Globalization of business has caused organizations to face many new challenges related to multiculturalism. Multiculturalism is a notion that determines various issues stemming from people’s differences in values, attitudes, and behaviors (Glinkowska, 2016). For the organization to operate in a multicultural environment, it should adjust its management processes to the cultural distinctions among its employees. Therefore, the primary multicultural problem of organizations is the need for internal and external changes. Internal changes may include altering the organizational structure and relationships among employees or introducing trans-border trips for workers (Glinkowska, 2016). External changes that may be required of an organization include obeying the laws of other countries or adopting foreign professional behaviors (Glinkowska, 2016). Making such modifications is likely to involve an increased expenditure of the organization’s resources.
Another crucial multicultural problem of organizations is difficulties in communication. The most obvious problem related to communication within the organization is language barriers (Alam and Rasheduzzaman, 2018). Although nowadays, everyone is supposed to speak English, many non-native speakers still cannot always convey their thoughts clearly in this language (Hussain, 2018). As a result, even high-skilled employees can either be overlooked by human resources (HR) managers or avoid being proactive because of the inability to express their thoughts in English (Hussain, 2018). Another significant impediment to successful communication is employees’ unfamiliarity with the cultural norms of their colleagues that come from different cultures (Hussain, 2018). For example, looking in the interlocutor’s eyes may lead to misunderstanding since, in some countries, eye contact is essential, while in others, it is considered rude (Hussain, 2018). Stereotypes, different cultural approaches to task completion and conflict resolution, and various attitudes toward privacy also may hinder the communication among workers in a multicultural organization (Hussain, 2018). Disseminating knowledge about diverse cultures should be part of an organization’s strategy directed toward the improvement of communication.
Multiculturalism places specific challenges before HR managers who have to consider cultural diversity while hiring employees. For example, in some countries, women are treated as inferiors, so it is no use trying to make people of such cultures work under the guidance of a female leader (Hussain, 2018). Tung (2016) mentions studies confirming that, although people claim that they value professional qualities more than race and gender, they still consider executive candidates unsuitable for the position, based on their race and gender. Therefore, HR managers have to choose between the adherence to specific cultural norms of employees and the necessity to maintain diversity in the workplace.
Retention of workers, which is another significant task of HR managers, is also influenced by multiculturalism. Cultural diversity may cause “misunderstanding, misinterpretation or inappropriate behavior” among individuals in the workplace, leading to “anxiety, distrust or individual prejudice” (Sumathi et al., 2018, p. 176). It causes HR managers to be more involved in employees’ personal life, which is less characteristic of monocultural organizations (Alam and Rasheduzzaman, 2018). However, if the organization finds the way of successfully managing intercultural conflicts, it will enhance employees’ commitment and trust, thus improving retention and reducing costs for hiring new workers (Alam and Rasheduzzaman, 2018). According to Sumathi et al. (2018), educating employees, receiving feedback from them, and establishing a respectful climate in the organization are effective strategies that can lead a multicultural enterprise to positive outcomes. Thus, although there are many multicultural problems that organizations encounter in the context of globalization, these challenges are not unsolvable.
To sum up, multicultural problems are a consequence of the involvement of organizations in the process of globalization. One of the multicultural issues is the need for structural and policy changes that may lead to increased costs. Frequently, organizations with multinational staff have trouble with communication, which can be related to language barriers, stereotypes, or misunderstanding of norms accepted in other cultures. HR departments in multicultural organizations experience increased load due to the necessity of paying attention to workers’ cultural diversity both in recruitment and retention processes. To cope with multicultural issues, organizations may educate their employees about different cultures and foster an atmosphere of intercultural understanding and mutual respect.
Reference List
Alam, J. and Rasheduzzaman, M. (2018) ‘Cross-cultural project on human resource management: an overview’, International Journal of Science and Business, 2(2), pp. 101-114.
Glinkowska, B. (2016) ‘Managing teams in the multicultural organizations’, Journal of Intercultural Management, 8(2), pp. 55-69.
Hussain, S. (2018) ‘Managing communication challenges in multicultural organizations’, International Journal of Media, Journalism and Mass Communications (IJMJMC), 4(2), pp. 44-49.
Sumathi, N. et al. (2018) ‘Cross cultural workforce – challenges and strategies’, International Journal of Latest Technology in Engineering, Management & Applied Science (IJLTEMAS), 7(3), pp. 174-181.
Tung, R. L. (2016) ‘New perspectives on human resource management in a global context’, Journal of World Business, 51(1), pp. 142-152.