Maria Pastorelli, Managing Director, Coach and Consultant, Bridge Consulting
‘Cross-Cultural Collaboration in Global Teams’ was published in the spring 2023 edition of the German Chamber Ticker. Editor: Noga Feige, Senior Editor of the Ticker Magazine.
Effective communication is crucial for successful teamwork, especially in today’s globalized world, where people from different cultures often work together. In cross-cultural teams, individuals from different cultural backgrounds exchange information and ideas. While it presents unique challenges, it also offers opportunities for creativity, innovation, and enhanced problem-solving abilities.
The Importance of Cross-Cultural Communication
Cross-cultural communication is increasingly becoming a necessity rather than a luxury. With globalization, people from different countries, backgrounds, and cultures come together to work on projects, share ideas, and collaborate. However, communicating across cultures can be complex, as people often have different ways of expressing themselves, their values, and their beliefs.
According to a survey by the Economist Intelligence Unit, 90% of executives said that cross-cultural communication is essential for their business. Additionally, a study by Harvard Business Review found that companies with highly diverse teams had 19% higher revenue due to innovation.
Effective cross-cultural communication requires a deep understanding of cultural differences, including language, communication styles, social norms, and values. Individuals need to be open-minded, respectful, and willing to adapt their communication style to better suit their colleagues’ preferences. Communicating effectively across cultures can build strong relationships, establish trust, and foster teamwork.
The Challenges of Global Teams
While global teams offer a host of benefits, they also come with their own set of challenges.
- Communication barriers: Communication barriers such as language differences and time zone disparities can make it challenging for global teams to work effectively. Misunderstandings can arise, and team members may need help staying on the same page.
- Cultural differences: Cultural differences can impact how team members interact and communicate with one another. For example, different cultures may have different approaches to decision-making, leadership, conflict resolution, and work-life balance.
- Lack of trust: Trust is essential for effective teamwork, but it cannot be easy to establish and maintain trust in a global team setting. Team members may struggle to build relationships and trust one another with limited face-to-face interactions.
- Different work styles: Different work styles can impact how team members approach tasks and projects. For example, some cultures prioritize individual achievement over teamwork, while others value collaboration above all else.
- Technology issues: Technical difficulties, such as slow internet connections and incompatible software, can make it challenging for global teams to work effectively and slow down projects.
Working With/In China: Unique Challenges
Understanding cultural differences means becoming familiar with the unique characteristics of the culture(s) influencing teams and individuals. China is a complex and ever-evolving culture, and it can present particular challenges, such as:
- Hierarchy: Hierarchy plays a crucial role in Chinese culture, both in personal and business relationships. Chinese society places a strong emphasis on social status, seniority, and respect for authority figures.
In a Chinese business setting, this is often reflected in the organizational structure of the company. For example, employees are expected to respect superiors and defer to their decisions, particularly in formal meetings and negotiations. Decision-making power is often concentrated at the top of the organization, with senior leaders making key decisions and directing the work of subordinates.
- High-context communication: This style of communication is common in Chinese business culture. It means that messages are conveyed not only through words, but also through nonverbal cues, such as tone of voice, facial expressions, and body language.
Some examples of high-context communication include using indirect language or subtle cues to convey a negative response instead of declining directly; not speaking out in meetings despite being given the opportunity, as silence can be used to mean dissent as well as confusion, among others. Such an indirect communication style is often used to avoid conflict and maintain harmony in relationships, which are key in China and in the way business is conducted here.
- Feedback: In China, direct criticism or negative feedback may be considered impolite and can damage relationships. Chinese business culture often places a strong emphasis on saving face, avoiding open criticism and using indirect language to communicate feedback in order to preserve harmony and avoid conflict. For example, a manager may use phrases like “have you considered”…” or “perhaps we could try…” to offer suggestions or feedback.
Additionally, it is often expected that feedback will be given in private rather than in front of others, as this helps to avoid causing embarrassment or loss of face for the person receiving feedback.
