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3 Tips for Leading Diverse Teams

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Let’s be honest: It can be challenging to lead a diverse and inclusive team. You’re responsible for creating an environment where people with different perspectives, backgrounds, thinking styles and communication styles can collaborate and flourish. But promoting diversity and inclusion is critical in today’s business environment, and can give your team a strong balance of skills and insight that can lead to meaningful, impactful results.

The correlation between workforce diversity and business performance is well established. McKinsey & Company puts it plainly: “Our latest report shows not only that the business case remains robust but also that the relationship between diversity on executive teams and the likelihood of financial outperformance has strengthened over time.” Scientific American explains why:

“Decades of research by organizational scientists, psychologists, sociologists, economists and demographics show that socially diverse groups (that is, those with a diversity of race, ethnicity, gender and sexual orientation) are more innovative than homogenous groups.”

There are many factors to consider when building a business case for diverse teams. Two of the most important ones are:

  • Demographics in the United States are shifting, and more diverse voices on your staff mean a greater understanding of a more diverse customer base.
  • Your suppliers, business partners and supply chains are also becoming more diverse, and you need to be able to communicate effectively with them
  • Diversity can reduce the risk of groupthink, a dangerous consequence that occurs when all team members think alike, creative ideas aren’t considered, and assumptions aren’t challenged.

Tip 1: Show Cultural Dexterity

Ignoring cultural differences will put you on the fast track to disaster. Instead, learn to respect and embrace the things that make your team members different. Korn Ferry, the consulting company, says, “Assimilating one culture at a time, or approaching people as one dimensional, simply is not an option” — especially in a globalized workforce!

Author Andy Molinksy, a professor at Brandeis University, describes cultural dexterity (also called global dexterity) as “the ability to successfully adapt your behavior in a foreign culture without losing yourself in the process.”

There are many dimensions to cultural dexterity. Molinsky says that learning about cultural differences is a good start, but leaders need to go further and “be able to adapt or shift your behavior in light of these differences.”

Tip 2: Develop Emotional Intelligence

Emotional intelligence is a trait shared by strong, inspiring leaders — and it can be learned. Psychology Today defines emotional intelligence as the ability to “identify and manage one’s own emotions, as well as the emotions of others.”

Psychologist Daniel Goleman says, “the more we can empathize with our colleagues and team members—take their point of view—the better we can leverage their experience and talent as applied to a business challenge.”

Goleman says there are five elements of emotional intelligence:

  • Self-awareness
  • Self-regulation
  • Motivation
  • Empathy
  • Social skills

Investing time into developing these skills may help you become a more adept leader for diverse teams.

Tip 3: Communicate Thoughtfully

Don’t let poor communication hinder your diverse team’s ability to thrive. Here are some things to keep in mind:

  • Speaking styles and body language can vary by culture — which is especially important to remember if your team has members from other countries!
  • Be aware of your assumptions
  • Respect others and be open to their ideas

Active listening is a skill that can help you communicate well as the leader of a diverse team. A classic Harvard Business Review article calls active listening “critical” in a multicultural workplace:

To bosses and employees alike, listening across cultures can sometimes be the most challenging communication skill to learn. But the less foreign it is, the less volatile — and the more successful — a workplace will be.

Mindtools provides several tips for active listening, such as:

  • Pay attention
  • Defer judgment
  • Ask clarifying questions
  • Don’t interrupt to make counterarguments
  • Provide open feedback

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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