VOIS - Area 2 - Module 5

  1. MODULE TITLE

Module 5: Cultural Awareness
  1. AUTHORS

assist GmbH, Simona Fabellini
  1. SHORT DESCRIPTION

Enhancing your consciousness about your own cultural values, norms, attitudes and forms of behaviour helps developing an awareness also for the differences between cultures. Starting from the question about what Culture is, you will discover the link between Culture and Open Innovation and then explore how certain elements of culture, called culture dimensions, can typically show when people are working together adapting Open Innovation processes. As people behave according to their own set of values, it is important to understand why the “ethnocentric” perspective may lead to intercultural misunderstandings leading to a negative influence on Open Innovation. Last but not least, you will receive some tips about strategies how to open up to cultural awareness so that in the end you will be better prepared for intercultural encounters by having grown in your intercultural competences.
  1. LEARNING OBJECTIVES

    Upon completing this module, you should be able to:

  • have a deeper understanding of what culture is,
  • know where your culture may show in Open Innovation processes,
  • be able to tell why culture can be a challenge for Open Innovation,
  • will be able to approach other cultures with more awareness in Open Innovation collaborations.
  1. Training Content
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Case study 2

An agricultural business in an eastern region of Germany decides to advance its digitalisation strategy in the coming business year. To be able to implement this, the farm needs to hire an IT specialist. The job advertisement is prepared and circulated on social media. Various applications arrive. A young man from Romania is invited as the most qualified applicant, and he gets the job.

The young man has to find a flat in his new place of residence. He wants to live as close to the workplace as possible so that he can get to work on foot or by bicycle. The offer is available despite the rural region. The young man would have already decided on several flats, but when he expresses his interest, he keeps getting refusals from the landlords. Even showing the employment contract does not help.

What would you do as a manager to support the new employee? Choose the action strategy that comes closest to you.

Story choices

Practical tips:

  • Actively challenge prejudices by asking questions such as: “Are all Germans really honest?”, “Do all foreign workers want to take advantage of my country?”
  • if you have negative prejudices in your mind, consciously try to imagine the positive counterpart.
  • Look for opportunities to interact with the new employee or generally with people you would not normally interact with (Allen, 2016, p. 1430).
  • Provide opportunities in the workplace to get to know the new employee, for example: actively go out for lunch with your new employee and other colleagues, organise smaller team rounds that include having coffee together, etc.
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