Multicultural Teaming Workshop

1. Multicultural Teaming Workshop Macedonia, December 9-10, 2016

2. Multicultural Team

3. Purpose • Individual: each individual will commit to at least one action step to not just survive but thrive in their multicultural team context. • Team: each team will commit to a few next steps to overcome the unique challenges of multicultural teaming. • To help SEND missionaries and their teammates in Macedonia grow in awareness of cultural diversity and plan to use that diversity to the greatest advantage in fulfilling the ministry to which God has called them.

4. Overview • Session 1 – The Realities of Multicultural Teaming in SEND • Session 2 – Digging Deeper into Cultural Diversity • Session 3 – An Exercise in Building Team Awareness • Session 4 – Responding to Cultural Diversity • Session 5 – Planning for Progress as a Multicultural Team

5. The Communication Challenge • Low Context:  Good communciation is verbal - precise, simple, clear. Messages are expressed and understood by the words used. • High Context:  Good communication is less verbally explicit and depends on an understanding of cultural context. Messages are often implied but not plainly expressed.  • Low & High Context Communication

6. Multicultural teams must learn to communicate in low-context ways because the multicultural environment confuses the cues that are necessary for high-context communication. • For the indirect (high context) communicators: aim for a more direct style. • Even though it might feel awkward  and rude to you, remember that the direct communicator cannot pick up on the subtle clues that seem obvious to you. • For the direct (low context) communicators: try to be more indirect and a “softer” communicator. Build relationships. • Avoid directly disagreeing with co-workers, and voice disagreements in more subtle ways. Be less confrontational and use words like “maybe” and “perhaps” more often. Become more aware of nonverbal cues

7. Realities of Multi-cultural Teaming in SEND Session 1

8. Macedonia Team • By citizenship • Introduce Yourself (1 minute each) • How would you define yourself culturally? Not just your citizenship, but other factors that have influenced who you are culturally (e.g. previous citizenship, parents’ nationality, significant exposure to other cultures, specific cultural context within your home country, etc.)

10. Citizenship of SEND Members (2016) • Austria - 2 • Poland - 2 • Taiwan – 2 • Columbia – 1 • Costa Rica – 1 • Iceland – 1 • Ireland – 1 • Russia – 1 TOTAL – 538 members • US – 361 • Canada – 75 • Philippines – 37 • Hong Kong – 17 • Germany – 14 • Guatemala - 11 • Switzerland – 5 • Australia – 4 • Honduras - 3

11. Sending Offices / Mission Partnerships • SEND Canada Office  • SEND East Asia Sending Office – Hong Kong  • SEND Philippine Sending Office  • SEND US Office   • Vereinigte Deutsche Missionshilfe e.V (VDM) - Germany  • Deutsche Missions Gemeinschaft (DMG) – Germany  • Sweizerische Missions-Gemeinschaft (SMG) – Switzerland  • Bund EvangelikalerGemeindenÖsterreich (BEG) – Austria  • UFM Worldwide – UK  • FAM Internacional (FAM) – Central America (10 countries)  • Australia Missionary Tidings (AMT)  • Interserve – Australia  • SIM Australia  • SIM East Asia – Singapore (5 countries represented)  • Missions Mobilization Ministry of Ukraine (3M)

12. SEND Value – “Unity in Diversity” • "We incorporate missionaries of many nationalities in the task of discipling the nations. Our desire is to have a multinational membership working together in harmony towards the fulfillment of the Great Commission."

13. Advantages / Challenges

14. SEND’s majority culture (American) How others view them How they view themselves

15. Digging Deeper IntoCultural Diversity Session 2

16. Different Ways of DOING Things • Holiday – Which holiday of the year do you think is most significant in your country and how do you celebrate it? (1 minute each in your group) •Andy, Debby, Scott •Jonathan, Pastor Pero, Noelle •Ron, Patricia, Brian •Michael, Dawn, Peter •Herbert, Nadine, Lynn •Larry, Sherri, Lisa •Tourlant, Meredith, Cindy •Philip, Emily, Leslie

17. Different ways of VIEWING things

19. How can we develop a deeper understanding of our cultural differences? Brainstorm ideas on this topic. (about 10 minutes) • List down all ideas on a cling sheet. • Don't evaluate any idea, just list. • Everyone share at least 1 idea. Generational Groups: • 20's – 30's • 40's • 50's and above

20. Categorizing Cultural Differences • Hot / Cold Cultures  - “Foreign to Familiar” – Sarah A Lanier • Hot-climate cultures – cultures that are “relationship-based”. They are generally found in warmer climates though there are exceptions. Examples include most Latin American countries, parts of Africa and Asia.  • Cold-climate cultures – cultures that are “task-oriented”. They are generally found in colder climates, with exceptions. Examples include the northern United States, Western Europe and Israel. 

