To be effective communicators in global organisations, we need to know our way around the world, understanding how to connect to – and with – people thousands of miles apart in diverse cultures and with different needs.

 

Organisations increasingly need to navigate their way around the world to succeed. As internal communicators, we have to be globetrotters too. It’s becoming almost a cliché to say it, but we need to be able to think global and act local, understanding the corporate strategy and working out how to use communication to help people in far-flung parts of the world play their part in delivering it.

 

Our research over the last few years has explored numerous questions related to the global comms challenge through a variety of lenses. Where should internal comms sit – in the centre, in localised business-partner-type roles, a blend of the two? What are the key global demographic trends we should be aware of? What should we think about when we communicate with different national cultures? How do engagement levels differ across the globe, and what do we need to consider when we’re carrying out measurement exercises in different countries? And what are the secrets of fast, accurate and meaningful translation?

 

As more work is sent to distant parts of the globe, organisations will see more of their relationships with workers becoming virtual. Moreover, if work is outsourced, those relationships could be with someone else’s staff. Hierarchical structures are disappearing and boundaries are becoming blurred. Organisations are more like social networks. People have relationships with business divisions, countries, professional functions, strategic alliances and outsourcing partners.

 

Someone providing services to your organisation may be working with several others too.

 

Our research suggests there are five golden rules for working with national cultures.

 

1. Understand people as individuals. Get to know people working inside the country to understand their communication preferences and expectations. Guidelines about cultural characteristics in different countries are helpful, but can never be more than generalisations. Do your own groundwork.

2. Become conscious of your own cultural preferences and beliefs. You have to understand your own style before you can compare it with someone else’s, spot the differences between the two and see where there might be problems with communication. Ironically, research into this issue suggests that people can easily recognise the cultural characteristics of other nationalities, but generally have problems recognising their own!

3. However much we might try, we can’t help but see things from the perspective of our own culture and experience. While we can’t “take off our cultural spectacles”, we can at least become conscious that we’re wearing them and think about how this might affect our perceptions and interactions with other people.

4. Suspend judgement - listen and learn. Respect local knowledge. Their solutions might not work in your country, but may work perfectly well in theirs.

5. Don’t make assumptions. Accepted wisdom about what constitutes effective communication in your culture may be totally inappropriate in another. For example, while leaders who involve their teams in decision-making and ask for their opinions are held up as shining examples of engagement in the West, employees in Russia expect their leaders to be strong and directive. If not, they’re seen as less authoritative, less in control, and uncertain about the company’s direction.

 

It’s worth checking regularly whether you’re sticking to these principles. Many companies start out saying all the right things and putting plans in place, but in practice people instinctively fall back on what they know.