Managing Multicultural Teams

Managing cross culture teams today means dealing with profoundly different cultures, backgrounds, and languages. Indeed, globalization and the plethora of opportunities given by the international market today lead companies to expand rapidly by entering new markets. Coordinating time zones, work ethics, and different verbal and nonverbal languages is a stimulating challenge for managers. In this article we will discuss how a company can build and develop productive and effective multicultural teams and what benefits this job can bring to the business. The article is aimed at all international teams willing to expand to different regions worldwide.

What Is a Multicultural Team?

But what exactly is a multicultural team, and why is it important to understand it? A multi-cultural team is a collection of employees with different cultural backgrounds (such as language and work ethic, for example) that enable business development. These types of teams (thus composed of members of various ethnicities, religions, and cultures) are increasingly common in businesses willing to expand abroad—such as start-ups, remote employment companies, and international firms. 

Managing multicultural teams, therefore, means coordinating and targeting very disparate members by creating a clear and defined business strategy aimed at a specific goal. There are not just different time zones, different languages and sometimes opposing ways of thinking—but many operational choices to be made in an informed way to create efficient communication and productive collaboration. Ascot International can provide you with a strong hand during the development process with its team of industry-leading experts. 

Benefits of Multicultural Teams

Multicultural-teams can bring substantial benefits to enterprises. Among the main ones are: 

• Diverse perspectives in decision-making: Thanks to the varied viewpoints—due to different cultures and ethics—it is possible to have a broader view during decision-making. This allow managers to consult with those who know a given region or market, avoiding mistakes and breakdowns;
• Greater creativity and innovation: Businesses that rely on people from around the world get a boost in creativity and innovation. In fact, the comparison of different cultures can lead to better integration that promotes business progress;
• Greater understanding of the market: Having so many people from different cultural backgrounds makes it possible to gain insight into the market itself. This is an excellent advantage for firm interfacing with their products or services in an unfamiliar context;
• Possibility of multilingual communications: Different talents will speak different languages, allowing the company to communicate more effectively with the target market and better comprehend it. In addition, having talent in the company who speak different languages also enables the business to grow in various areas of the world;
• Flexible problem solving: Multi-cultural teams tend to develop more significant problem-solving skills. This is due, precisely, to the integration of very different cultures and increased internal flexibility due to the considerable difficulties present on international markets. 

But how to manage these teams to achieve advantages? By creating clear and prompt communication between departments, encouraging collective opinions, and not creating a hierarchical structure—but respecting everyone’s opinion. Doing so will provide the company with an agile, proactive, and flexible structure. This will give it a significant competitive advantage over its competitors. 

Challenges of Managing Cross-Cultural Teams

Despite the clear benefits, some typical difficulties may arise when managing intercultural teams. 

• Miscommunication: This lack is often due to language differences and poor communication between team members.
• Differences in hierarchy and authority: Each culture has its own approach to authority. For example, some cultures prefer more horizontal decisions—others instead tend towards a rigid and top-down approach. 
• Contrats towards time orientation: Each culture has different deadline flexibility. Take this into account when giving directions—some may take them literally, others consider them a guideline.

That’s why a good business advisory service such as Ascot’s can help you identify and recognize these factors. 

How to Manage Multicultural Teams Effectively

Understanding how to manage multicultural teams enables the development of an inclusive and respectful environment that is appropriate for all. Here are some aspects to analyze: 

• Psychological safety: A calm environment allows for open and honest dialogue, with no one feeling judged or unheard;
• Communication and clear workflow: Setting up clear communication that respects others’ cultures allows greater productivity. In addition, setting up a realistic and precise workflow with equally precise deadlines can markedly improve team management;
• Common rules for all: Establish standard rules for all cultures and make sure they are adhered to indiscriminately;
• Knowledge sharing: Make sure that cultural sharing is continuous so as to bridge any gaps and align expectations;
• Onboarding and continuing education: Support newcomers by integrating them as smoothly as possible. Provide ongoing training for all talent so they stay current and competitive. 

Creating a transparent, communicative, and sincere business climate gives you a competitive advantage. Patience is also a quality—accepting everyone’s opinion to improve internally is essential. 

Leadership Skills for Multicultural Management

Being a good leader requires knowledge of how to manage cross cultural teams. The aspects to consider are varied but they all rely on communication, listening and conflict resolution. 

• Understand cultural diversity and respect it. Each member has different values and ways of showing them.
• Set up proactive communication and develop your observational abilities. This requires superior listening skills: thinking about giving orders, listening to everyone’s needs, and monitoring non-verbal language. 
• Learn to manage conflicts with neutrality. Promote confrontation and try to mediate effectively by finding compromises.
• Learn to adapt. Adapt your leadership style to be context and situation. 

If you can establish a frank and transparent relationship with the teams, you can also promote better cohesion between different company cultures.

Tools and Technologies to Support Multicultural Teams

Using the right tools allows you to better manage teams. Use Slack, Teams, or Zoom communication tools and manage teams via Asana, Trello, or Monday.com. Also, ensure collaboration with Google Workspace or Notion while coordinating different time zones with Google Calendar or World Time Buddy. 

When it comes to time zones, promote asynchronous work by making sure that teams perform when they are most productive. This is done by not forcing them to operate on rigid schedules unsuitable for everyone. 

Case Examples

Here are three concrete examples in different areas to further clarify the importance of managing culturally various teams. 

• Global marketing team: A marketing campaign will be launched in three market regions—the USA, Europe, and Asia. The team will develop a coherent marketing campaign in three markets, adapting the message to different cultural contexts.
• Distributed engineering team: A team of engineers, for example, may operate from different time zones and find it difficult to coordinate their jobs efficiently. Organizing positions synchronously and providing the necessary tools and shared objectives overcomes this barrier.
• Start-ups in expansions: A European start-up could start negotiations in Asia and Australia. In this case, leaders must invest in cultural training and provide flexibility. 

FAQs

What does managing multicultural teams involve?

It requires the management of teams with different cultural and linguistic backgrounds from a communicative, relational, and operational point of view. 

Why is managing cross cultural teams important in global business?

Because it allows you to interface with different markets simpler and more effectively. This is thanks to transversal skills and increased linguistic and cultural knowledge. 

What is the biggest challenge in managing multicultural teams?

The greatest difficulties to overcome are communication problems and cultural differences. These aspects can lead to conflicts and inefficiencies due to profoundly different working styles. 

Can multicultural teams be more productive than single-culture teams?

Absolutely. If well managed, multi-cultural teams will lead to better performance thanks to a greater propensity for innovation and flexibility.

Should managers receive training for managing diverse teams?

Yes. Specific training for multi-cultural team leaders is strongly recommended to avoid conflicts and misunderstandings. 

Reference

Brett, J., Behfar, K., & Kern, M. C. (2006). Managing multicultural teams. Harvard Business Review, 84(11), 84–91.
https://hbr.org/2006/11/managing-multicultural-teams

Stahl, G. K., Mäkelä, K., Zander, L., & Maznevski, M. L. (2010). A look at the bright side of multicultural team diversity. Scandinavian Journal of Management, 26(4), 439–447.
https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/scaman/v26y2010i4p439-447.html

Edmondson, A. C. (2019). The fearless organization: Creating psychological safety in the workplace for learning, innovation, and growth. John Wiley & Sons.
https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=54851