There are two ways that I have overcome obstacles of cross-cultural communications in the teams that I lead and with the difference vendors I encounter within my current organization. One directly relates to learning a particular culture from those that are in it and the other is something that I have mention in previous weeks.

The first source I would like to discuss within my organization is Employee Resource Groups (ERG). Our organization has open the ability for clubs to form and all are welcome to join and/or visit. Some of these clubs include military groups, LGBTQ, and groups of similar culture to just name a few. I have found it important to visit during different group meetings to simply learn from others within a culture to include items that are of interest for discussion and also to see how the interactions take place. I have been welcomed at many, including my questions to better educate myself on the members and how to they prefer to communicate.

Secondly, I am going to mention Birkman assessments again. Although Birkman does not focus on a particular culture, it does focus on emotional intelligence and behaviors. All which provide an assessment and report on how a person likes to interact and/or receive feedback effectively.

Based on my understanding of the readings this week and my experience, managers can overcome potential problems of cross-cultural communication by making it a requirement to continue to educate themselves on the differences of those of diverse cultures. There are many ways that this can be done. A manager can learn about the different customs that are practiced and deemed important in different business around the world. In the business environment it would be beneficial to post tips and best practices around the office as reminders. Companies should have required bi-monthly training or coaching sessions to adhere to the education of different customs, such as communicating via 1-1’s, email etiquette, mannerisms and emotional intelligence. Other examples are manager can join a Leader support group, which can be a great asset for real time exposure working with different cultured individuals. In my personal experience at my current employment a few years back, I was shocked to see what a great job this company did at identifying and support religious holidays for other cultures. In the Hindu religion, many that followed that faith observe the Diwali holiday. Growing up, I always remember that it was a holiday that many employers did not observe. It was a pleasant experience for me to see that not only did my company observe it with decorations and performance and an understanding of their absence from work, but respectfully had a vegetarian section made especially for that week, as they learned eating meat was not allowed during that time. This was an effective way of showing cross- cultural communication via source of education.

Apply: Leadership Models

Create a chart comparing at least 3 leadership models presented in this week’s reading. In a 250-word response, reflect on how these models compare to your personal results in the Week 1 leadership style evaluation.