International Management: Embracing Both Differences And Similarities - An interesting read

International Management: Embracing Both Differences And Similarities - An interesting read

Embracing cultural diversity: The key to thriving international teams

Navigating cultural diversity isn’t just a nice-to-have anymore—it’s the secret ingredient that drives innovation, resilience, and success in international teams.

This perspective was powerfully confirmed by Yih-Teen Lee, Professor in the Department of Managing People in Organizations at IESE Business School and Academic Director of the IESE Coaching Unit, in his recent Forbes article. Lee shines a light on something I work on with my international clients: the strategic embrace of both differences and similarities within multicultural teams to achieve more purposeful, generative, and impactful outcomes.

Why We Must Move Beyond Basic Awareness

Many organizations still treat cultural diversity as a box to check or, worse, a source of friction to minimize. However, as Lee clearly points out, when managed with intention, diversity becomes a wellspring of creativity and a powerful force in tackling complex business challenges. What’s needed is a mindset shift: moving beyond basic awareness or tolerance, and instead intentionally embracing what Lee calls "duality"—the idea that commonality and difference are not opposites in conflict with each other, but interdependent forces capable of working together like complementary pieces of a puzzle.

Recognizing and valuing each team member’s unique perspective is crucial. Teams that master this dual embrace are, according to the article, twice as likely to exceed business goals and build genuine engagement among members. This is the kind of transformation I strive to enable with my clients—not just surface-level diversity efforts, but substantive cultural fluency.

Comfort with Ambiguity: A Modern Leadership Must-Have

What especially resonated with me in Lee’s article is the call for leaders to become comfortable navigating ambiguity and moving beyond binary, “either-or” thinking. In a diverse team, there are rarely simple right or wrong answers. Instead, leaders must foster an environment in which differences and similarities are considered equally valuable and ambiguity is welcomed as a space for possibility rather than confusion.

This systemic and nuanced approach is at the heart of my coaching and training programs. Here’s how I guide leaders and teams:

✅ Identify both shared and non-shared values and visions: Building a team culture that goes beyond surface-level commonalities to foster a true sense of belonging—one that honors individuality as well as unity.

✅ Spot and leverage unique cultural strengths: Transforming potential points of friction into opportunities for creative collaboration and mutual growth.

✅ Facilitate authentic communication across cultural lines: Enabling trust, psychological safety, and robust relationships, no matter where in the world your team members are based.

Thriving Together, Beyond Boundaries

Ultimately, embracing cultural diversity isn’t just about reducing conflict or avoiding misunderstandings—it’s about unlocking the full potential of every team member. Through intentional, systemic work, I see over and over how teams that become culturally fluent don’t just “get along”; they truly shine, achieving levels of innovation and cohesion that would otherwise be impossible.

If you’re interested in moving past surface-level diversity and creating a thriving, generative culture for your international team, I’d love to connect. Let’s explore together how embracing the richness of both our differences and similarities can lead to transformational outcomes for your organization.

Email: sandrine.gelin@glshift.com

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/sandrinelamrani

Make an appointment: https://www.glshift.com/book-online

Web Site: www.glshift.com

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