Managing in a Multicultural Environment
Effectively managing a multicultural business requires at least a basic knowledge of your employee’s culture and traditions. Familiarity with both is essential because each has a bearing on an employee’s every day behavior.
Our cultural identity helps us feel like we are “part” of the society around us. It keeps us from feeling isolated and sometimes it even helps us know how to react. For example, as Americans, we know it’s appropriate to stand and place our hands over our hearts when we hear “The Star Spangled Banner” because it’s part of our culture.
Traditions involving family, religion, education, and nationalism play a large role in anyone’s life. Personal appearance, ethics, and etiquette are also factors to be considered.
Whether we realize it or not, culture and tradition are powerful principles we always carry with us. It’s almost like carrying a cell phone. We take it for granted that our phone is in out pocket, but we don’t think about it until it rings. Culture is like that. It’s always with us even though we are unaware of it.
What rings your cultural bell?
Even tough it’s hard to make broad generalizations about culture, many studies have been conducted over the years on its importance to Hispanics. There are certain basic principles about Latino culture and tradition that make good survival skills for all American employers.
Family: Nuclear families are the foundation of Hispanic society. An intense love of family is a strong feature in Latinos employees.
To most, the family and its needs are even more important than work. Work is often seen as a “necessary evil” done for the purpose of earning enough money to satisfy the needs of the family.
As managers, we must also take into consideration the fact that many Hispanic employees have left close members of their families in Latin America. This is true for both first and second generation Hispanic employees.
Personal sacrifice in Hispanic families is the rule, not the exception. The estrangement and isolation that comes with being separated from parents, wives and children can be devastating. This causes severe depression, isolation and even substance abuse. Each of these becomes high risk factors for on the job accidents.
Children: Children in Latino families are cherished, protected and loved. A typical weekend is spent enjoying time together, preparing meals, visiting friends, or extended family. Children are more heavily influenced by their parents and extended family members rather than by those outside the family.
Religion: Religion and spirituality are also deeply rooted in Latin American culture. Almost 90% Latin Americans are Roman Catholic and most observe basic religious traditions, even though they might not attend church on a regular basis.
Throughout Latin America religious practices play a more visible role in the workplace than they do in the US. Many Hispanic managers feel these practices make a valuable contribution to overall worker morale.
An unusual feature of Latin American spirituality is an indefinable fatalism or fatalismo which is pervasive in the culture. Many Latinos have the underlying sense that their lives are controlled by fate; consequently, whatever success or tragedy befalls them is no result of their own actions. Whatever is supposed to happen, will happen.
This is almost opposite of the American belief that our success or lack of it depends solely on the choices we make and the hard work we put into it.
Nationalism: Nationalism is deeply ingrained in Hispanics. This is a fact that most Americans don’t realize fully. When we see a person speaking Spanish, many automatically assume that the person is Mexican. Often that just isn’t true. Spanish is spoken over a wide geographic area that includes many very different countries.
All of us are deeply proud of our roots. Latin Americans have deep attachments to their homelands and the unique culture that comes with that. Because you speak English, would you like to be mistaken for a Canadian instead of an American? Probably not!
It’s savvy management for employers to know which countries their employees come from. Getting to know individual employees is a basic feature in successful Latin American management strategies. The boss becomes personally acquainted with each employee and knows a bit about his family. This is called “personalizmo” and it’s very important to workplace attitudes.
When “el jefe” or “el supervisor” recognizes an individual employee, he feels more respected and valued. That increases his loyalty to the company and to its leadership.
Etiquette: Basic etiquette and social skills are valued by Latin Americans. Good manners are a sign of solid upbringing. Training begins at the home and continues in school. Great emphasis is attached to shaking hands and greeting the staff each morning in the workplace.
Not only is this sort of etiquette valued in face to face interactions, it’s also a part of good telephone communication. In a Latin American’s eyes it’s rude to “cut to the chase” on the telephone and immediately begin to discuss business without first asking how the person is that you are talking to. Next, to be truly polite you should ask how the family is doing.
Etiquette is so important on the job many think “por favor” and “gracias” are the two most important phrases in the Spanish language. These are definitely words that will help you get the job done.
Strategies for Success: There’s no doubt that America’s Hispanic workforce is going to become even more important to our country’s economic growth and success. Now that you understand some of the basic attitudes your Hispanic workforce has, it’s time to plot a course for your success in a multicultural environment.
1. Work aggressively to overcome the language barrier. Obviously, this means learning to speak some Spanish. You don’t have to be fluent to be successful.
2. Make every effort to learn about the culture of your employees. This will help you build trusting relationships that Latinos value.
3. Develop an open culture in your workplace that accepts and appreciates the differences individual employees bring to your organization.
4. Establish employment policies carefully and communicate them so all employees understand your expectations for appropriate conduct on the job.
5. Acknowledge your employee’s strong family ties and desire to return home periodically. Make every effort to develop staffing that is flexible enough to allow employees to return home for a period of time to visit their families and then return to the job.
Learning these simple, common-sense practices and principles will give you a positive edge in managing your multicultural work place.
The New Language of Construction Safety
From electrical wiring and scaffolding to a wide variety of lethal chemicals, hazards are common on construction job sites. Are workers with limited English proficiency another danger on today’s multicultural construction projects?
Predictions are that Hispanics will comprise more than 50% of the construction workforce within the next five years. The accident and fatality rate for Hispanics in construction is already much higher than it is for either African-Americans or Caucasians. What’s the reason for this disparity?
