Members
Newsletter
March 2003
Headlines
Features
(invited)
Reviews:
SIETAR
Europa Statutes Revisions
A
letter to the membership from Francien Wieringa, SIETAR Europa
Board President.
Dear
members of SIETAR Europa,
The
board of SIETAR Europa, in close consultation with the Presidents
of the national SIETAR's, has formulated several amendments
to the statutes of SIETAR Europa for your approval at the next
General Assembly in Budapest.
Introduction-why
these changes?
Historically, SIETAR Europa was the first European SIETAR. As
time went on, the growth and success of the organization resulted
in the founding of local chapters in a number of countries,
and there are currently several new national SIETARs being formed.
As
a result, we now need update how the national SIETARs and SIETAR
Europa support and interact with each other to serve all our
members more efficiently.
On
one hand, SIETAR Europa still keeps its function as an organization
for direct members who do not have a local SIETAR to belong
to because of their location or language. On the other hand,
it needs to serve more effectively as a coordinating body for
supranational SIETAR concerns and services. To do this, its
statutes should be updated reflect this growth and the needed
change of focus.
Current
transitions-what is happening?
Since the last General Assembly in Vienna, the Board of SIETAR
Europa and the Presidents of the National SIETARs have met twice.
In our last meeting in Utrecht, we fully agreed that SIETAR
Europa was in an important transition in terms of how it relates
to and works with the other SIETARs.
Secondly,
we were clear that the overall identity of the SIETAR organizations
has also been changing. We are no longer small groups of colleagues,
but are becoming a substantial network of professionals and
professional organizations.
In
sum, during this meeting we agreed that:
- SIETAR
Europa in conjunction with the National SIETARs should recognize
and take charge of this process of transformation.
- We
need to re-structure the nature of the relationship between
the SE Board and the national SIETARs to solidify connections
and improve communications between them.
- It
is important to make the organization and activities of SIETAR
more and more professional.
- Our
statutes should be revised to make it clear that all European
SIETAR groups and members are "SIETAR Europa", This
means that we start thinking and acting as a whole, rather
than thinking in terms of "us" (national groups)
and "them" (SIETAR Europa).
Steps
to implementation-how will we respond to these transitions?
We agree that the first important step in this transition would
be to make the Board of Directors better represent all the SIETAR
bodies in Europe.
- This
means changing the make-up of the Board and the election process
so that it will be less vertical and hierarchical and more
horizontal and participatory.
- The
new structure will make it very clear that SIETAR Europa's
primary role is to serve and facilitate growth and encourage
synergy among the local SIETAR groups.
Needed
amendments-how do bring this about?
We propose that you agree to change the statutes to guarantee
that the Board of SIETAR Europa is made up of members from each
of the National SIETARs, as well as representatives of the direct
members of SIETAR Europa.
To
do this we have formulated amendments to the Statutes of SIETAR
Europa for your scrutiny and approval at the next General Assembly
meeting in Budapest.
In
the attachment you will find the current Statutes of SIETAR
Europa and the amendments we propose. The texts in red are items
we suggest be added or changed in the current text of the statutes.
The texts in green are items we believe should be deleted from
the current text.
Rapid
implementation procedure
If these amendments are agreed upon by the General Assembly,
we propose that the following procedure be followed for the
2004 terms of office on the Board:
- After
the elections in 2004, those national Sietars who are not
represented by having one of their members chosen for the
Board will be asked to elect one of their members to the Board.
This will result in there being at least one representative
from every national SIETAR serving on the Board of Directors
in 2004.
- Then
in the 2005 elections we can fully implement the process that
you see formulated in the amended Statutes of SIETAR Europa.
Please
look at the attached annotated statutes and be ready to discuss
and vote on them at the coming General Assembly Meeting. If
you will not be coming to Budapest, we would deeply appreciate
your communicating your thoughts to the Board or to your local
Presidents before the Congress takes place. We value your input
and look foreward to serving you with you an even more effective
professional organization as a result of these improvements.
