Intercultural Communications & Business

These days in business and in life, gaps in communication are inevitable.  With increased diversity, a global economy and access to remote workers, culturally sourced gaps in communication are pervasive and may go unnoticed if leadership is not focused on routing out and resolving such gaps.

Cultural translation, to me, is more than just understanding language. It is about bridging the gaps in communication caused by different cultural perspectives. Growing up as a missionary kid in various foreign countries, I have always been immersed in cultures that were not my own. This unique multicultural background, often referred to as “third culture kids”, has shaped my perspective on intercultural communications and its significance in the business world.

My early memories consist of traveling through the Andes with my father, persuading local radio stations to play Christian music for free.  At a young age I moved from Latin America to Taiwan, where very little English was spoken. I had to quickly assimilate to Taiwanese food and culture. Just as I felt I was gaining confidence in speaking Mandarin, my family relocated to Japan. This pattern of constantly adapting to new cultures continued when my family moved to Eastern Russia, where I witnessed a collapsing culture and gained valuable insights into what shapes a culture and its people. Soon after, I returned to the United States, a country I had never lived in before, which presented its own set of challenges.

Joining the Navy at the age of eighteen was a significant cultural shock for me. Despite speaking English, I had no experience with sarcasm, gentle bullying, or locker room banter.  The learning curve was steep, as I had to bridge the cultural gap and familiarize myself with these aspects of American culture.

Throughout my journey, I have experienced the power of cultural translation firsthand. Whether it was engaging in theological discussions with Muslim military personnel in the Middle East or debating Islamic beliefs with Iraqi friends, I found common ground and built relationships by embracing cultural differences. These experiences have allowed me to better understand various cultures and communicate effectively in diverse environments.

My ability to adapt and understand different cultures has proven invaluable in my security career. Rather than relying solely on firearms, my approach has been to build trust through listening, negotiation, and understanding. For instance, during my time in Iraq, I found that having conversations with street-side rotisserie chicken salesmen provided valuable intelligence about the area. By simply sitting down, eating their chicken and engaging in conversation, I gained insights that were more effective than any covert actions.

Language is not the sole focus of cultural translation. It is about understanding the nuances, intentions, and unspoken messages within a room full of people who believe they speak the same language. I have often found myself identifying misunderstandings and clarifying them to move negotiations forward.

Two examples stand out among the countless instances where cultural translation played a crucial role. In Japan, I diffused a potential conflict between a Japanese billionaire and the Rolling Stones by explaining the different meanings of the word “commission”. The Japanese billionaire initially believed that the Rolling Stones thought he wanted money from them, which was a severe loss of face for him. By clarifying the misunderstanding, I restored harmony to the conversation.

In Angola, during a meeting filled with translators, military personnel, and political officers, I had to intervene and clarify a misinterpretation of a gesture of goodwill from the United States. The miscommunication led to confusion about the number of classes to be taught. In these situations, my ability to identify and correct misunderstandings was essential.

My life’s work has revolved around finding and rectifying misunderstandings caused by cultural differences. Cultural translation has become my mission; a skill that I have honed through my experiences as a missionary kid, a Navy SEAL, a security advisor and now as a leadership consultant.  My proficiency in Mandarin Chinese, Japanese, Spanish, and Portuguese has been useful, but it’s not as much about the language as it is about what one learns from communicating in multiple languages.

Intercultural communication gaps can occur any time there is any level of diversity in an organization and the cost can be huge.  EVERY organization has them.  In war zones, the cost of bad communication is often lives.  In business it’s just millions of dollars.  When people are not understood, they tend to communicate less, offering little of their insight into organizational effectiveness.  This robs the organization of valuable input and leaves key people feeling disenfranchised.  The potential impact this can have on organizational culture, turnover rates, problem solving and innovation cannot be overstated.  We consider the ability to sense and then distinguish subtle gaps in communication to be a fundemental leadership skill.