To overcome these and other challenges, global teams working with China must proactively create an environment where cultural differences are discussed openly, and people can work out the best way to communicate and collaborate to develop mutual understanding and trust.
How to Foster Inclusive Collaboration
Inclusive collaboration is essential for creating an environment that values and respects diversity and creates the conditions for people from different cultures to work together and excel. It means everyone’s opinions and ideas are heard and valued, regardless of their cultural background or identity. By embracing diversity and recognizing the strengths of each team member, teams can foster a more inclusive and diverse workplace culture. This can lead to more innovative solutions, better decision-making, and improved outcomes.
According to a study by Deloitte, organizations with highly inclusive cultures are six times more likely to be innovative and agile. Inclusive collaboration also increases job satisfaction and engagement, lowers turnover rates, and improves performance.
Some strategies for inclusive collaboration include:
- Encourage participation: Encourage everyone to participate and contribute their ideas and perspectives. Ensure that everyone has an equal opportunity to speak up and be heard, regardless of their language fluency and location. To encourage participation among Chinese employees, consider sharing the discussion questions before meetings, or create 1-on-1 sessions for people to discuss before the official meeting.
- Foster a sense of belonging: Creating a welcoming and inclusive environment is key in China, as relationships are fundamental to collaboration. This can be achieved through team-building activities, social events, and informal gatherings online or in person.
- Be open-minded: Avoid making assumptions based on stereotypes or preconceived notions. Create opportunities to understand and discuss differences with local Chinese teams to understand the complex cultural nuances.
- Provide constructive feedback: Provide opportunities for feedback and input in a respectful and supportive way, keeping in mind the emphasis in Chinese culture on saving face. Encourage others in the team and organization to do the same.
What Can Your Organization Do?
Here are some action steps that businesses can take to improve cross-cultural communication and teamwork:
- Provide cross-cultural training: Companies can provide training and resources to help employees understand different cultures and communication styles. This can include language classes, cultural workshops, and mentorship programs.
- Hire diverse talent: Businesses can recruit a diverse workforce to create a more inclusive and culturally aware team. This includes hiring local staff in foreign markets and promoting diversity in leadership positions. According to Glassdoor, 67% of job seekers said that a diverse workforce is an important factor when considering job offers.
- Encourage open communication through technology: Companies should encourage open communication and active listening using video conferencing and other communication tools, facilitating real-time discussion and asynchronous collaboration tools to maximize cooperation across time zones.
- Make time to understand the Chinese landscape: Given the ever-changing nature of China’s talent and market landscape, managers should check in regularly with local key stakeholders to ensure that the business direction and strategy fit the organization’s needs on the ground.
- Foster a supportive environment: Businesses can create a supportive environment by providing opportunities for growth and development, promoting work-life balance, and recognizing and rewarding team members’ achievements regularly and fairly, regardless of their cultural background.
- Create a flexible and adaptable company culture: companies can foster a culture that integrates multinational elements and characteristics from different cultures/countries to create a unique blend and leverage strengths from each perspective.
In summary, cross-cultural communication and inclusive collaboration are essential for building successful teams and organizations, especially when working with China. By valuing and respecting cultural diversity and fostering open communication, teams can create a collaborative environment that is effective and supportive. As organizations become increasingly diverse and global, communicating effectively across cultures will become even more critical.
Maria Pastorelli is the Managing Director of Bridge Consulting, an Executive Coach and a Consultant. Maria has 13 years of experience living and working in Shanghai, where she has supported individuals and organizations with coaching and training services since 2011. She has been running her consulting business for the past six years.
Holding an ACC credential from the International Coaching Federation and a degree in cross-cultural communication, she helps executives, teams, and organizations in APAC and Europe improve their leadership and collaboration skills across cultures.
She’s very passionate about women’s development, which led her to create and lead the Global Women Entrepreneur Network (G.W.E.N.) since 2018, a learning and sharing community for women entrepreneurs. She is involved in the Mentor Walks Shanghai and is a certified #IamRemarkable (Google initiative) facilitator.
