Tag Archives: Cultural Diversity

Situation 43: asking for approval

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Femsy wants to organize a two days teambuilding meeting with her team. She asks Boss to approve her request. Due to budget pressures Boss rejects.

(Click on the pictures to see them in full size)

A great leader:

  • Is focused on doing value-add activities that enhance the capabilities of her people and delivers superior performance for the organization;
  • Is clear about the rationale for people development activities and the return on investment;
  • Manages her budget wisely so that she can enhance the effectiveness of her team and deliver on all her commitments within budgetary constraints
  • Demonstrates her trustworthiness in handling financial matters.

How to best handle the situation:

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Learning To Learn About Diversity

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by Anja Uitdehaag

“Diversity isn’t just sound social policy – diversity is the engine of invention. It generates creativity that enriches the world.” – Justin Trudeau

I very much like the way the University of Maryland defines “diversity”:

“Diversity is “otherness”, or those human qualities that are different from our own and outside the groups to which we belong, yet are present in other individuals and groups.”

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Walking In A Single Woman’s Shoes

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by matheen

Living in today’s digital age confirms that we are in the passage of a remarkable sea change — the evolution of women’s status — staying single and putting off marriage by choice.  In the 60’s, the average age for women to marry ranged between 18 and 29.  Fast forward to today, that number has declined by leaps and bounds! Kristin Dombeck’s New York Times report last Sept. 9, 2015, states, “The number of women between 30 and 34 who are not marrying has increased by 31% between 2007 and 2012.” These numbers show exceptional attitudinal shifts on women – reflecting that women aren’t single because there are fewer men around; women are single because they simply choose to be.

What does it mean to be a single woman? Let’s see what it’s like by walking in a single woman’s shoes as we navigate through life in various key areas — social, political, family, and financial areas — circa 2016. Continue reading →

Driving Cultural Transformations 

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I have had the opportunity to work in four Asian countries – one of them my own – and the main challenge I faced has always been the same. Do I act in full alignment with the new way of working or do I adjust to the way things are done around here?

My dilemma is specific to my role. For the last seventeen years, I have been in the HR profession which is largely perceived as the function that moderates the “community”. Harmony is the name of the game, especially in Asia where it is almost always expected that working environments have a “family” feel. Projects and deadlines are tackled with patience and tolerance and where one-hour meetings begin with twenty-minute small talks among meeting participants. Continue reading →