They stressed their connection in two distinct ways: (1) that people learn about one culture with the use of communication, and (2) that people’s ways to communicate are determined by their culture (p.22). In this context, it is indeed relevant that people should first make ways in knowing the cultural background of the people around them to give them the idea of how others can possibly react on certain social situations that they are faced with. At the same time, they should also know that the cultural influences in people can be that great that it can affect the ways these people interact with others to the extent that can be impossible for a person who belongs to another culture. Intercultural Communication Intercultural communication is the process of communication that people involve themselves with other people who belong to another culture (Jacob, 2003, p.72). Some people say that every communication process that a person becomes a part of is ‘intercultural’ because even if people inhabit the same place, there still will be minute signs of cultural distinctions between families or even between two persons (Novinger, 2001, p.12). Because people are culturally conditioned – and are generally diverse, there is a need for human beings to discover ways on how to communicate through these differences. It will never be definite as to whom and what kind of people a person can and must interact with. Accordingly, it is significant that the people should learn how to communicate across the cultures, and must exert even more effort to do so because communicating with people who belong to the same culture with one is not the same as communicating with people from another. In a book, Pinto (2000) identifies that the ignorance and lack of knowledge of the differences in cultural backgrounds in people is the most common barrier in the success of intercultural communication. For example, two people are having a discourse that they have different opinions about. The two will continue to disagree and may even end up condemning each other for presenting different views. This results to conflict; communication then becomes blurred since negative impression had already developed (p.71). For people who are involved in constant contact with others who do not share the same culture as their own, steps in learning about them must be taken for it is vital in promoting and achieving intercultural communication. Intercultural Communication in the Management of Workplaces The management styles of the present managers are now faced with many challenges in the work setting. Currently, many offices, institutions and business establishments are growing in a fast pace together with the increasing demand of globalization. Globalization is the process of incorporation of many other business organizations from other countries around the globe (CADI, n.d.). Workforces in the workplaces have been before dealing with employees who are differently oriented according to race, ethnicity, gender and age, but this recent pattern has caused many corporations to need the services of many people from different cultures, especially those that have opted to operate in several countries (Jacob, 2003, p.72). Although the burden of developing knowledge about intercultural communication also affects the employees that are working together in a community full of varied cultural backgrounds, the manager’s duty in effectively communicating with these employees is now becoming more a complex issue in carrying out their functions. Managers perform several tasks in managing the workplaces. Either involved in the management of a whole company or just another department, these people still follow the same set of standards or responsibilities in functioning as one. Because managers need a constant flow of information in performing these roles (Koontz & Weihrich, 2007, p.360), they must not only develop an open communication between them and the employees but also facilitate clear information transmission between each member. Since managers play a “set” of roles as standards, many managers do the same things as the others and do well. However, the managers should not only treat the whole workforce like a same person who has same principles, values and backgrounds to say that they equally treat the others the same way. Cultural differences ought different approaches. This requires managers to also develop relationships in a more personal yet still professional level in an attempt of influencing others to work the way the workplace was purposely planned for. Managing Cultural Diversity in the Workplace People, like everyone else, act in a certain way in a certain situation. This is how great cultural and individual references can affect someone’s attitude and way of thinking; this is one of the constant companions of people in interacting with others. Such situations are also common in workplaces where there is a diversity of personal ideas that can affect every one’s performances towards the goal of the workplace as a whole. Working people are always in the process of communication in playing the individual roles that they are tasked with in an organization. They use different media such as telephones, electronic mails, text messages, or face-to-face conversations (Tuleja, 2009, p.24). These media either enhance or worsen the understanding of the information transmitted if the people involved in the transfer either share common or differentiated thoughts about it. It is everyone’s responsibility to contribute in the management of diversity in the workplace. Each person, especially the manager, must work their way through in an effort of managing the diversity of the organization they are handling by understanding, developing an empathetic attitude, tolerance and communication (Griffon, 1993 cited in Ferreira, Erasmus, & Groenewald, 2009, p.435). These are a few basic steps that Griffon had pointed out in achieving a common goal: effective communication in the workplaces. Understanding. Some managers are using the “equality” principle in leading the organization they are dealing with in an attempt to be fair to everyone. However, they must put to mind that this approach can cause conflict since “fairness” to one may not be the same to others. Individual people are differently made up. They may treat one particular thing the same way but there could always be another thing that can draw contrasting ideas from them. Managers are supposed to accept that this exists and that they are expected to deal with it along with the other workers. Empathy. An empathetic attitude means that a person is able “to imagine oneself in another’s place and understanding the other’s feelings, desire, ideas and actions” (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2010). One cannot be empathetic if he or she does not understand what the other person feels or thinks about a certain matter. In achieving perfect flow of communication, the people who are exchanging information must try to imagine what the other thinks or feels about the matter on hand. Communication. Communication is considered as the ‘key’ to the improvement of the relationships of people and performance in an organization, especially