On
behalf of the SIETAR Europa Board
Francien Wieringa
President, SIETAR Europa
See
existing
statutes
See statutes with proposed revisions
See
proposal for revised dues structure
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SIETAR
USA Call for Proposals
FOURTH
ANNUAL SIETAR USA CONFERENCE
SEEKING MIDDLE GROUND-LOCALLY AND GLOBALLY
Austin, Texas November 19-22, 2003
Introduction
As
someone who is interested in the intercultural field, you are
cordially invited to submit a proposal to present a session
at the
annual conference of the The Society for Intercultural Education,
Training and Research (SIETAR USA) to be held at the Marriott
Capitol
Hotel in Austin, Texas on November 19-22, 2003.
Austin
is a hospitable, diverse city that is not only the capital of
Texas but also the home of the University of Texas, the live
music
capital of the USA and one of the top high-tech centers in the
country.
As
you read about the theme of the conference, you will see that
this
city is an ideal location for addressing issues around "Seeking
Middle
Ground."
SIETAR
USA is an inclusive, non-profit, membership organization for
educators, researchers and trainers from a wide range of practical
and
academic disciplines who share a common concern for intercultural
relations.
SIETAR
USA is part of a network of SIETAR organizations around the
world. Through a broad range of activities, SIETAR USA provides
a
unique opportunity to learn from and share with colleagues in
the
intercultural arena and advance the body of knowledge and practice
in
the field.
Conference
Theme
The
theme of the conference, "Seeking Middle Ground-Locally
and
Globally," invites us all to explore positive and negative
aspects of
Middle Ground from an intercultural perspective. Traditionally,
to find
Middle Ground means "to mediate, to reconcile, to find
new
collaborative territory."
The
theme has emerged from the location of this year's SIETAR USA
conference in the heart of Texas, which has always been Middle
Ground.
Originally populated by Native Americans, it has been ruled
by Spain,
France, and Mexico and has been part of the US American Confederacy.
Texas has been a place of refuge and new beginning; a place
of conflict
and assimilation.
Texans
have had to create and re-create their own unique cultural
"territory." Mirroring international trends, the state
is currently at
the epicenter of a tussle for Middle Ground as rapid Hispanic/Latino
population growth begins to change the demographics of the entire
nation.
And
Texas is, of course, not the only place in the USA that has
had to
endure shifting borders and radical changes in social and political
systems and structures. Middle Ground can also refer to the
globe's
most troubled regions -places where political, social and cultural
interests struggle and compete.
As
such, interculturalists everywhere are actively engaged in finding
Middle Ground. In our present troubled times, we need to explore
how we
can help foster the development of common interests through
education,
training and research. We also need to discover how we can communicate
that finding new ground does not equal loss.
While
we as interculturalists assist others to explore Middle Ground,
we also need to look inward. What about our own Middle Ground?
By
finding positive new ground amongst ourselves and within the
field, we
can understand each other better and enhance the lives of those
around
us.
Please
join us to grapple with some of the most challenging questions
of our field and of our age.
Proposal
Logistics
The
following guidelines will assist you in completing and submitting
a
proposal. Your proposal must include all of the elements described
below in order to be considered by the proposal committee.
We
welcome proposals from presenters with all levels of experience.
If
you are relatively new to the field, we invite you to submit
a proposal
to co-present with a more experienced interculturalist, such
as a
colleague, mentor or university professor.
All
proposals should be sent to arrive NO LATER THAN MAY 31, 2003
after
which you will receive an initial acknowledgement of receipt.
Each
proposal will be rated by at least three different people,
according to clearly established, objective criteria. You will
then be
notified of acceptance in plenty of time to pre-register for
the
conference.
Please
submit your proposal in a virus-free Word document and send
any
questions via email to:
Jeremy
Solomons, Program Co-Chair at jersol@aol.com
If
you are unable to submit your proposal via email, please mail
an
original and three copies to:
Jeremy
Solomons
7010
W. Hwy 71, Ste 340/373,
Austin, TX 78735, USA
Proposal
Guidelines
1.
Title of Session
Choose
a title that accurately reflects the content of the proposed
session. Clever or catchy titles are acceptable, but make sure
that
they are not misleading.
2.