21. Categorizing Cultural Differences • Lingenfelter’s 12 Paired Values – Questionnaire • Time / Event • Dichotomistic Thinking / Holistic Thinking • Crisis / Non-crisis • Task / Person • Status / Achievement • Conceal Vulnerability / Show Vulnerability

22. Categorizing Cultural Differences • Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions – WebsiteCountry Comparison • Power Distance Index • Individualism vs Collectivism • Masculinity vs. Femininity • Uncertainty Avoidance Index • Long Term Orientation versus Short Term Normative Orientation • Indulgence vs. Restraint

23. Personal Reflection • Are you committed to multicultural teaming?  • If so, please write down your commitment, dated and signed.

24. Categorizing Cultural Differences • Erin Meyer’s Culture Map–  Erin's Explanation • Communicating - low-context or high-context communication? • Evaluating – Direct or indirect criticism? • Persuading - principles first or applications first in proving a point? • Leading – egalitarian or hierarchical? • Deciding – consensual or top-down? (Not necessarily linked to where they are on the egalitarian/ hierarchical scale.)  • Trusting – based on relationship or on working partnership? • Disagreeing - helpful or harmful?  • Scheduling – linear or flexible?

25. Categorizing Cultural Differences • Assessment: What's Your Cultural Profile – please complete this before tomorrow’s sessions. Bring your results tomorrow. • Tools: Different Products that you can potentially use on your teams

26. Find all these Resources on the  SENDU WikiOther helpful tools?

27. Advantages / Challenges

28. An Exercise in BuildingTeam Awareness Session 3

29. Building Awareness on Your Team • Group by Team • Share Results from “What’s Your Cultural Profile” • Go through each Scale one at a time: • Plot each person’s results on the continuum provided • Read the Description provided • Discuss briefly how your differences on each scale could be a challenge and a benefit to your team • Spend less than 5 minutes on each of the 8 scales.

30. Erin Meyer’s 8 Scales • Communicating - low-context or high-context communication? • Evaluating – Direct or indirect criticism? • Persuading - principles first or applications first in proving a point? • Leading – egalitarian or hierarchical? • Deciding – consensual or top-down? (Not necessarily linked to where they are on the egalitarian/ hierarchical scale.)  • Trusting – based on relationship or on working partnership? • Disagreeing - helpful or harmful?  • Scheduling – linear or flexible?

31. Identify the top challenges for your team • Each person gets 4 dots • Place a “dot” beside the 3 challenges that you think are the most significant for SEND Macedonia. Put an additional doton the one you think is the biggest challenge.

32. RespondingtoCultural Diversity Session 4

33. Natural Responses to Cultural Diversity • Brainstorm:

34. Biblical Response to Cultural Diversity • What Bible passages can be applied to working together on a multicultural team? • List references and basic idea of each passage.                       Groups: Men / Women

35. Some principles for growing in effectiveness as a multinational team  • Choose to see each other as good-willed people. Believe your teammate has good intentions, even if you may experience miscommunication and conflict. • Thank the Lord that He has brought your team together for a purpose. • Remember that you share the same final goal • We have a real enemy, and it's not your teammate • A humble learning approach is a starting point

36. Don't gossip • Exhort in love • Pray together • Remember everyone has a voice • Listen more than talk • Eat together in small groups • Play together • Ask questions • Laugh together • Cry together

37. Assume the best about people • Be inquistive and suspend judgment • Forgive • Ask for forgiveness • Keep short accounts • Be open to other opinions / criticisms / differences • Focus on similarities; capitalize on differences • Think of unity rather than uniformity • Celebrate the differences • Love them.

38. "One Another" commands

39. Personal Reflection / Action Steps 1. Identify one idea that has impacted your thinking so far in this workshop. 2. Plan at least one action step that you are going to do in response. Write it down. Make it a SMART goal: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time-bound.  e.g. 1. The way I perceive a culture foreign to me may be very different from the way someone from yet another culture views that culture. 2.  “I will read Erin Meyer’s “Culture Map” by the end of 2016.” “During break, I will ask Scott to help bring reconciliation between me and my teammate and set a time for the three of us to meet later today.”

40. Planning for Progressas aMulticultural Team Session 5

41. Since God chose you to be the holy people He loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful (Col 3:12-15 NLT)

42. Recap • Session 1 – The Realities of Multicultural Teaming in SEND • Session 2 – Digging Deeper into Cultural Diversity • Session 3 – An Exercise in Building Team Awareness • Session 4 – Responding to Cultural Diversity • Session 5 – Planning for Progress as a Multicultural Team

43. Identify the Top 3 Challenges

44. Plan Key Next Steps

45. Plan Key Next Steps (per team) 1.Discuss the top multicultural teaming challenge for your team. (5 minutes) 2.Choose an activity (from the lists) that your team will do to deal with this challenge. (5 min.) 3.Plan the activity. (10 minutes)           • Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Time-bound           • What, Who will give leadership, When 4.Repeat Steps 2-3 for a second activity OR Steps 1-3 for another key challenge for your team. (10 - 20 minutes) Leave time to plan how/when your team will discuss other issues that may have surfaced in this workshop so they don’t get lost. (SMART)  (10 – 20 minutes)