Style Switching: Bridging Cultural Gaps in the Workplace

CULTURAL HARMONY: WORKING IN A MULTI-CULTURAL COMPANY 1
©2017 ITAP International, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 11
Style Switching: Bridging
Cultural Gaps in Workplace
©2017 ITAP International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

2
Cultural Values Motivate Behavior
• Understanding the cultural values that
motivate behavior in the workplace is a
competitive advantage
– It allows people to understand and anticipate their
colleagues’ behavior
– It allows people to adjust their behavior so that it
would elicit the desired response from the
colleagues, and lead to a desired business
outcome

3
Style Switching
• Changing one’s behavior to align with the
preferences of others is called “style switching.” It is
the topic of this presentation
• Organizations that have managers and employees
who can “style switch” has a competitive advantage
over organizations in which people do not possess
this skill
• Before we explore style switching, we’ll define cultural
values

4
Hofstede’s Framework
• As in previous ITAP presentations, we define
cultural values by drawing on Prof. Geert
Hofstede’s framework
• In Hofstede’s framework, cultural values are
organized along six dimensions
– Each dimension is a continuum
– At each end of a continuum is a distinct value
orientation

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1. Individualism (Individual or Group Orientation) - the
degree to which action is taken for the benefit of the
individual or the benefit of the group
2. Power Distance (Hierarchical or Participative
Orientation) - the extent to which the less powerful expect
and accept that power is distributed unequally
3. Certainty (Need for Certainty or Tolerance for Ambiguity)
- the extent to which people prefer rules, regulations and
controls, or are comfortable with ambiguity
Hofstede’s Dimensions

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4. Achievement (Achievement or Quality of Life
Orientation) - the degree to which we focus on goal
achievement and work, or quality of life and caring for others
5. Time Orientation (Long- or Short-term Orientation) - the
fostering of virtues that promote a long-term (perseverance
and thrift) or short-term time horizon (preserving present
benefits)
6. Indulgence (Indulgence or Restraint) - the tendency to
allow relatively free gratification or the conviction that such
gratification needs to be curbed
Hofstede’s Dimensions

7
Cultural Dimensions in the Workplace
• As we mentioned, each dimension is a
continuum:
For example, the Individualism Dimension has
Individual Orientation at one end of the continuum,
and Group Orientation at the other end
Colleagues whose values lie at opposite side of a
continuum might encounter some challenges
working together
 Each also has an advantage

Advantages of Each Orientation
Individual Orientation
Self-reliance
Group Orientation
Interdependence
Hierarchical Orientation
Discipline
Participative Orientation
Acceptance of Responsibility
Need for Certainty
Precision
Tolerance for Ambiguity
Innovation
Achievement Orientation
Efficiency
Quality of Life Orientation
Custom Outputs & Personal Service
Long-Term Orientation
Developing New Market
Opportunities
Short-Term Orientation
Fast Adaptation
Individualism
Power Distance
Certainty
Achievement
Time Orientation

9
Scenario: Procurement Team
• Imagine a global workplace in which
some people have a Short-Term
Orientation and others a Long-Term
Orientation. Tasked with choosing a
vendor, they might have a difficult time
coming to an agreement

10
• Managers with a Short-Term Orientation will
tend to prefer vendors who promise gains in
terms of quarterly profit
• Managers with a Long-Term Orientation will
tend to prefer vendors who talk about
advantages that will be realized over the
longer term such as increase in market share

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• The managers’ conflicting preferences
would make it difficult for them to select
a vendor
• And this is just one example of how
colleagues with contrasting cultural
orientations might have a difficult time
getting work done

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Advice for Working Effectively Across
Cultural Differences
• Working across cultural differences is a challenge
• The next few slides present advice to managers on
how to work with colleagues who behave differently
than expected
• Some of the advice asks managers to anticipate the
preferences of others and consider changing their
behavior accordingly—in other words to consider
style switching

13
Individualism…
If your values align with Individual Orientation and you are interacting
with someone with a Group Orientation….
Learn that others will respond after considering the group interests and impact
of your expectations…
…and that they may expect and require consultation before making or acting on
a decision.
If you meet resistance, passive or active, identify the common interests and
outcomes up-front; make the collective case…
Be patient; learn to trust the team to deliver when they have collectively worked
out how…
Know that others may expect you to put the team interests before their or your
own self-interests, and that is OK…