Focus
We
are eager to receive any proposal on an intercultural issue
relating
to the conference theme in the widest sense and we particularly
welcome
proposals relating to Conflict Resolution and Peacemaking and/or
Texas and Hispanic/Latino Culture, to be delivered in either
English or
Spanish.
3.
Target Audience
We
are not specifying specific target audiences but please indicate
if
your proposed session is strongly geared to one of the following
types
of participants:
-
Beginner (0-1 years of experience)
- Intermediate (1-5 years of experience)
- Advanced (5+ years of experience)
4.
Desired Session Length
Specify
a 60-, 75-, or 120-minute session, regardless of session format
(described below). There are a limited number of 120- minute
(2 hour)
sessions available.
5.
Session Formats
Specify
the format of your session, according to the following
descriptions. Regardless of format, interactive sessions are
encouraged. For all formats, presenters are responsible for
all
materials, including photocopying of handouts.
Workshop:
A workshop features a combination of presentation/lecture and
interaction with participants. It should have a well-defined
structure
and include handouts and visual aids. Workshops tend to require
75 and
120 minutes. Within this format a simulation, set of exercises
or
activity may be conducted to help participants explore their
own
experience; learn a particular theory or cultural concept; and/or
find
out how a particular method can be used in training and education.
Panel:
A panel presentation consists of three or possibly four
panelists offering multiple perspectives and insights on a common
topic
or theme. The presentation should be structured and allow time
for
questions. Attendees should receive session materials (e.g.,
outline of
the session, bibliography, handouts, brief biographies of panel
members, and contact information for follow up.) One of the
panelists
should serve as session chair and contact person with SIETAR
USA. Panel
presentations should be no longer than 75 minutes.
Roundtable
Discussion: The presenter will lead participants in a
discussion of a proposed topic. While this format permits considerable
audience participation, the presenter should propose and follow
an
outline to permit as thorough and in-depth an examination of
all
aspects of the topic as permitted in the time allowed. These
discussions tend to fit best into a 60 or 75 minute session.
Formal
Paper/Research Presentation: This more formal, academic format
consists of the presenter describing the results of a research
project
and discussing the study. Attendees can expect a question and
answer
period during this session. Presenters should provide copies
of their
paper. Formal presentation sessions tend to be suited to 60
minute
sessions.
Artistic
Expression/Performance: This format invites presentations
other than the traditional style that places a primary emphasis
on the
spoken word. Presentations in this format may rely more on music,
visual arts, theater or physical movement to deliver their messages.
These sessions are best scheduled for 60 to 75 minutes.
Film/Video
Sessions: The presentation and debriefing of a video or
film/film segment should include the following: an introduction
which
prepares participants to see how the film increases ones knowledge
of
another culture, a cultural concept, or some other dimension
of the
intercultural experience and the participants' ability to convey
such knowledge to others. Please specify the length of film/video.
(Please note that we are already planning a film event during
the conference but these plans are still being put together).
Interactive
Poster Sessions: Papers presented within a poster session
have clearly readable posters with data (and/or charts, illustrations,
etc.) mounted on a poster board for the length of the session.
Copies
of the complete paper-or at least a summary-should be available
for
distribution. Presenters should be on hand to explain/discuss
the
visually-presented data or research findings during specially
scheduled
periods (listed in the program). This kind of session is ideal
for
someone with less experience in presenting at a conference.
6.
Session Description
Believing
that "less is more", prepare a summary of no more
than 300
words with the following information:
Session
title
Learning goals and objectives (what participants can expect
to take
away with them)
Main points and/or key content
Methodologies (e.g.: lecture 40%, exercise 30%, discussion 30%)
Why you think this session is important
7.
Presenter/s Biography/ies
Prepare
a summary of no more than 150 words for each presenter that
describes her or his experience, education and expertise in
the topic
being proposed.
8.
Program Write-Up
Synthesize
sections 6 and 7 to create an insert of no more than 100
words for the session and no more than 50 words for the bio
that will
appear in the actual conference program. This will be the only
information available to participants about you and your session
ahead
of time.
9.
Equipment
Please
specify what audio-visual equipment you need for your
presentation:
Easel
and flipchart
Overhead projector
VCR/Monitor
PowerPoint LCD projector (limited availability)
Other
10.
