Contemporary Business Environment and Diversity - Essay Example

Proposed Plan for Training the Current and Future Employees about Cross-Cultural Diversity of the Subject Name of the Concerned Professor October 27, 2009 Proposed Plan for Training the Current and Future Employees about Cross-Cultural Diversity Contemporary Business Environment and Diversity The contemporary business environment stands to be typical in the sense that the globalization of economies has not only made it possible for the companies to extend their activities and operations around the world, but the enhanced usage of internet and digital modes of communication has enabled the most far placed consumers and businesses to come in contact with each other. Thus, the businesses in the 21st century are left with no other option, but to accept and embrace diversity, and to adapt to cross cultural differences. Though the concept of cultural diversity is not new, still it is often grossly misunderstood. Many of the employees consider cultural diversity to be merely about dealing with colleagues and customers affiliated to varied nations and races. In fact, nothing could be far from the truth. Accepting cultural diversity is about having a right approach to modern business. Quintessentially speaking, accepting cultural diversity or adapting to cross-cultural ethos is about understanding, professing and accepting allegiance to the age-old values of good communication, respect for personal and individual differences and work place and professional variations. People come across and face diversity in all the aspects of life, are it at home or at work. Diversity may not necessarily ensue from color, nationality or race, but may be political, technical, legal or ethical in its origins. Diversity is an inalienable aspect of the general fabric of the modern multicultural societies and a globalized economy and businesses being a part of the society are not devoid of it. In such a scenario, it is imperative for the employees to not to consider the cross-cultural issues in business as barriers, but to regard diversity as an asset and to try to learn the ways to adapt to and benefit from diversity. Major Topic Areas and their Importance 1. Cross-Cultural Issues This topic is very relevant to this plan. It is important that the employees working within the organization realize that the current global environment is fast shifting towards a multi-polar equilibrium. The current economic order relies for its sustenance on comparative cultural advantages (Culpepper, 2000). The business technologies and skills within the specific nations have evolved around their fundamental cultural mores and peculiarities. For example, the Japanese excel in quality, the Chinese are known for their entrepreneurial skills, Koreans command a lead in manufacturing, whereas as the West leads in innovation and technology. The employees should not only be able to benefit from the comparative cultural advantages unique to specific nations, but must also be able to understand, respect and grasp the cultural values and factors that make these nations perform well in the specific areas. For example, the Japanese dominance over quality has as much to do with the process innovations like just-in-time, lean manufacturing and Kanban as their ability to hold group allegiance over individual goals and the priority to retain group harmony at all costs. The Western lead over technological innovation is as much about reason and logic as with a commitment to individualism and a tendency to exploit technology to cope with and manipulate the external environment. A basic understanding of these cross-cultural peculiarities empowers the employees to operate with an enhanced confidence and dexterity (Culpepper, 2000). 2. Global Law and Finance and Cultural Diversity It is imperative for the employees to realize that the global law and finance is intimately attached to cultural diversity and cross-cultural issues. In fact, a majority of the successful organizations is fast adapting to diversity and is adopting diversity as an asset. There is no denying the fact that the financial intricacies and laws in any country are influenced by and are not impervious to the prevailing political environment, the human rights situation and the levels of commitment to an equitable and just distribution of wealth and opportunities (Hampden-Turner, 1997). While operating in an environment where the Western standards and law do not hold, a better cultural understanding do enables the employees to grasp the financial and legal environment in a country with ease and astuteness. 3. Multinational Companies It will really help if the employees refurbish and reorganize their understanding of the concept of Multinational Companies. They need to understand that the businesses today are operating in a post-colonial environment, where the multinational companies desirous of survival and sustenance, simply do not afford to pursue homogenized and standardized strategies (Usunier, 2009). The global business environment is fluid and a good understanding of the cross-cultural diversities affords better adaptation and profitability. This will enable the employees to retain and benefit from the cultural traits in the specific countries that assure success and competitiveness. There is no denying the fact that the IT revolution is not homogenizing, but rather encouraging and reinforcing cultural diversity. Each country has its own unique blend of allegiance to rules and commitment to interpersonal relationships, and no Multinational Company can succeed without accepting and respecting these blends in its local policies and operations (Usunier, 2009). The need of the hour is that Multinational Countries have to give way to autonomous and naturalized setups in the specific nations to benefit from their comparative cultural advantages. 4. Multinational Teams Organizations are fast opting for Multinational Teams, as it not only allows them to benefit from talent originating from diverse sources, but also the teams comprising of people from varied cultural environments allow for better management in the contemporary business scenario (Hurn, 1997). Hence, the employees must be deft at working in multinational work groups. This calls for learning and adopting a range of interpersonal skills like ,” tact, cross-cultural awareness, motivational, confidence building and organizational skills, as well as a sound understanding of the dynamics of team building, the techniques that can be applied and an understanding of the international management styles (Hurn, 1997, p.237).” Training of the Employees It will be a 6-day training program, which will include seminars, lectures, tasks, games, assignments and power point presentations by the students. MONDAY The training schedule will consist of four one-hour lectures by two senior managers working within the organization and two outside experts specializing in the chosen topic. There will be a half an hour break after the first two lectures. The chosen experts will give lectures on the topics: 1. Contemporary business environment and cross-cultural issues 2. Comparative cultural advantages 3. Global law and finance and cultural diversity 4. Contemporary Multinational Companies. After every lecture, there will be a half hour question-answer session in which the employees could ask questions from the experts. TUESDAY The training schedule will consist of five 45-minute seminars conducted by the selected academic experts on the following topics: 1. Race Relations 2. Ethnicity 3. Gender 4. International Law and Local Cultures 5. Environmental Laws Between every seminar, there will be a break of 15 minutes. WEDNESDAY Five selected experts will conduct workshops on Cultural Etiquettes with special emphasis on China, India, Argentina, Mexico and Russia. The employees will be handed over the Xeroxed copies of the text and sources selected by the experts. Besides, the students will be made to write assignments on the topics selected by the experts. The experts will use handover literature and power point presentations during each lecture, seminar and workshop. THURSDAY AND FRIDAY The next two days will be entirely dedicated to employee activity and participation. Every participant will have to conduct a 15-minute power point presentation on the topic assigned to one at least two days ago. The proposed topics are: 1. Gender inequities and business 2. Conducting business in non-democratic countries like China 3. Comparative cultural advantages 4. Relationship between cultural traits and local laws 5. Racial stereotyping at workplace 6. Environmental laws in the third world 7. Business and human rights 8. Do multinational teams really work? 9. Racism at work and law 10. Sexual abuse at work and law SATURDAY The participants will be taken for an outing, where they will be made to participate in games as multicultural teams that will encourage them to use their interpersonal skills to perform well. The winning teams will be given souvenirs to acknowledge their skills and expertise. In the evening, a price distribution ceremony will be conducted, in which the participants who performed well throughout the training will be rewarded. All the required material, text and aids will be provided by the organization. The entire expenses of the course will be born by the organization. The participants could feel free to consult outside experts, libraries and data banks and any type of personal initiative will be encouraged. Works Cited Culpepper, Pepper (2000). The German Skills Machine. New York: Berghahn Books. Hampden-Turner, Charles (1997). Riding the Waves of Culture. New York: McGraw-Hill. Hurn, Brian J (1997). Building Multinational Teams: The Challenge. International Journal of Value-Based Management, 10, 237-246. Usunier, Jean-Claude (2009). Marketing Across Cultures. Boston: Prentice Hall. Read More