Cultural adaptation, or Cultural Intelligence (CQ), is often described as the foundation of effective collaboration in global business. However, in my experience, the reality is often more complex.
I once attended a training session on CQ.
The lecturer was a Japanese businessperson who was responsible for local operations in North America for one of the most famous, prestigious global companies.
In his lecture, he emphasized several points:
– Straightforward communication is indispensable for earning trust in North America
– Slow decision-maker is often perceived as incompetent manager
– Therefore, direct communication and prompt decision-making are essential in global business.
I understood his points very well. In fact, his arguments were clearly grounded in the business reality of North America.
However, at that time, I was a young employee with very limited authority to make decision, even though I had been assigned to manage local operations in an Asian country.
Whenever unexpected and unprecedented issues arose, I was required to obtain approval from headquarters.
Meanwhile, my local partners and staff would frequently come to my office, asking “Has a decision been made yet?”
I genuinly wanted to make prompt decision in the way local staff expected. However, I simply didn’t have the authority to make those decisions on my own.
There was another challenge as well.
I was working for an organization that was not well known in the local market. As a new comer in that market, I was often in an inferior position when building relationships or seeking collaboration and partnership.
I knew direct communication was expected in global business. However, I sometimes hesitated to be direct because I was concerned that straightforward communication might damage important relationship.
There were also situations related to time management.
In environments where flexibility was preferred, my insistence on strict time and schedule management generated frustration among local colleagues.
At the same time, if I exhibit my flexible behaviors toward ‘slight’ delay of schedule and their tardiness, I might be evaluated by my superiors at headquarters as incompetent manager.
Most people agree that it is essential to understand how local partners prefer to work and what kinds of communication behaviors are considered appropriate in a given cultural environment.
We also know that Cultural Intelligence (CQ) plays an important role in building trust and collaboration.
However, the reality is more complex.
Everyone working in a global environment operates under different circumstances and constraints such as:
– Different interests (for example, contractor-contractee relationships)
– Given authority and organizational position
– Expectation from headquarters and performance evaluation criteria
– Personal characteristics (for example, introverted or extroverted personality)
– The experience level of partners in global environments
These conditions vary significantly from person to person, and they have a critical impact on how individuals adapt to the local environment.
Even when people work in the same environment, their ways of adapting can naturally be different.
For this reason, I believe cultural adaptation and cultural intelligence (CQ) is not simply about adjusting work behaviors and communication approaches to the local preferences.
Rather, it is a process of aligning how we work and communicate with each other while taking into account the realities and constraints we face.
Cultural Adaptation and Cultural Intelligence (CQ): The Gap Between Ideal and Reality