Room Set-Up
Please
specify your preferred room set-up:
Chairs
in theater style
Chairs with tables
Desired
number of participants
Maximum number of participants
Contact
Information
Please
provide the following information for each presenter:
First/Given
and Last/Family Name:
Primary Affiliation:
E-Mail Address:
Phone:
Fax:
Mailing Address:
Previous SIETAR presentations (what, when, where):
Good
luck and if you have any questions at all, please write to Jeremy
Solomons at jersol@aol.com.
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Budapest
Congress...will you be there?
As
of March 1 more than 75 members and stakeholders have taken
advantage of the earlybird registration fees to sign up for
the innovative SE Congress in May.
We repeat the invitation to you to attend and to invite your
stakeholders to join you in this important meeting that will
influence the future of our profession and our organization.
Earlybird registration has been extended to February 15 to enable
those who only recently got news of the Congress to register
advantageously.
For
full details and registration, please go to the Congress
pages of this site.
What
follows is a description of the new conference format by Jeffrey
Beeson who will be directing the facilitation of the Congress.
Sietar
Europa Congress 2003
- A bold new conference format
This
year's Sietar Europa Congress will take place in Budapest from
May 21 to 25. It will be held at the Central
European University campus. This congress will be
unlike any other previous Sietar Europa Congress. A new congress
format based on open-system theory will be used in order to
maximize the amount of time that participants spend discussing
with each other the issues that are of importance to them.
First
of all, papers and presentations will not be given in the traditional
lecture format of previous congresses. Instead, papers and presentations
will be made on-line prior to the congress. Congress participants
have the opportunity to read the papers prior to arriving at
the congress and then to meet with the authors/presenters on
May 21st - the first day of the congress - should they have
questions or be interested in further discussion. For more information
on how to submit an on-line paper or presentation please refer
to the web page under http://www.sietar.de/on-line.
The
next three days of the congress, May 22-24 are devoted to an
intense discussion on the topic of new learning environments
and strategies in the intercultural communications field. Participants
will be invited to explore and define new ways of collaborating
with colleagues. To make the discussion even more interesting
and compelling, traditional buyers of intercultural communication
services have been invited to the congress. Representatives
of government, business, academia, NGOs, the media and the Arts
will be present at the congress.
In
both small and large group discussions, participants will initially
look at past practices as well as current trends in the intercultural
field. They will then explore potential new ways of learning
in the future. From this type of discussion, new collaborative
projects are likely to be born.
On
May 25th, a post-congress workshop is offered - for those who
are interested - on the topic of overcoming intercultural communication
barriers through large group interventions. Participants will
have just experienced large group dynamics during the congress
itself. They will now have the opportunity to discuss how this
experience may be relevant in improving intercultural communication.
Please
note that space at the congress is limited. In order to insure
the success of this method, only a certain number of participants
(approximately 200) will be accepted.
A
further article will appear in this newsletter describing both
experiences and results from the congress.
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A
feature by Stephanie
Quappe, Young SIETAR
How
does driving reflect the culture of a country?
…I
asked myself when being carried by a wave of eager pedestrians
across a Paris boulevard - traffic lights bright red. Eager
to find passage, small colourful, complaining cars with scratches
and waving hands tried to be the first to worm their way through.
Yes, traffic is definitely a part of culture. It even provides
us with its own special culture shock, something I was lucky
enough to survive without loss of life or limb. After passing
through stages of disbelief, then amusement I became particularly
fond of the agreed sense of self-responsibility in French traffic:
look straight ahead and react fast. It doesn't matter if you
are on two legs or two wheels or four, make your own way and
"debrouille toi". Shouting, cursing and blowing horns
are all ways to express your passion.
This
is all unthinkable in Germany, a country with infinite numbers
of traffic signs and 150 000 traffic signals -the highest traffic
light density in the world. Traffic lights are a scarce 20 meters
from each other. This forces conscientious drivers into the
dilemma of either accelerating beyond the speed limit to ride
the green wave or to come to a screeching halt again and again
to the sound of clenching teeth… a cultural Catch-22, no
doubt well thought out by certain unnamed officials to deliver
a good return on investment for their speed check devices?
