As the business becomes increasingly global, companies are facing a new challenge: managing and leading employees from diverse Cultural backgrounds. Intercultural coaching (or cross-cultural coaching) has emerged as a crucial tool for addressing this challenge and helping employees navigate cross-cultural differences in the workplace. In this blog post, we’ll explore intercultural coaching and its benefits.

I have worked in the last twenty-some years of my career in different sales and management  at international enterprises. I developed my career at Fortune 500 companies like HP, a giant IT wholesaler managing a multi million dollar business, then a global power management company where I had to manage sales with different regions in Europe then in EMEA. In the beginning I had several clashes because of cultural differences. I also had pitiful miscommunication cases  and misunderstandings simply coming from lack of knowledge of the other party.

Over time I understood that different nations have different attitudes to power, time, community and to many business practices.

What is Intercultural Coaching?

Behaviours in the workplace of various people can differ a lot. Most of the management theories are coming from the US (as well as coaching) but in the global the US world leadership style badly failed in other cultures, which are predominantly different from the US corporate Culture. 

Companies realised something when expanded globally. Their leadership styles must be tailored for their local communities to be efficient.

Intercultural management takes Intercultural management means understanding and managing the effects of cultural influence on organisation, team, and business to optimise organisational performance. It aims to create an environment where there is awareness and respect for each culture.

Intercultural coaching does something similar, but from the perspective of the individual or team, not the company. It’s a form of coaching that helps individuals understand, appreciate, and effectively communicate with people from different cultural backgrounds.

It helps individuals recognize and overcome the cultural biases and stereotypes that may be preventing them from working effectively with colleagues from other cultures. Intercultural coaching also helps individuals develop the skills and knowledge needed to communicate effectively across cultures.  It includes active listening, empathy, and cultural sensitivity. Working across cultures requires understanding how different cultures and societies work.

Nevertheless, add a great deal of patience and care to respect some cultural codes that work differently from your own.

Cultural Dimensions

As the world becomes increasingly globalised, businesses are facing the challenge of working with people from different cultural backgrounds. Understanding these cultural differences is crucial to building strong relationships and communicating effectively. One of the most widely used frameworks for understanding cultural differences is Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions. Below we’ll explore what Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions are, how they can be used, and what insights they can provide.

Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions

Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions is a framework for understanding cultural differences that was developed by Dutch psychologist Geert Hofstede. The framework consists of six dimensions that describe the cultural differences between countries.

These dimensions are:

Power Distance: This dimension refers to the extent to which less powerful members of a society accept and expect that power is distributed unequally.

Individualism vs. Collectivism: This dimension refers to the extent to which individuals are integrated into groups. Individualist cultures value the individual over the group, while collectivist cultures value the group over the individual.

Masculinity vs. Femininity: This dimension refers to the extent to which gender roles are defined and traditional. Masculine cultures value achievement, heroism, assertiveness, and material success, while feminine cultures value caring, nurturing, and quality of life.

Uncertainty Avoidance: This dimension refers to the extent to which a society is tolerant of ambiguity and uncertainty. High uncertainty avoidance cultures seek stability, security, and control, while low uncertainty avoidance cultures are more accepting of change and risk.

Long-Term Orientation vs. Short-Term Orientation: This dimension refers to the extent to which a society is focused on the future or the past. Long-term orientation cultures focus on perseverance, persistence, and thrift, while short-term orientation cultures focus on respect for tradition, fulfilling social obligations, and protecting one’s face.

Indulgence vs. Restraint: This dimension refers to the extent to which a society is permissive or restrictive with regard to leisure time and pleasure. Indulgent cultures allow for the expression of feelings and desires, while restrained cultures are more controlled and disciplined.

How Can Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions be Used?

Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions  help businesses understand cultural differences. For example:

Cross-Cultural Communication: Understanding Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions can help businesses communicate effectively with colleagues and clients from different cultural backgrounds. For example, if a business is working with a client from a high power distance culture, it is important to be aware that they may expect a hierarchical approach to communication, while a client from a low power distance culture may prefer a more equal and collaborative approach. (It often happens when a US company works with Asian or Arabic branches) 

Team-Building: Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions can be used to build more effective and harmonious teams. For example, if team members come from different cultural backgrounds, understanding their cultural differences can help them work together more effectively and avoid misunderstandings.

Market Research: these dimensions can be used to understand cultural differences between markets and to inform marketing and advertising strategies. For example, if a business is launching a product in a market with a high uncertainty avoidance culture, it may be important to emphasise the stability and security of the product, while in a market with a low uncertainty avoidance culture, the emphasis may be on the innovation and change that the product offers. 

Benefits of Intercultural Coaching for Businesses

Improved Communication: Intercultural coaching helps employees develop the skills and knowledge needed to communicate effectively across cultures. This leads to improved communication and collaboration within a globally diverse team, reducing the potential for misunderstandings and conflict. In corporations people use international English – packed with corporate slang, but avoiding complex tense structures without including your national traits or nuances. It’s essential that we need to be on the same page.

Increased Cultural Awareness: Intercultural coaching helps employees become more aware of their own cultural biases and stereotypes, as well as those of others. This leads to a greater understanding and appreciation of cultural differences, and helps employees to work more effectively with colleagues from different cultures. 