The answers are both cultural and linguistic. The workplace in Latin America is a hierarchy with a well-defined chain of command. Workers go up the ladder with ideas or suggestions to their immediate supervisor. To many Latinos, a “good” employee trusts his supervisor implicitly- without questions. Asking questions can be seen as a threat to the supervisor’s authority instead of a desire for clarification.
The cultural barrier to communications is just as serious as the language barrier where safety is concerned. Even though many Hispanic workers are learning English, for many it is a Herculean task. For average Hispanic adults, the learning curve to speaking English fluently can take up to seven years and sometimes longer.Consequently, implementing training policies that are spoken and/or printed in English only will be ineffective and potentially dangerous.
There are many questions concerning how to deal with the potential dangers associated with non-English speaking workers in the construction industry. There’s no doubt that job sites will always pose some risks, however employers bear the ultimate responsibility for making the workplace as safe as possible.
Cultural diversity and Spanish language training for supervisory personnel will continue to provide some of the answers to this complex 21st century construction issue. A change in awareness may provide others.
Think about the ways you can create a new language of safety on your job site. When translators are not available, speak slowly, be direct using short simple sentences, and when possible use demonstrations. Show specific safety techniques and have all employees practice them. This practical training and facilitated communication is an important aspect of the new language of safety.
How to Break the Language Barrier
1. Speak slowly. Non-native English speakers need extra time to process what you are saying. Translating from one language into another isn’t automatic.
2. Be direct. Use short, simple sentences, especially when giving instructions. People learning English get lost in long sentences with complicated grammar.
3. Use a normal speaking voice. Don’t speak in a loud voice. Your employee doesn’t have trouble hearing you. They have trouble understanding you.
4. Use bilingual employees wisely. They are one of your company’s biggest assets. Group non-English speaking employees with bilingual ones. If possible, group people from the same countries together. Their language and accents will be the same.
5. Color. Identify bilingual employees with a brightly colored hard hat. When seconds count in an emergency they can be found quickly.
Ten Tips for Learning to Speak Spanish
Many Americans are learning Spanish to meet both business and personal goals. If you are one of the millions of visionary Americans taking on this challenge, bravo!
In business, speaking Spanish will help you attract loyal customers and a diverse employee base. By speaking Spanish in your personal life, you will meet fascinating people from around the world— and you’ll build valuable, long-lasting friendships.
For adults learning foreign languages can be challenging. You are never too old to acquire a second language! In fact, it’s good exercise for your brain.
Prepare to be dedicated in the pursuit of your linguistic goal. After all, you didn’t learn English over night. We learn our native language through years of trial and error. Nevertheless, you can achieve good results quickly by using these ten practical tips.
1. Use the words you know. Everyone who speaks English knows more Spanish than they realize. When you are beginning to speak Spanish, it could be difficult for you to compose and say an entire sentence. That doesn’t matter. Don’t wait until you have an entire “perfect” phrase. Say the words in Spanish that you know.
When you observe native speakers, you will hear them converse in English, Spanish and even Spanglish. With language it’s never all or nothing! Say what you know, even if it’s only one word.
2. Set yourself up for success. Start with simple greetings like “hola” or “buenas tardes.” If you say please or thank you to a Spanish-speaking customer or employee and you know the words “gracias” and “por favor,” use them after you say the words in English.
Setting a positive bilingual tone for communication is always a good idea. It lets the person you are speaking with know that it’s fine with you to use both English and Spanish.
3. Expect to make some mistakes. If you had a foreign language class in high school or college, perhaps you were corrected so many times that you feel defeated before you start. We all make mistakes when we speak English, so making mistakes in speaking Spanish is normal and natural. Everyone makes mistakes— even native speakers.
4. It’s OK to feel awkward. Speaking Spanish will feel physically different to you. You might even feel like a cartoon character has taken over your speech! Speaking Spanish requires more use of your facial muscles- and then there are those “trilled” r’s. Just do your best. Your accent will develop over time. Not having the best accent will only stand in the way of your ability to communicate if you let it.
5. Being shy is normal. It takes a strong, positive personality to take the risk of speaking another language. We are all inhibited to one degree or another. We’re terrified that people will laugh at us— or even yell at us out of impatience. Smile and dive in! It’s normal to feel inhibited when you begin to speak another language.
6. Ask “yes-no” questions. As you begin to increase your skills, when asking questions pose them so that the answer will be yes or no. This will give you a head-start on understanding the rest of the answer.
7. Practice each day. Practicing just five minutes each day will make a “grande” difference in your ability. A few minutes here and a few minutes there really add up over time. When you do practice, put yourself in situations where you can use the language. Attempts at memorization are usually very ineffective.
Write the days of the week on your calendar at the office and look at them each day.
Put a sticky note on your phone and write the numbers in Spanish from zero to ten on it. Each time you dial a number, say it in Spanish.
Make index cards of the Spanish words you want to learn first, and carry them in your purse or car. Exercises like these make your practice habits practical and help you build them into your normal routine.
8. Learn practical phrases.Think critically about what you do each day and what you need to learn to function more efficiently at your workplace. Learn those words and phrases first. By learning words that are practical, you will use them more often. The more you use the words, the faster you will remember them—and add to them.
9. Don’t worry about your grammar. Remember that no one speaks perfectly. Always remember that communication is always more important than conjugation! If the individual you are speaking with understands you, that’s all that really matters. It doesn’t have to be pretty and perfect to be effective.
10. Go slowly. Learning Spanish is like eating your favorite meal. Savor the experience. Learn Spanish one word or phrase at a time. Chew it completely before going on to more material. If you learn slowly, you will remember what you have learned longer. And, that’s the whole point!
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