Indeed,
we are very precise and righteous in Germany. No other country
allows driving without a speed limit on motorways, and then
restricts it so tightly elsewhere. Everybody can compete to
get ahead, but they must stick to the rules and regulations.
United in spirit as victims of traffic jams, we moan and curse
at law-breakers who overtake the lines of cars on the wrong
side and misuse the hard shoulder. Solidarity becomes a measure
of character only when we wait endlessly at a pedestrian crossing
to show our children what good German citizens we are.
But
rules can also have their compassionate and live-saving side.
I learned to my astonishment that French cars did not give way
to an ambulance in the crowded streets. Like a robot on remote
control, I desperately tried to make space for the blaring sirens
and shook my fist in the astonished face of a driver who slithered
into the gap I had made. How comforted I feel, in comparison,
when a flashing wave of warning lights on a German motorway
cautions drivers about possible pile-up ahead. I feel truly
grateful and spiritually connected to my fellow Germans by our
common driving language.
What
does traffic look like on the other side of the channel, where
everyone drives on the wrong, sorry, left side of the street...
mostly in circles - the so called roundabouts? Whoever had the
genius to invent roundabouts (believe it or not, the French)
including the magic one in Swindon, should shake hands with
person who discovered how to merge into a stream of traffic.
How exciting to flow together so smoothly while politely communicating
with each other. I look my fellow driver in the eyes and signal
through nods or facial expressions that, "I see you".
All of a sudden, we are not alone in our cars anymore, and can
start negotiating about who really needs to go first. Of course
there are set rules, but harmony prevails.
Each
country has its stories, and many stories make a book. To borrow
the words of my grandma in Cologne - "Jeder Jeck is
anders" -- wich roughly means, "Different strokes
for different folks." So, why not peek across the fence
of your own peculiarities and widen your own horizon? By sharing
we can all discover our best.
Monatsfeature
von
Stephanie
Quappe, Young SIETAR
Was
hat Auto fahren mit Kultur zu tun?
…
fragte ich mich, als ich in Paris mit einer Masse von scheinbar
selbstbewussten Fußgängern in einer Welle über
die rote Ampel getragen wurde. Ganz wie im menschlichen Körper
stauten sich statt der flinken Spermien die kleinen hektischen
und hupenden Pariser Autos vor der Ampel und warteten nur auf
ein Schlupfloch, um als erster am Ziel zu sein. Ja, Auto fahren
hat mit Kultur zu tun, und da gibt es bekanntlich den Kulturschock.
Und den habe ich bisher zum Glück körperlich unbeschadet
überstanden. Ganz sympathisch ist mir mittlerweile diese
fast anarchische Eigenverantwortung im französischen Straßenverkehr,
ganz nach dem Motto: schau nur geradeaus und reagiere schnell.
Ob auf zwei Beinen oder vier Rädern, setz dich durch und
trauere nicht der Vergangenheit hinterher. Dabei kann es schon
mal krachen, rufen, hupen oder schimpfen; die Leidenschaft liegt
auf der Strasse.
Undenkbar
in einem land mit x-Verkehrsschildern und rund 150 000 Ampelanlagen,
somit der höchsten Ampeldichte der Welt. Keine 20 Meter
stehen die Ampeln auseinander, gerade so, dass der gewissenhafte
Deutsche mit zusammengebissenen Zähnen auf 60 beschleunigen
muss, um auf der grünen Welle zu reiten… ein persönliches
Dilemma vom Staat kalkuliert, damit sich die Blitzkästen
rentieren? Ja, wir nehmen es ganz genau in Deutschland. Kein
anderes Land erlaubt Hochgeschwindigkeitsfahren auf der Autobahn,
um es genauso konsequent einzuschränken. Jeder kann im
Rahmen des Gesetzes versuchen erster zu sein. Im Stau vereint,
schimpfen wir auf schlüpfrige Überholmanöver
und den dreisten Individualisten, der die Standspur zweckentfremdet.
Solidarität wird erst dann zum persönlichen Wertmaßstab,
wenn wir zusammen mit kleinen Kinder stundenlang auf das grüne
Männchen warten, um die Strasse zu überqueren.
