Cultural Competence

by Deborah May , deborah@deborahmay.com

05/05/2005

Until our organisations are genuinely inclusive, women and diverse groups must be “culturally competent” in order to succeed within their organisations.

This means they need to:

* possess a strong sense of personal identity
* have knowledge of the beliefs and values of the culture
* communicate clearly in the language of the given group
* perform socially sanctioned behaviour
* maintain active social relations within the cultural group, and
* negotiate the institutional structures of that culture.”

(The Hudson report, Breaking the Cultural Mould: The Key to Women’s Career Success)

My research finds that too many Australian organisations have a culture built around beliefs and values that includes:

* being seen to do the right thing
* being valued by the “right” people
* avoiding risks or making mistakes
* being competitive or a “young go-getter”
* “kissing up, kicking down”
* “being a bloke”
* “knowing the jargon”
* being extroverted and self-promoting
* working “hard” or being seen to work hard by working long hours
* being available anytime to respond to “urgent” requests from the boss.

Not surprisingly, many women (and men) are reluctant to conform to these rules - deciding they’d rather not “play the game” for the sake of a promotion.

All the more reason we must work together to change our workplace cultures. Unless we know the rules, we cannot change them and we lose by default.

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