How to Communicate with Your Spanish & Asian Employees by Kimberley Hicks

Author:Kimberley Hicks
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Atlantic Publishing Group, Inc.
Published: 2004-06-15T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 5

The Workplace

The art of communication is the language of leadership.

—James Humes

Effective Management

To successfully operate a business made up of people with diverse backgrounds, effective managers are willing and able to build a team that brings together different points of view to meet a common goal or goals, such as higher profits, better customer service, cooperation and understanding, etc. They foster an environment where every person is able to contribute to their full potential. It takes time—sometimes a long time—to change attitudes and ensure true collaboration takes place, among employees and between employees and management. Some of the critical elements that allow that collaboration are awareness, openness, empathy and leadership.

• Awareness. Effective managers and employers recognize when and where the barriers to communication and success exist. They learn about other cultural values to understand better how to bridge the gap by asking questions and observing behavior. They are aware of their own assumptions about people from other cultures, and the fact that their own cultural norms may not apply to their employees. The one correct assumption they do make is that theirs is not the only way to communicate.

• Openness. Effective managers are willing to try different approaches to communicating and are willing to practice them until they are comfortable and successful at conveying—and receiving—real messages. They look for and encourage ways to make communication work rather than blame the other party for the failure.

• Empathy. Effective managers acknowledge the feelings and interests of their employees by actively listening to their message and responding in a genuine and appropriate way. They suspend judgment about the person and evaluate the issue according to how it affects the individual’s and the company’s success.

• Leadership. Good business leaders and managers have a vision of where the company is, where it should be and how to get it there. They share that vision by open communication and personal example to motivate and inspire employees to follow. But it doesn’t happen automatically; it takes trust, commitment and time to exercise the qualities of a good leader. A good leader:

• Implements a team approach, facilitating cooperation and group decision-making.

• Demonstrates company standards of high performance.

• Gives direction without micromanaging.

• Delegates authority and trusts the ability of team members.

• Encourages individual strengths of employees (especially when they lack those strengths themselves).

• Treats everyone fairly but not necessarily the same way (responds to individual needs).

• Supports team by offering advice or help when requested (acts as a coach).

• Evaluates problems and performance objectively and constructively.

• Listens with understanding and open to creative problem-solving.

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