Aber
Regeln haben auch ihre rührenden, lebensrettenden Seiten,
musste ich erstaunt feststellen, als in Paris kein Franzose
auch nur Notiz von einem Krankentransport in der vollgestopften
Strasse zu nehmen schien. Wie ferngesteuert versuchte ich verzweifelt
Platz zu machen und schüttelte die Faust in ein verständnisloses
Gesicht eines Fahrers, der sich sofort in die entstandene Lücke
schlängelte. Dagegen erscheint die Welle der aufblitzenden
Warnblinkanlagen bei drohendem Rückstau am Kamener Kreuz
schon fast rührend. In dieser Nacht hatte ich eine wahrlich
spirituelle Erfahrung der Zugehörigkeit zum deutschen Volk.
Wie
sieht es denn auf der anderen Seite des Wassers aus, da wo sie
nicht auf der richtigen (right) Seite fahren, sondern auf der
linken? Und sie fahren im Kreis, überall. Wer auch immer
die geniale Idee hatte, Kreisverkehre einzuführen hätte
sich mit dem Erfinder des Einfädelns die Hände schütteln
können. Eine spannende Erfahrung, so gut wie gar nicht
anzuhalten, und sehr kommunikativ noch dazu. Denn ich schaue
meinem Gegenüber ins Gesicht, um durch nicken oder blosses
Notiznehmen zu signalisieren "Ich sehe dich". Auf
einmal sitzen wir nicht mehr alleine auf der Strasse, und können
schon mal verhandeln, wer es denn nun eiliger hat. Natürlich
gibt es feste Regeln, doch Harmonie steht über den Dingen.
So
hat jedes Land seine Lebensgeschichte, und viele Geschichten
machen ein Buch. Um in den Worten meiner Kölner Oma zu
sprechen "Jeder Jeck ist anders" und warum nicht mal
über den eigenen jecken Horizont gucken… dann könnten
wir letztendlich einfach alle ankommen.
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Reviews
Coaching
across Cultures:
New Tools for Leveraging National, Corporate and Professional
Differences.
by
Philippe Rosinski, ,
2002, London, Nicholas Brealey Publishers, 306 Pages,
ISBN 1-85788-301-2
Coaching
across Cultures is not a new brand of coaching, but coaching
that sees a wider set of variables and does its job with a more
holistic mindset. In Philippe Rosinski's words, it is a "pragmatic
humanism" that "unleashes people's potential to reach
meaningful and important objectives." He has chosen to
look at cultures not as forces to be reckoned with, but as forces
to reckon with, to strategize with, and to benefit from.
While
interculturaalist often treat corporate, institutional, and
professional cultures as poor cousins to ethnic, national and
regional cultures, Rosinski respects and works with the full
range of cultural dynamics. Cultures are inseparable from the
ever-changing sea of behaviors they produce.
How
do we navigate the chop and swell of cultural difference? How
can we leverage cultural knowledge to make the journey pay off
and the ports of call more satisfying? Without creating new
maps, Rosinski integrates current ones to steer lives of real
people and organizations. With theory developed by Hall, Hofstede,
et al, in the background, and guided by such practical compasses
as the Cultural Orientation Indicator® (TMC Corp.), Rosinski
plots a "Cultural Orientations Framework" (COF) to
help the coach empower the coachee as they set sail for business
and personal success.
Coaching
across Cultures first describes each cultural dimension of the
COF and gives examples and stories to bring it to life. Next,
there are tips to leverage and exploit the the polarities and
varieties of behaviors found in each dimension, along with advice
on how to face real challenges.
Finally,
coaching is an art, not a science. It is messy. It relies on
instruments of all sorts, but less on their theoretical coherence
with each other than on the skill and intuition of the seasoned
coach in applying the right one at the right moment. The book's
subtitle, New Tools for Leveraging National, Corporate and Professional
Differences is accurate. Such tools abound, including a Global
Scorecard for holistically building and measuring objectives.
In the last pages, appendices illustrate basic features of Transactional
Analysis and Neuro-linguistic Programming, along with a coaching
feedback process. The glossary and bibliography are brief and
there is no index, but there is a wealth of footnotes.
