Cultural Intelligence: People Skills for Global Business

Book Description
Much more than simply a list of protocols, Cultural Intelligence helps readers develop a mind-set that can be applied to any number of countries, cultures, and business situations. It is a systematic way to approach the tremendous variety of interactions and challenges that business people must face around the world - much easier and more realistic than documenting every trait of every culture and preparing to cater to each. This book presents a three-stage process for becoming culturally intelligent. These steps involve learning the fundamental principles of cross-cultural interactions, such as what cultures are, how they might vary, and how they affect behavior; practicing mindfulness and paying attention in a reflective and creative way to cues; and developing a repertoire of behavioral skills that can be adapted to different situations. It takes time and effort to develop high cultural intelligence, but this book helps readers with the right attitude begin this rewarding experience.


About the Author
David C. Thomas is Professor of International Management at Simon Fraser University, Canada. His research on the interaction of individuals from different cultures in organizational settings has prompted him to conduct studies in more than a dozen different countries. Thomas is the author of Essentials of International Management: A Cross-Cultural Perspective and Managing Relationships in Transition Economies. His research has also appeared in such journals as the Journal of International Business Studies, Journal of Applied Psychology, Journal of Organizational Behavior, Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, Journal of Business Research, Advances in International Comparative Management, Research in the Sociology of Organizations, Leadership Quarterly, and Organizational Dynamics. He is the IB Area Editor for the Canadian Journal of Administrative Sciences and serves on the editorial boards of the Journal of World Business, Advances in International Management, International Journal of Cross-Cultural Management and the International Journal of Organizational Analysis. Prior to returning to academia in 1988, Dr. Thomas was a Vice President with the bank holding company NationsBank (now Bank of America). His previous academic postings have included positions at the Pennsylvania State University and The University of Auckland, New Zealand, where he was also Director of the Master of International Business Program. He has held visiting positions at The Chinese University of Hong Kong, the University of Hawaii and ESCEM, Tours, France. In addition to his teaching at both undergraduate and post graduate level, Dave has developed Executive Education programs in Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the United States and has served as a consultant to a number of multinational firms. Kerr Inkson is Professor of Management at the Auckland campus of Massey University, New Zealand. Kerr’s academic career spans nearly four decades, beginning in the UK with his involvement in the 1960s in the well-known "Aston Studies" of organizational structure and functioning. In 1970 he emigrated from the UK to New Zealand, where he has remained in academic work, business consultancy, and writing ever since. He gained his PhD from the University of Otago in 1980. From 1980 to 2000 he was a member of the academic staff of the University of Auckland, where he served terms as Director of MBA programs, Chair of the Department of Management and Employment Relations, and Associate Dean of Business. Kerr’s research has been primarily in the organizational behavior area. His publications include nine books (including first authorship of Theory K 1986), the best-selling practical management book in New Zealand’s history, and of Management: New Zealand Perspectives (3rd edition 2002) currently first choice text in all local Universities. He has also published over 70 refereed journal articles and book chapters. Journal credits include Administrative Science Quarterly, Human Relations, British Journal of Management, Journal of Applied Psychology, Journal of Industrial Relations, Journal of Management Studies, Journal of Vocational Behavior, Journal of World Business, Occupational Psychology, Organizational Dynamics, and Stress Medicine. He is a member of the Editorial Board of Journal of Organizational Behavior and a Distinguished Member of the Australian and New Zealand Academy of Management, and a former winner of the Best International Paper award of the Academy of Management. In recent years, his research has been primarily on careers, and he will be Program Chair for the Careers Division, Academy of Management, in 2004.


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Doing business abroad or with individuals from other parts of the world is not just a matter of facts, figures, and business reports; culture comes into play as well. Thomas (international management, Simon Fraser Univ.) and Inkson (management, Massey Univ., New Zeland) provide in-depth information as well as practical advice on dealing effectively with people from various cultures. They examine the factors involved in global business within the framework of cultural intelligence, which they define as "being more skilled and flexible about understanding a culture, learning more about it from your ongoing interactions with it, and gradually reshaping your thinking to be more sympathetic to the culture and your behavior to be more skilled and appropriate when interacting with others from the culture." The first four chapters discuss the fundamentals of cultural intelligence, while the last five apply these fundamentals to common managerial settings. Especially valuable are the case studies, which illustrate the breakdowns in communication that result when business people from different cultures do not understand one another. Highly recommended reading for business people and as supplemental reading in courses on international business.-Lucy Heckman, St. John's Univ. Lib., Jamaica, NY Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.


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