It’s a familiar situation: a group full of cultural diversity needs to work together. Some people expect a transaction with minimal information and are frustrated by the time wasted on unnecessary chatter. Others are offended by the lack of time taken to provide essential context that would prevent repeating past mistakes. It seems impossible to reach mutual understanding in order to proceed.
The Capitalizing on Diversity module in the CultureWizard Inclusive Virtual Teams Course talks about the different conditions that must be achieved for high-performing teams - the benefits of which are an inclusive, collaborative, and innovative work culture. Ideally, cognitive diversity is achieved through demographic diversity. After all, people from different cultural identities, religions, ages, skills, and expertise will naturally create diversity of thought.
And yet as we can see from the situation I just described for you, diversity is not enough. How can we ensure an environment that is mutually inclusive of a wide range of working styles? Different values lead to conflicting behaviours and expectations. It is important to slow down and consider how diversity and inclusion topics relate to your team’s gaps in understanding.
In the instance of the conflicting views on transactional communication, set expectations early by sharing an agenda for each meeting, with time expectations. This gives opportunities for a wide range of needs to be met. Not only reminds your teams to assume positive intent but also provides an opportunity for more self-awareness. In order to understand one another, we need to first understand ourselves. Dialogues that encourage team members to better understand where their colleagues are coming from can lead to brainstorming discussions on how to bridge the gaps.
Understanding diverse teams begins with inclusive practices that are inviting to different perspectives and working styles. If everyone feels they are on an inclusive team where their voices are valued, they are more likely to collaborate on a higher, more innovative level. It is essential to practice effective collaboration skills so that we learn to navigate and leverage the values of diversity.
Learn more about how culture influences teamwork with our sample course: Impact of Culture on TeamWork.