The
overall impact? Little by little, personal testimony and hands-on
activities bring the reader to realize that he or she can embrace
and use cultural polarities that seem to exclude each other
at first sight. Being and doing, for example, or hierarchy and
equality are not forced cultural choices, but available cultural
options, not eternal laws, but timely mix-and-match strategies
for working and living successfully.
This
review is written not from a coach's but from an interculturalist's
point of view. Coaching across Cultures adds to the growing
sense that applied interculturalism relies on many disciplines.
One of these is coaching. While Coaching across Cultures addresses
on the corporate coach, it takes little fancy to see that the
expertise it fosters applies far beyond the boardroom.
Reviewed
by Dr. George Simons at www.diversophy.com
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Managing
Cultural Diversity in Technical Professions
Lionel
Laroche, PhD, PEng.
2002, Butterworth-Heinemann, ISBN 0-7506-7581-0
Some
books break new ground by introducing fresh concepts, others
by applying well proven concepts to fresh contexts and audiences
in down-to-earth and creative ways. Managing Cultural Diversity
in Technical Professions is of the latter kind-it is Culture
101 for those who have followed the technical curriculum.
Culture,
as Laroche points out, tends to be far from the minds of technical
experts, engineers and scientific researchers. It does not show
up in the data and procedures they work with. It does show up,
however, in the disappointment, confusion, and even rancour
that too often occur in these circles as those of different
ilk attempt to cooperate with each other. These unpleasant aspects
of collaboration are usually dismissed as personality deficiency
or incompetence on the part of one party or both, usually in
gritty language about, "loose cannons," "ruffled
feathers," and "passing the buck." (The author
even provides a glossary of such terms commonly occurring in
North America). Their cost to progress and profit is rarely
counted.
Wisely,
the author, who has his feet firmly planted in both technical
and educational worlds, enables the reader to identify cultural
dimensions in the behaviors they commonly produce or experience
in others by telling stories that readers can immediately recognize.
To these he applies the boilerplate of cultural theory, building
upon Geert Hofstede's cultural dimensions and the insights of
others who have applied and expanded this seminal work. Power
distance, individualism, risk aversion all come to life in the
daily encounters that affect productivity, synergy and career
advancement.
Understanding
a cultural difference or conflict still does not resolve it.
Managing Cultural Diversity in Technical Professions does not
leave us in theoretical speculation but repeatedly asks and
answers the questions, "What can you do?" with very
practical advice and tips, and, "What can you gain?"
with a clear expectations of how ones management skills, interpersonal
competence, and career path can benefit from expanding one's
intercultural response repertoire.
The
result is both a very readable and well documented text, addressing
the common misunderstandings and frictions between what Laroche
carefully defines as Americans and New Americans when it comes
to management, teamwork, decision-making, feedback, making presentations,
humor, and a host of other human interactions that technical
people are involved in. Essentially written for the North American
workplace in language, style, and presentation, the book can
nonetheless find a place in global management curricula and
training efforts. Certainly, it belongs in the hands of any
intercultural trainer who has been interrupted with the question,
"Can you give me a concrete example of that?" when
presenting a point of cultural theory to a hard-nosed technical
audience.
Reviewed by Dr. George F. Simons of www.diversophy.com
To
order this book, call 1-800-545-2522 (in North America) or +1
781 221 2212 or go to www.bh.com. You can also mail your order
to: Elsevier Science, Order Fulfillment, 11830 Westline Industrial
Drive, St. Louis, MI 63146.
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Doing
Business Internationally: The Guide to Cross-Cultural Success
(2nd Edition)
By
Danielle Walker, Thomas Walker & Joerg Schmitz.
2003. New York: McGraw Hill
ISBN 0-07-137832-4
331 pages, USD29.95
Second
editions signal two things, success and change. In the case
of Doing Business Internationally, the success is not only of
the book itself, first released in 1995, but of the technology
and research of the Training Management Corporation (TMC) whose
work it features and makes accessible in refreshed print. As
to change, what has changed most since the release of the first
edition is the intensity and urgency of cultural questions in
a time of a struggling global economy and conflicting cultural
ideologies. This new edition is timely.
