Cultural Sensitivity

 

Did you know that:

• In Japan a call is more effective than a letter?
• You should wrap gifts in green paper for an Afghan wedding.
• Brides wear Red in India.
• In the United Arab Emirates, the workweek traditionally starts on Saturday and
ends on Wednesday.

 

These are just some of the very interesting facts I have learned from  Sujata Chaudhry and Vera Dordick, the Principals at Tangible Development LLC. They carved out a unique niche in upstate New York teaching cultural sensitivity. They sat down to answer some questions about what they do and why their services are becoming more and more valuable.

 

1- Tell us when you started your business and what Tangible Development does.

 

We launched Tangible Development two and a half years ago. We provide custom cross-
cultural awareness training for corporate clients across a wide spectrum of industries. Our
training course typically includes:
• What is cultural awareness and what key cross-cultural skills do these employees
require
• Cultural values and attitudes and their impact on work
• Cross-cultural communication styles and the expectations of multicultural teams
• Virtual communication: practical challenges and strategies
• How to enable trust within a cross-cultural team
• Best practices for handling cross-cultural disagreements and conflicts
• Guidelines to create a “third culture” to improve team cohesion
• Action planning and skills development.

 

2- Did your company always provide diversity awareness training- and when did you
notice a need for this type of service?

 

Tri City Rentals is one of our clients. They are very forward-thinking and asked
us to train their management and property leasing agents across New York State.
Their apartment communities have many multicultural renters and staff were often
challenged by different communication styles and the desire to understand the
various cultures. Now, after the training, TriCity agents are able to build rapport with
multicultural tenants, communicate property rules and policies more effectively, and
negotiate contracts more efficiently.

 

Both of us have international backgrounds and have always been involved in some
capacity with diverse populations. The need for cross-cultural training has always
existed…but technology has now put the world on our doorstep and the need is
heightened.

 

Becoming aware of our cultural dynamics is hard because we learn our culture at an
unconscious level. Our experiences, our values and our cultural background lead us
to see and do things in a certain way. Training helps you step outside of your cultural
boundaries and realize the impact that your own culture has on your behavior. It’s also
important to learn and evaluate how others perceive us to understand ourselves.

 

3- What would be something that the average person wouldn’t know (culturally, or
diversity related) that may surprise them about upstate new york.

So many things! Just here in the Capital Region:

Crossgates Mall shows Indian movies in Hindi, a language spoken in India, every
week.

We have more than 25 different ethnic markets.

The region has religious institutions or community organizations representing more
than 19 different cultures/countries.

Some retail establishments, like drug store chains, provide translation services.

 

4-Can you talk about the different demographics in upstate ny (Hudson valley,
capital region, central new york and western ny)?

 

The demographics across Upstate New York are definitely changing.

 

The U.S. Census reports that since 2000, foreign-born residents are the state’s fastest growing population. That said, the region is still not as diverse as comparable-sized metro areas.

According to the Capital District Business Review, the foreign-born population of the Capital Region’s four core counties climbed 45.5 percent between 2000 and 2010—far outpacing
the overall population increase of 5.5 percent.

Evan Lowesnstein of Empire State Future
says that this increase in diversity brings new energy, ideas and values to the state, giving
stagnant local economies new hope and revitalizing cities across the state. Lowenstein
uses the example of Utica, which lost half its population since its peak in the 1960s. The
city’s population grew by 2,000 people in 2000-2010, almost entirely due to foreign-born
residents who moved to Utica. Buffalo’s foreign-born population is also increasing. These
newcomers are also highly educated: He points out that almost half of the immigrants to
the Buffalo-Niagara area hold undergraduate degrees.

The backgrounds of the state’s international newcomers are also diverse. While Utica is
now home to resettled refugees from 31 different countries, 40 percent of these residents
are from Bosnia and Hercegovina. Towns like Mt. Kisco in Westchester County grew 10
percent, mostly from an influx of Guatemalan immigrants, Loewenstein says. Here in
the Capital Region, the US Census showed that more than one-third of our foreign born
population is Asian, of which 23 percent are eastern Asians and 37 percent are south
Central Asians (mostly India and Pakistan.) Newcomers from the Americas are also one-
third of the foreign-born population.

 

5-As women who are in the world of teaching people to be culturally sensitive and
accepting to differences- can you offer a couple of tips on how to be sensitive to
others and navigate the way through meeting and making friends with people who
are of different cultures and backgrounds?

 

Even though the companies we train are varied, there are a number of things that
employees – whether they are executives, mid-level managers or front-line workers – can
keep in mind when interacting with multicultural clients and colleagues. The first thing to remember is that we live in a wonderful world full of different cultures, not to be afraid of people who are different, and to recognize that to others, we too are different.

 

• Don’t be afraid to say you don’t know much about a culture. Ask questions
and don’t rely on stereotypes, such as “all people from India are vegetarians.”
Be sensitive when asking questions.
• Don’t judge people before you learn about them.
• Imagine what it’s like, coming to a new country where they don’t speak your
native language and starting anew. Try to look at things from the newcomer’s
perspective.
• Keep an open mind. You can learn much from people of other cultures, as
they can from you.

 

If you would like to learn more about the services offered by Tangible Management. Please click HERE.