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How the four areas of cultural intelligence aid a leader in understanding culture as well as intercultural efforts?


The introduction to this Unit points out that technological and globalization have taken our interdependence with our work colleagues outside the office. We are now connected in so many ways, to so many people, from so many walks of life. Such, often unintentional, interconnectedness changes the rules about how we need to think about the world and how we need to interact with the people we meet in it. Cultural intelligence can help us negotiate this new world, help us engage people, “create systems of inclusion” (Saylor, 2012, p.188), and thereby be more included ourselves.


The four areas in which cultural intelligence will significantly improve our understanding of culture and intercultural work are; reframing, adaptive work, systems thinking, and consciousness. (Saylor, 2012, p.187) Cultural intelligence is our ability to successfully adapt to unfamiliar cultural settings. (Saylor, 2012, p.68) Reframing, adaptive work, systems thinking, and consciousness are all part of our cultural intelligence toolbox. We can reframe to understand other perspectives, and we can then adapt our perspectives and behaviors to more appropriately respond to situations and people. Understanding culture systemically, and having a deeper conscious understanding of it, make us able to make better-informed decisions in any cultural situation.


Reframing is the “idea and the practice of shifting your perspective.” (Saylor, 2012, p.188) This is particularly useful for leaders in our very interconnected but very diverse world. Reframing can help leaders develop long-lasting and authentic intercultural relationships. (Saylor, 2012, p.188) Reframing is essential to understanding others perspectives, essential for the mindful leader. To be honest, it is not something I practice enough. But I can see that real cultural intelligence is not really possible without some degree of reframing. I have in the past found perspective taking a useful tool for better understanding stakeholders needs and motivations, which I guess is a form of reframing. You try to see it from their viewpoint, to better understand where they are coming from and how to better meet their needs.


It is not enough to reframe our thoughts, culturally intelligent leaders need to also be able to adapt to our surroundings. Our course text quotes Heifetz (1994, p. 22) that adaptive work requires not only a change in values and beliefs but also a change in behavior. (Saylor, 2012, p.190) Adaptive work requires a change in our assessment of reality and a clear understanding of the multiple values at play.  Saylor (2012, p.190) cites an illustrative example, too often organizations develop assessments and tools to measure the effectiveness of “the organization as a system,” but forget about the most important system, the “personal value system” that drives most of the organizational processes and thinking. Organizations don’t change themselves, it is the people within them that change them. If the employee’s values are at odds with the organizations desired changes, the changes will be resisted.


We live in an interdependent world. Senge (1990, p. 39), cited in our course text, suggests that “we must see the connections and relationships between, among, and within systems—cultural, political, legal, social, economic, familial, and so on.” (Saylor, 2012, p.191) We need to see the systemic patterns and understand the forces driving a system.” Senge (1990, p. 39.) “Leaders are defined by their values, their beliefs, and their character.” (Saylor, 2012, p.190) They must show, through their values, and through their behaviors, that they live in, and understand their interdependent world. Making authentic connections, treating people with genuine respect, seeking out others opinions, understanding other’s perspectives, are the actions of a connected and culturally intelligent leader.


A better understanding of culture informs us “what it takes to be a leader in an intercultural world.” (Saylor, 2012, p.192) Being more culturally conscious lets a leader make better, more informed decisions, consciousness allows a leader to see the subtleties of cultural diversity, the read the nuances of difference. Just as Emotional Intelligence (EQ) increases our ability to make healthy choices based on accurately identifying, understanding and managing our own feelings and those of others. (Yale University, 2010) Consciousness increases our ability to make healthy choices based on accurately identifying, understanding and managing our own cultural values and those of others.



I guess you can ignore culture, but it won’t ignore you. I’ve enjoyed this course, and over the eight weeks have begun to understand that I don’t understand enough. I’ve lived in four different countries, in three continents, and I thought I was culturally aware. In truth though, I think I have just been ticking boxes, understanding superficially what to do or not to do in specific situations. Thank you all for raising my cultural consciousness a little more. And good luck.

References
Saylor. (2012). Cultural Intelligence for Leaders. Saylor Academy: Creative Commons by-nc-sa 3.0.

Yale University. (2010, July 27). Emotional Intelligence and Leadership. Retrieved from youtube.com: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0k8TcF-3ofY

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