New Cultural Experience - Essay Example

?Creative Reflective Essay New Cultural Experience Introduction Different countries in the world have different cultures and traditional backgrounds.They follow different religious faiths and maintain different lifestyles. In order to experience a new cultural experience and have an insight into the differences between my way of life and religious faith from a foreign culture, I visited India in the last year. India is a democratic and secular country. It is the second most populous country in the world and people of several religions live there. India is a Hindu majority country, and Muslims, Christians, Buddhists, Sikhs, Jain, are minority in this country. I have had a worthwhile experience of staying in India and take part in the rich cultural heritage of the country. Overview of experience A short or long stay in a foreign country in the midst of a new culture might be exhilarating and personally rewarding. Personally, I feel that this experience is highly intellectually stimulating. According to my opinion, a stay in a foreign country is not free of undesirable experiences. However, both pleasant and awkward incidents together make the experience intellectually stimulating. A person learns to accept new things and adapt into new circumstances. In this section I shall explain my experience as a minority in India. Types of experience vary according to the period of time spent in the country and the level of adaptability of the visitor (UNESCO, 2003). Visiting a country as a part of foreign trip implies a short stay, mainly for the purpose of visiting different sites and shopping. However, I have stayed in India for a period of five years for the purpose of making an in depth study of the Hindu religion. My stay in India was as a learner. In the first few months in India I had an awe-inspiring feeling since I was faced with a wide range of norms, rules and regulations. Some rules are traditional and cast direct impact on the society and its functioning while the others are backed by strong religious beliefs. Besides, since there are several cultural groups and sects, there exist certain major deviations in the beliefs of the people. Since I have huge curiosity in the Hindu religion and had visited the country to have a detailed experience on my subject, I stayed in a Hindu populated area as a paying guest in the housed of a well known socialite. Participation in cultural activities Traditional dinner I personally prefer taking part in the activities of the country that I visit. Therefore, I made a prior research about the traditional activities, festivals and games that are popular in India. I had stayed in the house of a Hindu family in Kolkata. The family is well known as a well to do family in the city. They are quite modern and have liberal views about the world. Yet, I noticed on the first dinner with the family that the members dearly hold certain traditional norms. Some of these norms are very similar to the Catholic norms, while others were unknown to me before I visited India. During my stay I took part in a traditional dinner with my host family at their ancestral home in Kolkata. It was the annual meeting of all the members of the family. There were specific Bengali dishes that are favored by the Bengalis. Among other food, fish was one of the main ingredients. There were various preparations of fish, starting from fry, to curry to even a sweet preparation called ‘chutney’. Bengalis consider fish as a part of their traditional diet. I did not have a taste for fish before I ate Bengali food. Initially, I faced problems with fish since it has a typically strong smell. But, very soon I adapted with the culture of having fish in the main course in both lunch and dinner. Analysis During my stay I have mixed with the people of the country with the desire of in-taking a rich essence of their culture, faith, religion, environmental concern, food habits, sports and other activities. Went new to a country, it seems confusing to identify these norms or follow them as an outsider. However, the key to becoming close to the people lies in adapting to these norms fast. Although I was a minority in the country, I felt myself as a member of the host community. They included me in their activities and invited me to watch or take part in all their celebrations and family parties. The reason behind categorizing me as in group member in the community was my prior knowledge about their cultures and preferences and high level of adaptability on my part. The people of the country easily accepts a foreign visitor when the individual shows respect towards their values, faiths and beliefs and displays the ability to adapt well in to the food habits and appreciate and enjoy the various cultural activities that the residents of the country participate in. Participation in different cultural programs held in the foreign communities allows the visitor to witness their culture and tradition closely. It allows the visitor to know society from within and develop a vivid perception about the working of its norms. I got a unique opportunity to interact with the people informally that helped the development of network of informal relation. Before interacting with the Indians, I had a stereotype concept that they are enveloped with infinite norms and regulations and more importantly religious considerations have kept this country backwards in terms of science and technological advancement. However, the concept was broken after my stay in the country. I found religion is a part of their lives while the country is taking confident strides towards development. People of India are quite open minded and welcome change warmly. Contact theory There are five conditions of optimal intergroup contact. These are common goals, equal status of all members of a group within a situation, intergroup cooperation, full support of authority and personal interaction. These five conditions have been identified by Gordon Allport in 1954 (Schiappa, Gregg and Hewes, 2005). The process of establishment of relationship among the members of the groups starts at facilitating the situation for development of the contact, initialization of the contact, establishment of the contact and unification of the members of the groups. Participation in new cultural events allows the visitor to share common goals with the natives of the country. My participation in the traditional dinner allowed me to realize the motivation that allows all family members to gather at the same ancestral house. I felt one of them and shared that common goal of being present in the meeting. It also allowed me to share an equal status with the others present in the dinner. Intergroup cooperation played an important role in making the event a