Navigating the Cultural Minefield

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Cross-cultural management

by

Erin Meyer

by

Erin Meyer

From the Magazine (May 2014)

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Summary.

Reprint: R1405K As we increasingly work with colleagues and clients who come from all parts of the world, it is vital to understand how cultural differences affect business. Yet too often we rely on cliches and stereotypes that lead us to false assumptions. To help managers negotiate the complexity of an international work team, INSEAD professor Erin Meyer has developed a tool called the Culture Map, which plots the positions of numerous nationalities along eight behavior scales: Communicating, Evaluating, Persuading, Leading, Deciding, Trusting, Disagreeing, and Scheduling. Meyer suggests that comparing the relative positions of different nationalities along these scales can help us decode how culture influences workplace dynamics. She adds four important rules: Don’t underestimate the challenge. Management and work styles stem from lifelong habits that can be hard to change. Apply multiple perspectives. Be aware of your own expectations and behaviors, but also consider how members of other cultures perceive you and fellow teammates. Find the positive in other approaches. The differences that people of varied backgrounds bring to a work group can be great assets. Continually adjust your position. Be prepared to keep adapting your behavior to meld with the styles of your colleagues.

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When Aaron arrived in Moscow to take charge of the manufacturing plant his Israeli-owned company had just purchased, he expected to settle in quickly. Although he’d grown up in Tel Aviv, his parents were Russian-born, so he knew the culture and spoke the language well. He’d been highly successful managing Israeli teams and had led a large organization in Canada. Yet six months into his new job, he was still struggling to supervise his team in Moscow. What, specifically, was he doing wrong?

May 2014

Read more on Cross-cultural management or related topic Managing people

EM Erin Meyer is a professor at INSEAD, where she directs the executive education program Leading Across Borders and Cultures. She is the author of The Culture Map: Breaking Through the Invisible Boundaries of Global Business (PublicAffairs, 2014) and coauthor (with Reed Hastings) of No Rules Rules: Netflix and the Culture of Reinvention (Penguin, 2020). ErinMeyerINSEAD

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Navigation Menu. Subscribe. Sign In. Account Menu Account Menu Hi,  Guest. Search Menu. Close menu. CLEAR. SUGGESTED TOPICS. Explore HBR. Latest. The Magazine. Ascend. Podcasts. Video. Store. Webinars. Newsletters. Popular Topics. Managing Yourself. Leadership. Strategy. Managing Teams. Gender. Innovation. Work-life Balance. All Topics. For Subscribers. The Big Idea. Data & Visuals. Reading Lists. Case Selections. HBR Learning. Subscribe. My Account. My Library. Topic Feeds. Orders. Account Settings. Email Preferences. Log Out. Sign In. Subscribe. Latest. Podcasts. Video. The Magazine. Ascend. Store. Webinars. Newsletters. All Topics. The Big Idea. Data & Visuals. Reading Lists. Case Selections. HBR Learning. My Library. Account Settings. Log Out. Sign In. Your Cart. Visit Our Store. My Library. Topic Feeds. Orders. Account Settings. Email Preferences. Log Out. Reading Lists. 1 free. s. last free article. Subscribe. Create an account. Cross-cultural management. by. Erin Meyer. by. Erin Meyer. From the Magazine (May 2014) Tweet. Post. Share. Annotate. Save. Get PDF. Buy Copies. Print. Summary. Reprint: R1405K As we increasingly work with colleagues and clients who come from all parts of the world, it is vital to understand how cultural differences affect business. Yet too often we rely on cliches and stereotypes that lead us to false assumptions. To help managers negotiate the complexity of an international work team, INSEAD professor Erin Meyer has developed a tool called the Culture Map, which plots the positions of numerous nationalities along eight behavior scales: Communicating, Evaluating, Persuading, Leading, Deciding, Trusting, Disagreeing, and Scheduling. Meyer suggests that comparing the relative positions of different nationalities along these scales can help us decode how culture influences workplace dynamics. She adds four important rules: Don’t underestimate the challenge. Management and work styles stem from lifelong habits that can be hard to change. Apply multiple perspectives. Be aware of your own expectations and behaviors, but also consider how members of other cultures perceive you and fellow teammates. Find the positive in other approaches. The differences that people of varied backgrounds bring to a work group can be great assets. Continually adjust your position. Be prepared to keep adapting your behavior to meld with the styles of your colleagues. Tweet. Post. Share. Annotate. Save. Get PDF. Buy Copies. Print. When Aaron arrived in Moscow to take charge of the manufacturing plant his Israeli-owned company had just purchased, he expected to settle in quickly. Although he’d grown up in Tel Aviv, his parents were Russian-born, so he knew the culture and spoke the language well. He’d been highly successful managing Israeli teams and had led a large organization in Canada. Yet six months into his new job, he was still struggling to supervise his team in Moscow. What, specifically, was he doing wrong? May 2014. Read more on Cross-cultural management or related topic Managing people. EM Erin Meyer is a professor at INSEAD, where she directs the executive education program Leading Across Borders and Cultures. She is the author of The Culture Map: Breaking Through the Invisible Boundaries of Global Business (PublicAffairs, 2014) and coauthor (with Reed Hastings) of No Rules Rules: Netflix and the Culture of Reinvention (Penguin, 2020). ErinMeyerINSEAD. Tweet. Post. Share. Annotate. Save. Get PDF. Buy Copies. Print. Read more on Cross-cultural management or related topic Managing people. Partner Center. Latest. Magazine. Ascend. Topics. Podcasts. Video. Store. The Big Idea. Data & Visuals. Case Selections. HBR Learning. Subscribe. Explore HBR. The Latest. All Topics. Magazine Archive. The Big Idea. Reading Lists. Case Selections. Video. Podcasts. Webinars. Data & Visuals. My Library. Newsletters. HBR Press. HBR Ascend. HBR Store. Article Reprints. Books. Cases. Collections. Magazine Issues. HBR Guide Series. HBR 20-Minute Managers. HBR Emotional Intelligence Series. HBR Must Reads. Tools. About HBR. Contact Us. Advertise with Us. Information for Booksellers/Retailers. Masthead. Global Editions. Media Inquiries. Guidelines for Authors. HBR Analytic Services. Copyright Permissions. Manage My Account. My Library. Topic Feeds. Orders. Account Settings. Email Preferences. Account FAQ. Help Center. Contact Customer Service. Follow HBR. Facebook. Twitter. LinkedIn. Instagram. Your Newsreader. About Us. Careers. Privacy Policy. Cookie Policy. Copyright Information. Trademark Policy. Higher Education. Corporate Learning. Harvard Business Review. Harvard Business School.