Have a word

Leading a team across cultures doesn’t necessarily mean having to learn another language – just how to communicate with others. Toni Monzón of the Bilingual Training Institute in Orange, Calif. tells how to motivate your employees regardless of your background.

What is your experience working across cultures?

I have been working as a bilingual irrigation trainer with residential and commercial landscape companies for 21 years. I work very closely with companies, going in-house for extended periods of time. That allows me to gather a lot of information about dynamics about a company in a confidential manner.

What are your general observations about cultural differences and the workplace?

I am shocked when general statements about Hispanic or any other ethnic group is made. I really would like to emphasize that what motivates an individual, creates teamwork and provides results has absolutely nothing to do with culture. Nothing! Generalized statements about worker loyalty or work ethics only serve to divide us.

In addition to practical technical training I have been offering evaluations of how a company can achieve the best results with the training. This came about when companies saw that employees were receiving bilingual training, but they were getting the results they wanted in the field.

In that case, motivates an individual?

Employees need to be well trained and they need a support system. At the very least, the employee needs to be provided with equipment that is safe and functional. You would be surprised how often I see employees in the field using equipment that is not functioning properly. The employee needs to be well-trained as to the use of any equipment and receive a detailed, understandable understanding of the task at hand.

In addition to proper training and equipment, accountability is a must. By that, I mean that employees need to know that someone is going to check their work. I don't mean a policing system. But an employee's work needs to be checked and if it is not up to standards, they need to be told. And there also needs to be consequences if a job is not done properly, because we all need to perform at the highest level of our capability.

On the other hand, if a job is well done that needs to be acknowledged as well. An employee will be much more motivated if he knows that someone cares enough about the job to check his work.

What leadership qualities provide the best results?

It is essential that a leader has integrity. I don't care if someone comes from Senegal, France, Mexico or any other country - it's important to know that a leader stands behind his word. If your supervisor says that he is going to provide you with something that you need to assist you to do your job, it's going to be delivered. If you work tremendously hard to complete a job because your supervisor says he will be there to check it, he better be there.

This sounds simple, but so many times there is no follow through. That's because follow-through can be tedious. But it is essential.

 

What we have in common as human beings is more significant than what sets us apart, culturally speaking. We need to get over our cultural differences because it doesn't matter. I've seen so many articles by people trying to analyze people from Latin America - what encourages them, what discourages them, how to motivate them - and that's not a good approach. It all goes back to a method, a system, a management system that gets the best out of people. We all respond to the same positive influences.