How to Work in Multicultural Environments
Participants need to feel that they are being understood and respected throughout the project. They
need to feel that their ideas and concerns are being heard. Those conditions create strong motivation
and momentum for change.
It can be a major challenge to work in multicultural environments where your clients’ organizations
have values, beliefs and certain conventions that are distinctly different from yours. Although
multicultural consulting comes with its own unique challenges, it comes with many benefits, as well.
There are few other such powerful experiences in which you can learn so much about people and
organizations and also about yourself. The range of types of organizations is highly diverse and
consultants who can work in multicultural environments often have a wider range of potential
consulting projects than the consultant who is fearful or disinterested in those environments.
An organization’s culture is driven by the values throughout that organization. Quite often,
decisions in organizations are based on the strong values among its members. To help your client
make meaningful decisions – and to understand decisions that they may have made already – it is
extremely important that you have some understanding of the culture and values of your client’s
organization.
The following guidelines are intended to focus on the most practical suggestions for working with
clients in multicultural environments.