for those who are managing it (Klauss & Bass, cited in Hargie, Dickson, & Tourish, 2009). Communication indeed occupies the majority of managers’ time in the workplaces. In fact, studies have shown that managers spend more than half of their working time in having a conversation with others through telephone or conferences and meetings (p.1). They continuously communicate with the other members of the organization or other people involved in the process of gathering the information that organizations need in order to plan, organize and lead it. Such issue requires the manager to relentlessly involve the self in achieving increased efficiency of being a good communicator. Ferreira, Erasmus, and Groenewald (2009) also added that together with the attempts to understand co-workers with different backgrounds, the organization itself must hold an oath that employees may be led to believe that there is indeed a sense of belongingness despite the diversity by creating a “clear and consistent set of organizational policies and practices wherein diversity is considered as basic part of an organization” (p.439). Technical Aspects of Improving Intercultural Communication in Workplaces It is inevitable that human resources department of workplaces hire people bearing innate differences that can later result to a clash during the exchange of ideas as time would demand it. Many management departments have opted themselves in discovering ways to build bridges in trying to cover these gaps that affect the flow of communication between members or between corporations developing in foreign countries. These steps are formulated to lessen unwarranted stress and promote cost-efficient efforts that end up as productive investments. Diversity Trainings. Diversity training is one of the most common approaches that many companies worldwide use. These trainings try to demonstrate to the employees and managers the important human communication principles and practices in a workplace where many workers belong to different cultures. They are focused on language sensitivity which provides knowledge about the use of certain words that may be appropriate or not when talking to a person with specific culture; also, these trainings teach awareness of “stylistic elements of communication” that are unique to those people. Moreover, employees attending these trainings engaged in activities where they learn about how to manage the differences that exist in a culturally diverse workgroup such as “expression of empathy, non-judgmental behaviors, perception based on willingness to communicate, unconditional positive regard, and participation“ (Arai, Wanca-Thibault, & Shockley-Zablack, 2001, p.445). Management Selections and Trainings. Managers, as have been mentioned earlier, are required to continually learn about how to deal with different people in the workplace to influence them in aiming for a unified goal. In order to do this, they are obligated to sharpen their skills in terms of communication – especially communicating cross-culturally – by specifically focusing on the management selection efforts and trainings (Maddox, 1993, p.35). Maddox (1993) also described that this approach requires the managers to attend certain trainings and seminars that will educate them about the different cultures in the world for specified hours in a year. They do not only orient managers about these cultures but also teach them on how to make appropriate responses to certain situations where culturally-diverse people are involved. The Integrators. Maddox (1993), on the other hand, pointed out that the trainings and management selection efforts are no longer enough in improving intercultural communication in the workplaces. In his book, he said that the management firms have now developed a new way in coping with the challenges that a culturally-diverse workforce brings. This involves the hiring of new set of staffs that has a sole function of “ensuring that all decisions and actions of the firm in and affecting foreign societies are compatible with those societies’ cultures” (p.38). It may seem at first that the step can be costly, but developing this new department has proven itself that besides being a cost-efficient step, it is time-efficient too. Benefits of Accepting and Encouraging Diverse Workforce A diverse workforce can be a disadvantage if judged prematurely. There are many conflicts that arise when cultural diversity is being talked about; on one side, it is. On the other, a diverse workforce can be very useful to many if they just really think about it. Managers should make an effort in understanding the culture within which he or she works in order to explain and predict the behavior of its members (Mead, 1998, p.1). Although others question its effectiveness to benefit the business, a study involving 500 companies from UK, USA and Europe proved that diversity is not at all a business liability (CREATE, 2003 cited in Spiers, 2008, p.26). These benefits basically includes “higher staff retention, reduced recruitment costs, more satisfied customers, access to a wider customer base, better supply chain management, and access to new ideas on process and product improvements” that results from varied sources of experience, skills and talent (CREATE, 2003 cited in Spiers, 2008, p.26). People’s bad impression about a diverse community is rooted in the thought that there will be no unity. Yet, the truth is that in that decentralized state comes a collection of different views not only causing conflicts. These differentiated outlooks in fact can be applied in getting new and fresh ideas that can or may benefit a wider scope of population not only inside the organization but also the other corporations and customers involved. Companies would then earn more by making use of these diversities as it allows not only pressure-less recruitment but increased market penetrations as well. Conclusion Managers should consider communication skills as a vital part of what they are in workplaces. They are hired to promote unified successful result and organize a population of people with different thoughts and ways of actions by using effective communication. The cultural diversity of workforce in workplaces may be initially treated as a problem that can consume managers’ time; the effectiveness of manager’s management, though, is seen in how they would try to work things out and turn this diversity into a quality that the organization a manager is working for can benefit from with the use of intercultural communication. There is no one book that can point out and teach someone what exactly can be done in facing the issue of diversity in workplaces. Nevertheless, workers cannot just ‘not think’ about it; they have to face it and devote themselves in formulating specific objectives that must be achieved. Diversity is already an innate part of any group that is made up of people. Cultural diversity can be regarded as a liability or an asset. It all depends on the workforce, really. As Thomas put it, “if objectives are ill defined, organizations are unlikely to attain diversity success” (2006, p. 80). Reference List Arai, M. 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