Alexandre CostaScrum Master| Integer Consulting - Pictet technologiesLoures, Portugal
CULTURAL INTELLIGENCE, or CQ, is a globally recognized way of assessing and improving effectiveness in culturally diverse situations and in project management. There are studies that demonstrate that project managers with high cultural intelligence can quickly adapt their management style in order to handle issues raised from multicultural background.
Do you train, develop and apply cultural intelligence in project management?
Do you consider that inserting this intelligence in the basket of soft skills of a project manager is increasingly important in this globalized world? Saving Changes...
Scott SmithProject Manager| Scott Smith PMP LLCVenice, Fl, United States
Yes. And yes.
To expand slightly: I've had the good fortune to live in three different countries and learn two languages beyond my native (American) English. [parenthetical adjective due to being married to a English woman] Many readers of this forum have no doubt also picked up their cross cultural awareness informally, unless they were wise enough to seek it explicitly.
Regardless of how one attains it, I believe that CQ is valuable of course in culturally diverse groups. But also even in a "domestic only" group or domestic-only-same-gender group, since the moment there are two or more people on a team there are different perspectives and experiences at the table. I believe one becomes a better listener / planner / anticipator / meeting-facilitator through CQ.
If one hasn't acquired it through the good fortune of a semester abroad, work-abroad, or immersion travel/volunteerism, it's never too late to start. And if concerned about carbon-footprint, seek out cultural immersion experiences close to home: for example help out with immigrants who are learning your local language, or such.
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1 reply by Alexandre Costa
Jan 21, 2020 3:34 PM
Alexandre Costa
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Scott,
Is nice to see that I am not the only one with this concern, thanks for sharing your experience.
Alexandre
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Alexandre CostaScrum Master| Integer Consulting - Pictet technologiesLoures, Portugal
Jan 21, 2020 3:22 PM
Replying to Scott Smith
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Yes. And yes.
To expand slightly: I've had the good fortune to live in three different countries and learn two languages beyond my native (American) English. [parenthetical adjective due to being married to a English woman] Many readers of this forum have no doubt also picked up their cross cultural awareness informally, unless they were wise enough to seek it explicitly.
Regardless of how one attains it, I believe that CQ is valuable of course in culturally diverse groups. But also even in a "domestic only" group or domestic-only-same-gender group, since the moment there are two or more people on a team there are different perspectives and experiences at the table. I believe one becomes a better listener / planner / anticipator / meeting-facilitator through CQ.
If one hasn't acquired it through the good fortune of a semester abroad, work-abroad, or immersion travel/volunteerism, it's never too late to start. And if concerned about carbon-footprint, seek out cultural immersion experiences close to home: for example help out with immigrants who are learning your local language, or such.
Scott,
Is nice to see that I am not the only one with this concern, thanks for sharing your experience.
Yes. In one company I worked for overseas, we implemented a cultural onboarding program which was two-way: 1. management learning the culture of the staff we were managing onsite and 2. the staff (service providers) learning the culture of the client who would almost always be from another country. As part of that onboarding program, we would including things such as slang, things to know, taboos etc. about that country/culture. Saving Changes...
Thomas WalentaGlobal Project Economy ExpertHackenheim, Germany
Yes, although I do not use that term. I think cultural savviness results from specific situations you were in and what you learned from them.
Besides working with people from different countries, I also see cultural differences in industries, and I worked e.g. for insurance, investment banking, ministry of justice, marketing, retail etc. All exhibited different habits, beliefs, communications needs.
For projects I often do a cultural workshop, 1-2 days, creating awareness about differences and communalities and at best agreeing on specific actions to leverage the diversity. It is a good way to to learn about each other and build trust quickly.
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1 reply by Alexandre Costa
Jan 22, 2020 2:33 PM
Alexandre Costa
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Thomas,
Thank you for sharing your experience with the community, I do know how is important to understand and leverage the strong points of the cultural differences in an team.
Alexandre
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Alexandre CostaScrum Master| Integer Consulting - Pictet technologiesLoures, Portugal
Sante,
Did you benefit with this learning events, came to use in practice some of the teachings ?
Thanks for sharing your experience.
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1 reply by Sante Delle-Vergini, PhD
Jan 29, 2020 2:52 PM
Sante Delle-Vergini, PhD
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@Alexandre, yes it seemed to go very well. It certainly increased trust between staff and clients.