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Recognizing Style Switching Advice
• In some cases, it might be wise to style
switch, and communicate or behave in
a manner that would align with the
preferences of others
• What style switching advice is found in
the previous slide?
______________________________
______________________________

15
Style Switching Advice
• In the next slide, there is the following
advice to a person with a Hierarchical
Orientation who wants to work more
effectively with someone with a
Participate Orientation:
“They know you have power; you don’t
have to always use it; allow others to make
decisions and guide them if they go wrong”

16
Power Distance...
If your values align with Hierarchical Orientation and you are interacting
with someone with a Participative Orientation…
Learn that others expect to be consulted and required to contribute before the decision;
that helps make things happen…
…so be sensitive to irritation and hang on a bit, ask opinions, encourage ideas and show
that you’ve taken them seriously.
They know you have power; you don’t have to always use it; allow others to make
decisions and guide them if they go wrong.
Recognize that others are happy to access the lower levels in the business if that works;
your clients may not need you if someone in your team can do it for them…
Know that others may not see that their loyalty will be reciprocated; they may not trust you
to protect them if they take the hit.

17
Recognizing Style Switching Advice
• What other advice about style switching
is found in the previous slide?
_______________________________
_______________________________

18
Style Switching Advice
• Which of the advice about style
switching that you have been exposed
to thus far applies to you?
______________________________
______________________________

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• For more insight about working effectively
across cultures, contact ITAP
• ITAP is one of only 2 companies worldwide
endorsed by Dr. Hofstede and approved to
represent his research
"This [approval] is due to their
professionalism and deep understanding
of my work.”
• An Ivy League university partners with ITAP
to certify its coaches in the CWQ.

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ITAP CWQ database includes over 8,000 respondents.
Results correlate highly with Hofstede’s data. The CWQ is
currently available in:
– English
– Latin American Spanish
– European Spanish
– French
– German
– Korean
– Chinese
– Questions and instructions only (not the report) are in
Danish and Japanese

Your results
compared to
country
averages
Explanation of
your results
Individual
orientation
Group
orientation

23
QUADRANT
CHARTS:
• The CWQ
application can
produce quadrant
charts that compare
the results of a group
of people along any
two cultural
dimensions
• The quadrant chart to
the right compares the
Individualism and
Power Distance scores
of a group of people.
• The chart includes
country scores ©2017 ITAP International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

24
Hofstede Country Culture
Analysis Australia
Analysis
Germany
Hofstede Country Culture Analysis
Mexico
Analysis China
Analysis India
Hofstede Country CultureAnalysisUnited Arab Emirates

25
• One time licensing fee for organizations with 1-10
employees is $2,500 and includes certification of 1
person (virtual certification is fine)
• Embedded in this fee are 25 free uses of this tool
($1,750 value)
• The usage fee is $70 / user
• Use is required to retain license (at least once every
12 months). If there is no usage within 12 months,
license renewal is $3,000 / year
• No admin fees: Certification ensures independent
access to the on-line tool

26

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ITAP is prepared toITAP is prepared to
provide demonstrationsprovide demonstrations
of its Intellectualof its Intellectual
Property to qualifiedProperty to qualified
licensorslicensors
Who licenses the CWQ?
•Human Resource professional in large organizations
•Consulting firms seeking the capability to assess
cultural values at the individual, group and
organizational levels

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Improving Competitive Advantage
• Our services focus on:
1. Global talent retention and development
2. Effectiveness of the senior team and mission
critical global teams
3. Global leader and global workforce development
4. Cross-border transformation and change
• Ensure that culture is an asset, not a
barrier in your global business.

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Catherine Mercer Bing
CEO, ITAP International, Inc.
Managing Director, ITAP Americas, Inc.
353 Nassau Street, First Floor
Princeton, NJ 08540 USA
(W) +1.215.860.5640
(M) +1.609.937.1557
www.Itapintl.com
cbing@itapintl.com
SKYPE: CatherineBing

Style Switching: Bridging Cultural Gaps in the Workplace

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