Let’s Break Barriers Through Intercultural Communication!

INTRODUCTION OF THE POST: In the current competitive financial industry landscape and the context of global integration, effective communication skills are key to students’ development and ability to adapt. Before jumping to the skillset, let’s embrace cultural diversity in workplace with awareness and openness. 

I. The key to successful communication in the workplace: Cultural awareness & Open-mindedness

Regarding cultural awareness, this is a crucial aspect in the employee evaluation process within a shared work environment. The cultural awareness reflect it to be good means respecting differences in values, beliefs, and communication styles across cultures (Thomas & Inkson, 2009). Without this skill, new employees may encounter misunderstandings and communication barriers in the workplace. 

For example, in a multinational financial institution, a newly graduated employee may work with both local managers and colleagues from Western countries. Without sufficient cultural awareness, the graduate might believe that openly expressing disagreement during meetings is disrespectful to senior staff. However, in cultures with low power distance, voicing personal opinions is often encouraged and viewed as a sign of initiative and critical thinking. With cultural awareness, the new graduate can recognize this difference and adapt their communication style by choosing appropriate language and timing to express ideas respectfully. This helps reduce misunderstandings, improve teamwork, and build a professional image in a multicultural financial environment.

According to Hofstede’s in 2011 Hofstede's theory is a framework for measuring cultural differences due to their profound depth. The culture of each country significantly impacts attitudes and behaviors in the workplace. A key dimension is Power Distance, which describes how individuals perceive hierarchy and authority. In cultures with high power distance, employees tend to respect seniority, while cultures with low power distance encourage open communication (Hofstede et al., 2010). Understanding this difference allows recent graduates to communicate appropriately with superiors and colleagues. This awareness helps recent graduates adapt to the collaborative work environment prevalent in financial organizations.

Openness, a willingness to listen, and acceptance of diverse perspectives without prejudice are core elements of intercultural communication competence and enable recent graduates to learn from cultural differences, improve communication, and build positive professional relationships within financial organizations (Deardorff, 2006).

II. Needed Communication Skills For Cultural Intergration

Effective intercultural integration depends heavily on strong communication abilities. 

The Shannon-Weaver Model of Communication illustrates a process that is facilitated by the existence of a sender, a message that is performed through a channel, a receiver and feedback that can be disturbed by noise (Mulder, 2016). The dominant cause of this noise typically is language and cultural diversities in intercultural environments (Mulder, 2016). According to this model, the use of transparent communication and positive feedback is necessary to reduce the noice, which helps with misunderstandings due to differences in culture or language.
For example, international students often confirm understanding by paraphrasing instructions during group discussions to avoid confusion.

Furthermore, the Non-verbal Communication Theory is mindful of the fact that the significance of the body language, eye contact, gestures, and physical distance are crucial (Manusov, 2016). These non-verbal signs have different meanings in various cultures and thus, when decoded in the wrong way, a misunderstanding or tension is likely to arise. The sensibility and adaptation to the different non-verbal standards can be developed, which would permit even more respectful and efficient communication in heterogeneous empires (Manusov, 2016).
For instance, adjusting eye contact and personal space when interacting with people from different cultures can help prevent discomfort.

link (eyes contact) : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0heN5dYF2PI 

Language competence is the other factor that is significant in the integration process. The benefit of learning a second language is not necessarily that it helps the individual to enhance his/her communication abilities but also provides one with the insight into the cultural values and societal traditions in the daily routine (Taken & Tekeelar, 2022). It is possible to apply such an insight and decrease the communication barrier and build confidence during communication with culturally diverse individuals (Taken and Tekeelar, 2022).
For example, learning common expressions and informal phrases helps newcomers participate more naturally in daily conversations.

Finally, there is the Social Capital Theory, which points out the importance of the active social engagement. The engagement with associations, organisations and clubs allows the persons to develop social network, acquire the knowledge about the culture and apply the intercultural communication skills to the real life (van Bakel & Horak, 2024). These are significant social connections that help in creating individuals into good integration and development in various societies.
For instance, joining a multicultural student club enables individuals to build friendships while practicing intercultural communication skills.

Reflection: Though communication skill below , I gained a clearer understanding of the role of intercultural communication in the financial workplace. This infomation helped me realize that effective communication involves not only language skills but also cultural awareness, open-mindedness, and sensitivity to non-verbal cues. By applying academic models such as Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions and the Shannon–Weaver Communication Model, I learned how cultural differences can influence workplace behavior and communication effectiveness. I also recognized that misunderstandings in multicultural environments often result from a lack of cultural understanding rather than poor communication skills. In addition, learning about Social Capital Theory emphasized the importance of social participation in building professional networks. 

 REFERENCES 

Hofstede, G. (1980). Culture’s consequences: International differences in work-related values. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage Publications.

Hofstede, G. (2011). Dimensionalizing cultures: The Hofstede model in context. Online Readings in Psychology and Culture, 2(1), 1–26. https://doi.org/10.9707/2307-0919.1014

Hofstede, G., Hofstede, G. J., & Minkov, M. (2010). Cultures and organizations: Software of the mind (3rd ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

Thomas, D. C., & Inkson, K. (2009). Cultural intelligence: Living and working globally (2nd ed.). San Francisco, CA: Berrett-Koehler.

Deardorff, D. K. (2006). Identification and assessment of intercultural competence as a student outcome of internationalization. Journal of Studies in International Education, 10(3), 241–266. https://doi.org/10.1177/1028315306287002

Mulder, P. (2016). Communication Cycle model by Shannon and Weaver. Toolshero. Available at:  https://www.toolshero.com/communication-methods/communication-cycle-shannon-weaver/

Manusov, V. (2016). Nonverbal communication. In The international encyclopedia of communication theory and philosophy. Wiley-Blackwell. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118766804.wbiect096 

Taken, A., & Ketelaar, J. (2022). 5 Reasons Why Language is Key For Integration. Speak. Available at: https://blog.speak.social/5-reasons-language-key-integration/ 

van Bakel, M., & Horak, S. (2024). Social capital theory. In A guide to key theories for human resource management research (pp. 261–267). Edward Elgar Publishing. https://doi.org/10.4337/9781035308767.ch33