success. Finally, there was full support of authority, i.e., the senior members of the family in making this program a pleasant event. As a result of my fluent personal interaction with my hosts I have been able to develop deep friendly relationship with two members of the family. Few scholars claim that contact between cross cultural groups only lead to conflict. However, from my personal experience I can assert that contact between groups of different religious faith might be pleasant and a valuable experience for who takes part in it (Schaller and Neuberg, 2008). Openness is both a virtue as well as a responsibility of the visitor. It helps him to be aware of the similarities and differences between the culture of the host community and the home community of the visitor. It allows him to learn new things. It is not a matter of judgment, since; in cross cultural communications good and bad events depend on perception of the individual and the background he belongs to. Conclusion Experiences of intergroup interaction depend heavily on the level of openness of the members of the group. I have a favorable experience of staying in a new cultural environment. This experience has allowed me to learn the cultures and traditions of a Hindu state. It has facilitated my education and improved my perceptions about the culture and religious faiths of the people. According to the outcomes of my visit to India, my interaction with the populace of the country can be considered successful. This is because I have been able to communicate with the people that I have stayed with for 5 years. I have taken a long step ahead to understand the motivation behind the norms, rules and regulations that the people of the country follow. Organizational diversity assessment Introduction Organizations are increasingly becoming diverse in the modern globalised world. With advancement of technology and economic progress of the nations’ organizations in the different countries are also evolving continuously and modifying their modes of business activities. Hence, gender, nationality, race and ethnicity of the employees belonging to different organizations are becoming more diverse than ever before. Ease of transportation and cheaper modes of communication have inspired cross country migration of workers. Organizations in the developed as well as underdeveloped countries in the world are becoming more concerned about the multiplicity of their human resource base and workplace diversity. It has become a widely accepted notion that diversity in organizations boosts up organizational performance, brings greater variety in work culture and helps the employees accomplish organizational goals. Diversity analysis According to Cox (2001), “the challenge of diversity is not simple to have, but to create conditions in which its potential to be a performance barrier is minimized and its potential to enhance performance is maximized” (p. 16). Management of diversity refers to the successful and productive mixture of similarities and differences that exist within an organization (Steers, Nardon and Sanchez-Runde, 2013). The work force of IBM represents a diverse pool of superior talent. All business activities are made without making any reference to the race, religion, color, gender identity, national origin, sexual orientation or physical disability (Smith, 2002). IBM makes sincere efforts to inspire respect and value for diversity within the organization. Diversity is also among the external business partners, such as suppliers or contractors (Leveson, Joiner and Bakalis, 2009). The foundation of this policy is anchored in the organizational values that every employee and business partner of IBM abides by. Strengths The diverse work force of IBM is one of the crucial factors that help the company to achieve competitive success. Due to diversity in the work force, the company can maintain a wide pool of talent that helps the company improve its productivity. Presence of highly diverse work force initiates a highly communicative work environment. Employee related issues that arise within the team members are solved promptly by the team leaders or mangers (IBM, 2008). Weaknesses Sometimes tension among the cultural groups adversely affects the peace of work environment (Aoun, 2007). Employees from minority groups might leave the organization if their personal prejudices hinder them from freely mixing with other members of the organization. Investigation into cases of employee harassment or complaints might occupy much of the management’s valuable time. Opportunities Our company reflects the true spirit of the country’s market in which it operates and respects the traditional values of the business partners. This would help the company to attract many new business partners in the long run. The leadership position enjoyed by the company inspires highly skilled and talented people to work with IBM. Thus, in due course of time, the company would be able to possess the best talents hired from across the globe. The elaborate infrastructure and good diversity management policies would allow the company to hire talented employees that physically disabled or people of different sexual orientations (Shakhray, 2009). Threats Lack of motivation among the managers often leads to cultural issues within the employees and reduces competitive advantage of the company over its rivals. Diversity of religious faiths sometimes is placed above corporate responsibilities, due to which productivity of the organization falls (Stockdale and Crosby, 2004). Current and future requirements IBM sets an example in the industry for recruiting employees from diverse cultural backgrounds and satisfactorily retaining them (IBM, 2003). Since, the global business environment is evolving rapidly, the company faces certain problems that act as hindrances for the proper management of the diverse work force. This implies that the company has to train its managers prior to training the employees since they would act as guides to the employees. Level of supervision has to be increased and communication patterns have to be improved (Reeves, McKinney and Azam, 2013). As the company would expand in future, communications channels would hold significantly high position in organizational decision making process. Moreover, managers have to be highly self motivated in order to extract the best performance from their team members. Findings and discussion Our managers have the responsibility of utilizing the benefits of human resource diversity, while striving to minimize costs incurred in maintaining this diversity. In this context, a brief interview has been conducted with 3 selected managers and 20 other employees of our company. The managers have been asked the following question. “Do you think your