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Stéphane ParentSelf Employed / Semi-retired| Leader MakerPrince Edward Island, Canada
Cultural awareness and competence are important. I worry that making it an "intelligence" is just one more way of compartmentalizing competencies. It's all leadership: communications, emotions, culture... We need to look at leadership holistically, not piecemeal.
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1 reply by Alexandre Costa
Jan 22, 2020 2:39 PM
Alexandre Costa
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Stéphane,
Thanks for sharing your opinion. The "separation" of the intelligences is a trend in several psychology theories and in many managing approaches, in the end I recognize they are all interconnect, but we don't have all the same capabilities in all intelligences segments if you prefer the term, so we should train our week points.
Alexandre
Saving Changes...
Alexandre CostaScrum Master| Integer Consulting - Pictet technologiesLoures, Portugal
Jan 22, 2020 5:13 AM
Replying to Thomas Walenta
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Yes, although I do not use that term. I think cultural savviness results from specific situations you were in and what you learned from them.
Besides working with people from different countries, I also see cultural differences in industries, and I worked e.g. for insurance, investment banking, ministry of justice, marketing, retail etc. All exhibited different habits, beliefs, communications needs.
For projects I often do a cultural workshop, 1-2 days, creating awareness about differences and communalities and at best agreeing on specific actions to leverage the diversity. It is a good way to to learn about each other and build trust quickly.
Thomas,
Thank you for sharing your experience with the community, I do know how is important to understand and leverage the strong points of the cultural differences in an team.
Alexandre Saving Changes...
Alexandre CostaScrum Master| Integer Consulting - Pictet technologiesLoures, Portugal
Jan 22, 2020 9:02 AM
Replying to Stéphane Parent
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Cultural awareness and competence are important. I worry that making it an "intelligence" is just one more way of compartmentalizing competencies. It's all leadership: communications, emotions, culture... We need to look at leadership holistically, not piecemeal.
Stéphane,
Thanks for sharing your opinion. The "separation" of the intelligences is a trend in several psychology theories and in many managing approaches, in the end I recognize they are all interconnect, but we don't have all the same capabilities in all intelligences segments if you prefer the term, so we should train our week points.
Alexandre Saving Changes...
Luis BrancoCEO| Business Insight, Consultores de Gestão, LdªCarcavelos, Lisboa, Portugal
Dear Alexandre Interesting your question related to Cultural Intelligence Thanks for sharing
I would include in "Understand first before being understood" and, on that journey, having the possibility to acquire a high cultural background
There is a lot of information and data on the internet about other peoples, other cultures Searching Google on this topic should be a daily practice
In the world we live in, it is essential to have what you have called QC
Footnote: We, the Portuguese, are "experts" on this topic :-)
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1 reply by Alexandre Costa
Jan 22, 2020 3:29 PM
Alexandre Costa
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Luís,
Thank you for sharing your opinion.
PS: the term QC is not mine, originally, the term cultural intelligence and the abbreviation "CQ" was developed by the research done by Christopher Earley (2002) and Earley and Soon Ang (2003) , in the next years it was also investigated and developed by several reputed scientists and researchers.
Cultural Intelligence as a U.S. military term did not gain prominence until the late 20th century with the rise of low-intensity and counterinsurgency warfare. However, the importance of cultural intelligence has only recently become commonly accepted with the counterinsurgency campaigns the U.S. has conducted in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Alexandre
Saving Changes...
Alexandre CostaScrum Master| Integer Consulting - Pictet technologiesLoures, Portugal
Jan 22, 2020 2:42 PM
Replying to Luis Branco
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Dear Alexandre Interesting your question related to Cultural Intelligence Thanks for sharing
I would include in "Understand first before being understood" and, on that journey, having the possibility to acquire a high cultural background
There is a lot of information and data on the internet about other peoples, other cultures Searching Google on this topic should be a daily practice
In the world we live in, it is essential to have what you have called QC
Footnote: We, the Portuguese, are "experts" on this topic :-)
Luís,
Thank you for sharing your opinion.
PS: the term QC is not mine, originally, the term cultural intelligence and the abbreviation "CQ" was developed by the research done by Christopher Earley (2002) and Earley and Soon Ang (2003) , in the next years it was also investigated and developed by several reputed scientists and researchers.
Cultural Intelligence as a U.S. military term did not gain prominence until the late 20th century with the rise of low-intensity and counterinsurgency warfare. However, the importance of cultural intelligence has only recently become commonly accepted with the counterinsurgency campaigns the U.S. has conducted in Afghanistan and Iraq.
