William Allen, MBA, MLT
Parochialism
is when an organization conducts business as if they are “alone in the world”,
while ethnocentrism is an organization which operates as if they are “superior
to other nations”, (Alder, 2010, p. 17, para 1). During this week’s readings, I found the concept of parochialism, ethnocentrism,
and cultural sensitivity to be most interesting. According to Mackey (2012),
based on research, “failure rates for virtual teams may be as high as 70%”.
Culture differences can make up a large portion of these failures. This is a
prime example why there is an increased need for cultural sensitivity training
in an organization today.
Cultural Diversity
According to Alder, (2010, p. 12, table 1-2), cultural
sensitivity is “critically important” when organizations are operating on a
global scale. The diversity seen throughout the many cultures of the world need
to be addressed in order increase the success rate of these virtual teams. The
differences in culture can have its challenges to deal with. Erin Meyer
(Thinkers50, 2014), mentions some of the issues virtual teams can experience,
and how collaboration among team members in different countries can be can be
increased by merely understanding the differences in culture. One of the
concepts I took from Erin’s interview was the idea of building trust. This can
be very easy for those cultures who build trust from business dealings, however
in a country such as Abu Dhabi, trust is built on more personal relationships,
(Thinkers50, 2014). This difference can make it very difficult if no personal
contact can be made to help build this trust; in cases like this, it’s important to understand the need for
fewer emails and maybe more voice
communication.
Culture sensitivity is to be more sensitive to the diversity
seen in the different cultures. For an organization to operate with an ethnocentrism
mindset doesn’t cut it in today’s global
teams. By organizations understanding the diversity in cultures, they will be able to communicate and collaborate more
effectively with other team members. These differences can include language,
observed holidays, communication requirements, religion, and even time zones need
to be addressed. It’s important with language to ensure what is being said is
understood by everyone. It’s best to pay
attention to acronyms and figures of speech which may not translate well across
cultures. When scheduling meetings, it’s essential to observe holidays, just
like North Americans would not approve of a meeting scheduled on Canada Day or
July 4th, similarly, team
members from china would be disappointed to learn of a meeting scheduled for the
Chinese New Year, which happens to be on a different day every year.
Theory of Relativity
Erin
Mayer, (Thinkers50, 2014), talks about how team members can perceive one
another, Culture Relativity is when perceptions are made about a culture based
on interactions. The way in which we perceive other cultures can impair trust, communication
and collaboration. The way in which Erin Meyer describes culture relativity is
very interesting as it is taken from the basic concept of the Theory of
relativity. Jason Padgett, (the Current, 2014) describes the theory of
relativity in this minute and a half
video. The race car is heard making three different sounds. As the car drives
away it’s heard making one sound, as it drives towards us it’s heard making
another sound, and then there is the driver who hears a different sound again.
The question we can ask is what sound is the car making? According to the
theory of relativity, the car is making all three sounds “relative to who” is
hearing it. As we compare this to
culture relativity, what culture perceptions are correct? The answer is all are
correct, based on who is making the observation. This is why it’s so important
to understand cultural differences. Team
performance can be greatly impaired if team members act on these perceptions
negatively.
References
Adler, N. (2010), International
Dimensions of Organizational Behavior, 5th edition. Cincinnati: Southwestern
College Publishing. ISBN: 9780324360745
Fisher, K., & Fisher, M. D.
(2011). Manager’s guide to virtual teams. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Mackey, S. (2012, June 19), Virtual
Success: The Dark Side of Virtual Teams, [Web log
comment], retrieved from http://sherimackey.wordpress.com/2012/06/
The Current. (2014, May 27), The
Doppler Effect and Relativity as explained by math savant
Jason Padgett, [video file], retrieved from http://www.cbc.ca/player/Shows/More+Shows/
Thinkers50. (2014, January 30). Thinkers50
Interview with Erin Meyer [Video file]. Retrieved from
http://www.thinkers50.com/video/96
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