organization has a culturally diverse workforce?” Responses of managers have reveal that the organization has been categorized as a ‘multicultural’ firm, in which cultural diversity receives optimum respect and value and is willingly encouraged. They have also been asked, “Does your organization encourage cultural diversity in the workplace?” According to one of the managers, “my team consists of 25 culturally diverse employees”. Responses of other managers show that the organizational management supports cultural diversity in the workplace and encourages employees to maintain their diversity within the organization. Interview with the employees have revealed that cultural differences are considered as an asset to our organization. Employees supported holistically that cultural diversity is strongly encouraged within IBM. Informal relationship building among the employees is highly encouraged within the organization (Amla, 2008). According to one employees, “I have been feeling included in the organization from my first day in office.” This is a big assurance of the fact that there exist strong informal networks within the organization that extends beyond the formal working premises. Direct interviews with managers and employees of the organization reveal the method of diversity management present in the organization. These responses can be used to understand the different dimensions for analyzing organizational cultural diversity. Cox has identified the basic factors that create a point of difference among the cultural groups; these are race, gender, national origin and ethnicity. Diversity within IBM has been evaluated following these dimensions. Acculturation In IBM employees from the minority group are trained so that they can adapt to the culture of the dominant group. Members of both host culture are also encouraged to adopt some of the norms of the other group. This helps the company to avoid cultural separatism (Cox, 1991). Structural integration Since our company has employees from different cultural background, not only is there integration of the employees in individual projects, but also across different profiles across the organization and across various functions. Informal integration In IBM social occasions are conducted with significant importance and employees are encouraged to participate in it. It creates contacts and strengthens the informal bond among employees of different backgrounds (Paludi, 2012). Cultural bias It is the responsibility of managers that culturally biased perceptions among employees are resolved with speed. Employee engagement programs are launched and training is imparted to all the employees that aim at minimizing the chances of personal prejudice (Barak, 2010). Organizational identification In IBM organizational values drive the employees to a large extent (Albrecht, 2001). This helps them to achieve the organizational goals with greater efficiency. A sense of unity develops among them and chances of conflicts are reduced. Inter-group conflict Cultural group based tensions are one of the major causes of concern for the employees of any multicultural organization (Syed and Kramar, 2010). In IBM managers put all efforts to resolve any conflict that arises within cultural groups. In IBM, minority groups are provided with equal opportunity to present their opinions as the members of the majority groups. Conclusion and recommendations Issues related to cultural differences sometimes occur despite good diversity management policies. It is strongly recommended that for transparent communication among employees the company should streamline its communication process (Sadri and Tran, 2002). Training process must be developed in such a way that the new employees are made accustomed with the cultural background of the organization (Strachan, Burgess and Sullivan, 2004). Employees have to be trained in the language in which majority of the employees within the organization communicate. Additionally, “Diversity@Work” award might be delivered to employees as well as managers that work towards the preservation of diversity within the organization. Certain selection criteria have to be developed for the presentation of this award. This award should be provided to those employees that participate in different cross cultural social functions organized by the company. Special awards might be presented to the employees that win certain competitive events such as sports of different cultures or other competitive events based on cultural aspects of the minority groups and the dominant group. Additionally, the management might make use of the existing staff to recruit new employees. Recruitment through referral is a good way to hire employees from culturally diverse background. Reference List Albrecht, M. H., 2001. 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Leveson, L., Joiner, T. A. and Bakalis, S., 2009. Managing cultural diversity and perceived organizational support: Evidence from Australia. International Journal of Manpower, 30 (4), pp. 377 – 392. Paludi, M. A., 2012. Managing diversity in today's workplace: Strategies for Employees and Employers. California: ABC-CLIO. Reeves, T. C., McKinney, A. P. and Azam, L., 2013. Muslim women’s workplace experiences: Implications for strategic diversity initiatives. Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal, 32 (1), pp. 49 – 67. Sadri, G. and Tran, H., 2002. Managing your diverse workforce through improved communication. Journal of Management Development, 21 (3), pp. 227 – 237. Shakhray, I., 2009. Managing diversity in the workplace. Munich: GRIN Verlag. Smith, T., 2002. Diversity and disability: Exploring the experiences of vision impaired people in the workplace. Equal Opportunities International, 21 (8), pp. 59 – 72. Steers, R. M., Nardon, L. and Sanchez-Runde, C. J., 2013. Management across cultures: Developing global competencies, 2nd edition. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Stockdale, M. S. and Crosby, F. J., 2004. The psychology and management of workplace diversity. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons. Strachan, G., Burgess, J. and Sullivan, A., 2004. Affirmative action or managing diversity: What is the future of equal opportunity policies in organizations? Women in Management Review, 19 (4), pp. 196 – 204. Syed, J. and Kramar, R., 2010. What is the Australian model for managing cultural diversity? Personnel Review, 39 (1), pp. 96 – 115. Schiappa, E., Gregg, P. B. and Hewes, D. E., 2005. The Parasocial Contact Hypothesis. [pdf] Available at: < http://www.comm.umn.edu/department/pch/pch1.pdf > [Accessed 4 October 2013]. UNESCO, 2003. A Measure of Culture: Cultural experiences and cultural spending in New Zealand. 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