MILLENNIALS ARE A GENERATION MOST OPEN TO DIVERSITY AND CHANGE. SKILLS FOR THE FUTURE WORKPLACE.

Today’s college students and those about to enter college will reshape the workplace over the next decade by both their attitude and use of new technologies. The way Millennials communicate in their social lives will be introduced to the workplace, and then transform it by fostering new ways of sharing ideas and collaborating to achieve outcomes. As a generation, that is the most open to diversity and change of any generation and because technology will enable it, we will finally realize a truly globally connected world.

 

Definitions

Culture refers to a group or community with which we share common experiences that shape the way we understand the world. Culture is central to what we see, how we make sense of what we see, and how we express ourselves. No matter how well we think we understand each other, communication is hard. Just think, for example, how often you say, "He doesn't get it," or "She didn't really hear what I meant to say." Culture is often at the root of communication challenges because culture influences how we approach problems, and how we participate in groups and in communities.

In school or at work, it can be frustrating and a time sink when you are first assigned to a project team. You find each member of the team has a different approach to working together, and it takes a lot of time initially to sort it out, and then get started on doing the real work.

In a truly globally connected world, you could find yourself working with a diverse group of people, in any number of teams and locations. Your cross-cultural competency—your ability to operate in different cultural settings will become one of your most important skills.
In college, you can start to develop skills that will help you transcend differences and enable you to build relationships and work together effectively.

 

Start paying attention

As people from different cultural groups take on the challenge of working together, cultural values sometimes conflict. We can misunderstand each other, and react in ways that can hinder the success of the project and team. Often we aren't aware that culture is acting upon us.
Here’s a snapshot of some of the communication challenges you might face studying and traveling abroad or as you enter the workforce, working in teams with members from around the world. While I’ve might have oversimplified behaviors, please note that all behaviors are found in all cultural groups.

Different communication styles both verbal and non-verbal. Communicating across cultures is challenging and not simply because of language. Cultures such as Japan, Korea, China, Mediterranean, Slav, Central European, Latin American, African, Arab, Asian, American-Indian leave much of the verbal message unspecified, to be understood through context, nonverbal cues, and between-the-lines interpretation of what is actually said. In contrast, the United States and most European countries rules and expectations are explained and discussed, and individuals tend to prefer a more direct communication style that is explicit and specific.

Different attitudes toward resolving conflict. Some cultures view conflict as a positive thing, while others view it as something to avoid. Working with IBM managers around the world, the French gave me vigorous logical debates, the English tended to avoid confrontation in an understated, and mannered style I found to be inefficient, and in Asian countries, because open conflict is experienced as embarrassing or demeaning it was best to work things out one-to-one instead of in a group setting.

Different approaches to completing tasks. Approaches to completing tasks also vary from culture to culture. The U.S., Israel, Germany, and Switzerland are cultures that view time as if it were linear, one event happening at a time. Latin America, the Middle East, and Africa are cultures where they are more flexible about time schedules. When working in a team with people from Saudi Arabia or Mexico for example, allow sufficient time in the beginning of each meeting to socialize and build rapport.

Different decision-making styles. Every aspect of life comes along with some form of decision- making and different situations call for different decision-making styles. While some decision-making processes include collaboration, others rely on an authoritarian approach and still others reflect a strong need for individual achievement and recognition. In many Southern European and Latin American countries, there is a strong value placed on holding decision-making responsibilities to oneself. The Occupy Wall Street movement used consensus (thumbs up/thumbs down) and the media laughed because in groups, majority rules is a common approach in the U.S. Not so in Japan where consensus is the preferred mode of group decision-making.

Different attitudes toward transparency. In the U.S., trust and transparency have become popular workplace demands especially for Millennials who want a work environment where the leadership team is proactive in sharing where the company is headed and forthright about its future. Germans are similar to the U.S. in this respect. However, working for a Japanese-based company you might find yourself flying blind.

Different ways of learning. Many years ago, I had an opportunity to teach a weeklong marketing course in the Asia Pacific region of a worldwide brand. We were a group of 20 representing Myanmar (Burma,) Singapore, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Vietnam and Hong Kong. My teaching style encourages a lively, extroverted classroom; lots of thinking out loud/open discussion. It didn’t take long for me to recognize that the Asian marketing managers got quieter and quieter as the first day wore on. I stayed up the whole night rewriting the curriculum to make sure I allowed everyone in the class to learn.

 

Be open to people of all cultures

Today's technological world allows businesses to access employees and customers from all over the globe. Companies will not just employ people in different locales around the world. You will work in teams with members around the world and it’s likely when you demonstrate cross-cultural competency that you will have a global job rotation.

While in school, take every opportunity to learn and experience different cultures. Room with someone from another culture. Study abroad. Get assigned to a culturally diverse team. Have an internship with a company headquartered in another culture. And in every way possible, be open to people of all cultures.