Transcript How to Communicate With Employees From Different Cultures.

Important Facts to Know About
Hispanic Employees to Help
Communication in the Workplace.
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Over the past 30 years, the Hispanic population has exhibited
tremendous growth in the United States. Hispanics comprise
about 11% of the U.S. population, including 3.6 million residing in
the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Approximately 31 million
individuals are identified as Hispanics. The U.S. Hispanic
population is projected to become the largest minority group by
the year 2006. Seventy percent of the Hispanic population is
concentrated in four states - California, Texas, New York, and
Florida. Mexican is the largest ethnic subdivision of Hispanics in
the United States, comprising about 63.3%, followed by Central
and South American (14.4%), Puerto Rican (10.6%), Cuban (4.2%),
and other Hispanics (7.4%).
Hispanic is a term created by the U.S. federal government in the
early 1970s in an attempt to provide a common denominator to a
large, but diverse, population with connection to the Spanish
language or culture from a Spanish-speaking country. The term
Latino is increasingly gaining acceptance among Hispanics, and
the term reflects the origin of the population in Latin America.
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Understand relativism: some things are
relative to some particular frame or reference,
such as a language or a culture. Understand
that people from other cultures might have
entirely differently value systems than yours,
but still not be explicitly wrong.
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Give proper personal space: Different cultures
have different norms regarding what personal
space is public (in which other humans can
stand and converse with you) and private
(reserved only for your dear ones.
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Do not belittle their religion: Remember, most
people believe passionately in their religions,
and what strikes you as unreal, may be his
constant truth. If you have trouble dealing with
it, you may wish to skirt the topic of religion
altogether.
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Learn to recognize physical cues: The gamut
of Cultures contain a physical-gesture
kaleidoscope. Often when people visit other
countries, they get lost and miss subtle cultural
cues, which leads them to misinterpret others.
The use of irony, the implication of a laugh, are
many times visible only through the squinting
of the eyes, the shaking of the hand, which a
cultural outsider might miss.
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Know relationship differences: Many
foreigners think American relationships are
superficial (with a brief "Hi, Jim", and never a
backward glance). Americans might think
relationships in other cultures are too
sentimental. So, know that if a person strikes
you as too voluble or withdrawn, it may be
considered normal in his culture.
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Learn about their culture: Learn about the
greetings, the goodbye rituals, the before-meal
ceremonies, the food, the clothes. If some catch
your fancy, you might even try them! This will
help you understand people from other
cultures.
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Accept there may be lapses in
communication: Even the best communicators
fall short when jumping across the vast cultural
chasm. Humor and non-defensiveness are the
best bridges at such times.
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Ask: There is no better tool for effective
communication. If something strikes you as
funny or inappropriate, if you feel the other
person is neglecting you or is offended, simply
ask him what you can do to remedy the
problem. Grievances are like silence- broken
when they are spoken out.
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Speak in a clear voice, minimizing an accent if
possible. Someone from a different culture may
have limited communication skills in your
native language.
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Remain patient when someone from a different
culture that has trouble understanding you.
Repeat your message paraphrasing as needed
to get the meaning across.
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Develop active listening skills to understand
what is being said. Allow them to express their
thoughts before responding; focus on what
they are trying to express without making
judgments about their character or personality.
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Pay attention to nonverbal communication.
Hand gestures, facial expressions, posture and
personal space all convey different meanings
across cultures. Understand the culture of the
person you're dealing with to adjust nonverbal
interactions.
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2. Nonverbal Communication
93% of communication is in tone and body
language, and therefore a large source of cross
cultural miscommunication. Most Americans
prefer “personal space” and leave about 2 feet
between them when speaking. Americans are “low
touch.” They may shake hands but usually don’t
kiss. Hispanic culture is “high touch.” People may
kiss on the cheek, touch during conversation, and
stand closer than many Americans are comfortable
with. Possible Workplace Conflict: “High touch”
behavior in the workplace might be seen as overly
friendly, inappropriate, and in some cases
considered sexual harassment.
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3. Preferred Leadership Style
A study by the National Community for Latino
Leadership found that only Latinos emphasized
compassion and caring as qualities they want to
see in leaders. American manager usually do not
get involved in the personal lives of their
employees, focusing primarily on performance.
Possible Workplace Conflict: A manager who
focuses solely on the bottom line may be seen as
cold, and not get the same commitment from staff
as the manager who seeks to build relationships
and show compassion.