Abstract
The paper provides a discussion of how the concept of intercultural competence is reflected in the mission and current training plan of Tenet Healthcare Corporation. The gaps that are observed in the current plan about the issue of intercultural competence are discussed, and the activities to address them effectively are proposed. The historical and social contexts related to the activities of the organization in the United States and the United Kingdom are identified and analyzed with the focus on the improvements to include in the global training plan. Finally, the four dimensions that are referred to when it is necessary to discuss the differences in cultures are analyzed to state how Tenet Healthcare Corporation addresses these aspects in its regular training and what changes can be proposed.
Global Training and Development Plan: Part I (D-F)
Tenet Healthcare Corporation is a multinational company that operates not only in the United States but also in the United Kingdom. As a result, the company requires the development of an effective global training plan that could address the needs related to promoting diversity and enhancing intercultural competence. Although the principles of the mutual respect and cooperation between cultures are followed in the organization, much attention should be paid to the idea of intercultural competence, its relation to the company’s mission and activities, contexts in which it is discussed, and cultural dimensions that influence the employees’ expectations.
Define Intercultural Competence. How Does This Concept Relate to the Chosen Organization’s Mission? How Does the Organization Currently Address This Concept Through Training and Development? What Gaps Are There between What Is Currently Done and What Needs to Be Done about Developing Intercultural Competence?
The intercultural competence can be defined as a specific ability or skill that allows individuals to interact appropriately with the representatives of different cultures. The appropriateness is measured in terms of demonstrating positive attitudes and the accentuated cultural awareness, as well as in the communication while following different cultural norms (Deardorff, 2009). Still, this concept is not reflected in the organization’s mission that is oriented to promoting the principles of a happy and healthy life for clients. However, Tenet Healthcare Corporation is focused on addressing the concept of intercultural competence in the implemented training program.
The main emphasis of the program is on developing the employees’ knowledge and skills regarding the organizational values, intercultural relations, and ethical norms (Tenet Healthcare Corporation, 2016). Even though thousands of employees participate in this training program annually and learn details of the intercultural relationships, the number of diverse workers and patients also increases. The employees require a more focused global training program that could address such gaps as the lack of knowledge regarding intercultural communication, teamwork in the context of diversity, and intercultural cooperation to achieve higher results.
Describe at Least Two Social, Political, or Historical Contexts Influencing the Organization and the Development of Employees’ Intercultural Competence. What Considerations Regarding These Contexts Should Be Made in Developing Training Initiatives for This Organization? If These Contexts Are Currently Being Addressed, Describe How and Evaluate These Applications for Improvements and Gaps.
The development of intercultural competence in Tenet is influenced by such two contexts as the historical relationships between the United States and the United Kingdom and differences in these cultures’ reactions to the issue of diversity. It is important to note that there are situations when representatives of the American and British cultures are inclined to perceive themselves as belonging to the same Western English-speaking cultural context or as representatives of completely different cultures.
Moreover, attitudes to recruiting culturally diverse specialists in the US and UK facilities are also different, and these aspects need to be addressed. The effective training programs should help the expatriate managers interact with employees in foreign countries and develop their intercultural competence. The training should also accentuate and reflect the organization’s approach to retaining the culturally diverse employees to improve the communication between employees and managers and contribute to the collaboration of diverse workers (Bird, Mendenhall, Stevens, & Oddou, 2010). Currently, the organization has no effective plan to address these contexts effectively.
Assess the Four Critical Dimensions That Help Explain Differences in Cultural Expectations. How Do Each of These Relate to the Chosen Organization and Its Global Training Efforts? What Considerations Need to Be Made to Address the Expectations Identified by These Dimensions in the Creation of This Training Plan?
The four dimensions that are used to discuss differences in cultures and individuals’ expectations are egalitarianism vs. hierarchy, the achievement vs. relationship orientation, the loose vs. tight structure, and individualism vs. collectivism (Weech, 2001).
The focus on egalitarianism allows understanding how representatives of different cultures perceive differences in statuses and positions. Achievement-oriented cultures demonstrate the interest in competitions and gaining rewards in contrast to the relationship-oriented cultures. The loose structure of the culture means that individuals refer to the variety of solutions and alternatives (Dartey-Baah, 2013). Individualistic cultures demonstrate the interest in the person’s autonomy about activities. It is important to assess how these dimensions are related to the training proposed by Tenet Healthcare Corporation.
The English-speaking countries, including the United States and the United Kingdom, are egalitarian. As a result, the training sessions are based on the interaction of employees to help them learn from each other. Currently, the training programs are developed to reflect the achievement-oriented approach, and employees often participate in competitions and simulations to develop their potential. Being representatives of the loose-structure culture, the American and British employees actively participate in activities that require finding an effective solution among the alternatives (Weech, 2001).
This training in Tenet is effective to develop the employees’ skills in decision-making and problem-solving. The proposed training program is also appropriate for the individualist culture spread in the United States and the United Kingdom in terms of the provided independence.
While developing an effective training plan, it is important to note that employees having, for instance, the Asian or Latin cultural backgrounds are more oriented to following norms of the hierarchy, and training sessions should also include the expert-centered activities. The adaptation of the training program to the needs of the representatives of relationship-oriented cultures should also include the changes in the expert’s teaching style to make it friendly and cooperative. Furthermore, the appropriate program should also address the needs of diverse employees regarding the learning (Graf, 2009).
Although the representatives of the loose-structure culture are inclined to find the best way to resolve the problem independently, trainers can accentuate what strategies among the proposed ones can be regarded as the best approaches to follow. The final important point to include in the new training plan is the reference to the needs of the collectivist cultures. For those facilities where the percentage of employees having the Latin or Asian backgrounds is the highest one, it is possible to propose the teamwork and training activities in groups to guarantee the better performance and skills’ development.
Conclusion
Even though Tenet Healthcare Corporation adopted the principles of mutual respect and cooperation between cultures to promote the training sessions in the organization, the idea of intercultural competence still requires a detailed discussion. Therefore, it is important to assess the focus on intercultural competence in relation to the organization’s mission and activities. It is also necessary to focus on the contexts in which the realization of the intercultural competence can be observed. Also, the discussion of the training programs in the context of cultural dimensions that can influence the employees’ expectations is significant. The analysis of these key aspects leads to identifying the gaps that need to be addressed with the help of the new training program and development plan.
References
Bird, A., Mendenhall, M., Stevens, M. J., & Oddou, G. (2010). Defining the content domain of intercultural competence for global leaders. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 25(8), 810-828. Web.
Dartey-Baah, K. (2013). The cultural approach to the management of the international human resource: An analysis of Hofstede’s cultural dimensions. International Journal of Business Administration, 4(2), 39-45.
Deardorff, D. K. (2009). The SAGE handbook of intercultural competence. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Web.
Graf, A. (2009). Intercultural training: Six measures assessing training needs. Journal of European Industrial Training, 33(6), 539-558.
Tenet Healthcare Corporation. (2016). About the company. Web.
Weech, W. A. (2001). Training across cultures: What to expect. Training & Development, 55(1), 62-64. Web.