Enhanced Global Competitiveness: Intercultural coaching helps employees develop the skills and knowledge needed to succeed in a global business environment. This makes companies more competitive in the global market. Simply they will be better equipped to work effectively with foreign colleagues and clients.

Greater Employee Satisfaction: Intercultural coaching helps employees feel more comfortable and confident in cross-cultural interactions. This leads to greater employee satisfaction, as employees feel more valued and appreciated by their colleagues and their company.

The Use of Intercultural Coaching

Assess Cultural Competencies: A business coach can assess the clients’ cultural competencies, helping them to identify areas for improvement. An objective coach can also help the clients understand their own cultural biases and how these may be affecting their interactions with colleagues from other cultures.

Provide Cultural Training: A skilled business coach can provide cultural training, helping their clients to develop the skills and knowledge needed to communicate effectively across cultures. This may include training on active listening, empathy, and cultural sensitivity, as well as on specific cultural differences of business habits, language and attitudes.

Encourage Cross-Cultural Engagement: If clients need to engage with colleagues from different cultures, support from an experienced coach can help them to build relationships and develop cultural awareness. This can be done through cross-cultural team event that bring employees from different cultures together.

Provide Cross-Cultural Feedback: Business coaches can provide feedback to their clients on their cross-cultural interactions, helping them to identify areas for improvement and build on their strengths. This feedback should be provided without direct criticism. Recognition and praise for effective cross-cultural interactions also helps efficiency.

Efficient Cross-Cultural Coaching

Senior executives, C-suite leaders, and high potentials are typically well qualified and talented high performers. However, the challenges of global leadership can’t be solved by knowledge only. What got you here to your current position, will most likely not be the same skill set that will get you to where you want to be in your career as a global leader. What worked at home may not work overseas. That’s why cross-cultural coaching can be a valuable tool.

The two main coaching goals are usually to maximise potential and to minimise frustration. You have been introduced to different work and management cultures through expat training programs. You might be working in multinational teams, or be a frequent business traveller. Even can hire a local assistant who explains the differences and can help avoid making huge mistakes. Still creating the framework for a long-term business relationship, the best suggestion is to have a coach experienced in this field.

Most organisations fully understand the value of preparing expatriates for the behavioural standards in foreign work environments. After all, successful overseas business often depends on how well team members are able to cross cultures.

Training is Great But Better When Combined with Coaching

While cross-cultural training can lay an amazing foundation for increased global leadership competence, it is also too often seen as a one-off initiative in many companies. The challenge with cultural work remains: how much information of a two-day cross-cultural training program will participants retain? And how much of it will they be able to apply independently weeks and months later?

This is why a combination of formal training and individual cross-cultural coaching can bring better results.

A cultural training appears logical to most clients. There’s a caveat, though. Not every cultural trainer is efficient as a coach. Obviously, like trainers, they have to be familiar with both the home and the host culture of the coachee. They need to understand the background of the person they are working with. For example: If the coach is from a more egalitarian culture like the U.S.  and the coachee from a more hierarchical culture in Asia, the way this relationship is set up in the beginning will be critical.

Now add to that the fact that coaching as a development tool is a predominantly Western, if not Anglo-Saxon, concept. And its methodologies may not always apply when coaching across cultures. The mere idea of working with a client as a peer will not have the same desired effects in all cultural contexts. Let’s look at the West vs. Asia example again: A coachee from a group-oriented culture with traditional hierarchies will most likely not give Western-style feedback to the coach. He will tend to see an elder in the coach and will be more obedient, which in turn defines how the coach can inspire and motivate the client.

Cultural Knowledge Base

This is usually where the rubber meets the road in cross-cultural coaching. Once there is rapport between both parties and once there is a mutual understanding of what the process is and what the expected outcomes are, coach and client can begin their workout routine. This practice pattern will sometimes become a dance: You’ll step on each other’s toes, you’ll apologise for your clumsiness, and, most importantly, you will draw learnings from it. In a way, cross-cultural coaching will become the practice laboratory in which the client is safe to make a cultural fool of himself as much as he wants.

Cross-cultural coaching can definitely bring immense benefits to an organisation. It’s critically important that companies select the right person for the job.

A specialist coach who can help leaders with their specific intercultural challenges on the job.

A coach might challenge the client to look into themselves to understand where they can unlock potential. Also offer different perspectives and engage clients and their role as a global leader with greater clarity and understanding.

Cultural knowledge can be learned via training. But increased cultural competence needs practice. A successful global leader should want a workout buddy to practise with. One who accompanies them on their journey to realising their full potential in an increasingly diverse work environment. 

In conclusion, intercultural coaching is a key tool for businesses that are operating in a global market. It helps employees navigate cross-cultural differences in the workplace, leading to improved communication.  This will increas cultural awareness, enhanc global competitiveness, and provides greater employee satisfaction. 

You can also use intercultural coaching to develop your skills and knowledge needed to succeed in a global business environment.

Let’s talk about how cross-cultural coaching can benefit your organisation. Whether it is in a group setting or via a personal, 1-on-1 engagement,  if you need professional help, do not hesitate to contact me for business coaching.

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