Normally
I review a book by first simply reading it through. In this
case, being somewhat familiar with the TMC approach and a user
of their Cultural Orientation Inventory (COI®), I simply
let the book sit on my desk for a couple weeks and picked it
up as frequently as the need for perspectives on cultural questions,
for me quite often, came up. I was not disappointed. Even on
going back to do a read of the entire text, I was even more
convinced that this was a book for using, not just a quick read.
That
being said, those new to and even those familiar the approach
and the model will benefit highly by the first three chapters
on the Global Environment, Culture, and The Cultural Orientations
Model. They are up-to-date, practical, and, above all, are laced
with quick, understandable examples. Often these are only a
line or two, taken from the authors' rich experience of applying
their model to the everyday challenges and problems of organizations.
These "stories in a nutshell" provided me with a goodly
number of "Aha's" even about cultural situations that
I was familiar with.
The
Cultural Orientations Model itself draws on solid research,
blending classical studies about the dimensions of culture and
the data provided by its own use over the years. The reader
is invited to demo this model online at www.tmcorp.com. While
it is not my purpose here to review or promote TMC's online
offerings, it is important to mention them because they are
integral background to the quality information that the book
provides.
Since
there is no way that the culture specific information, available
online and structured in the Cultural Orientations Model, could
be contained in a reasonable number of pages, the authors have
wisely provided in Chapter 4, "A Survey of Cultural Patterns."
Here the dimensions offered in the model are explored in terms
of world regions, and illustrations are provided from specific
nations and areas. This is admittedly a "survey flight."
It produces a map drawn at high altitude. Think of it as reconnaissance
that we can use to zoom in to discover the particulars of the
terrain. This is quite different from overviews that encourage
the reader to generalize or even stereotype. Again, concrete
examples repeatedly bring us down to earth where the action
is. This chapter is an excellent short course for the beginner
and a good review for the practitioner whose work tends to bury
him or her in the detailed exploration of a specific set of
cultural problems.
In
Chapters 5, 6, and 7, the information addresses head-on three
of the critical areas of applied cross-cultural knowledge, Communication,
Marketing and Sales, and Teamwork and Collaboration. Since I
do much of my work with Global Teams, I read Chapter Seven with
particular avidity. The focus again was on bringing cultural
knowledge to relatively familiar models of team development
and collaboration to meet the challenge of creating, sustaining
and motivating global (and usually distributed, as well as multicultural)
teams. I bridled a bit at the use of the term "Transcendent
Team" chosen to describe a collaboration that managed to
succeed in meeting its task and team challenges successfully,
not because it was intrinsically a misnomer, but simply because
the term seems a bit tired and flat to describe the dynamics
and the ample scenarios that the authors offer to help us manage
this emergent new way of working.
Overall
impressions: Solid work representing a track record of reliability.
Good value for money. Somewhat US in focus (certainly its largest
market), but not damagingly so. Clear language and well written,
but a bit high on the Fogg index for ESL readers. Extremely
well-organized structure. Small but accurate and useful index.
Reviewed
by Dr. George F. Simons at www.diversophy.com
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Update
on SIETAR Europa's online services
While
all the SIETAR
sites are linked to each other, it will be helpful to know where
you are going for services and information, so here is an update
of what SIETAR Europa is offering online.
- Currently
as you read this, you are on the public website of SIETAR
Europa at www.sietar-europa.org.
The information on this site is open
to anyone surfing the web, members and visitors alike.
The monthly newsletter appears here.
The
SIETAR Documentation Centre is also a part of the
public site though it has a separate navigation system.
- The
SIETAR Europa Workspace is a "members only" site
located on the servers of Management Center Europe at http://quickplace.mce.be/sietar-eu.
This site, though it operates more slowly, is a place where
you can begin conversations and exchange information securely
with other members. In order to access this site you need
an ID and a password. All registered SIETAR Europa members
whose email addresses were in our files were issued an ID
and password in June. Each new member is given a password
upon enrolling. If you have not received or have misplaced
your password for this site, please request a new one from
the office.
- We
welcome assistance and volunteers who would like to contribute
time to the websites, the documentation centre and the newsletter.
Contact the webmaster
if you are interested.
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