Do you CQ?
Ask the key questions of cultural intelligence
Drive: What is my level of confidence and motivation for this assignment?
Knowledge: What cultural understanding do I need?
Strategy: What is my plan to successfully fulfill this assignment?
Action: What behaviors will I adopt to be effective?
Gaining ground
Leading with cultural intelligence
A discussion with David Livermore, PH.D., author of Leading with Cultural Intelligence: the New Secret to Success and The Cultural Intelligence Difference.
AWARE: Why is cultural intelligence (CQ) important?
Livermore: Leadership today is a multicultural challenge. How do you give instructions to a Pakistani employee versus one from Bosnia? What kind of training should you design for a team from multiple cultural backgrounds? How do you get feedback from a colleague who comes from a culture that values saving face above direct feedback? The cultural intelligence model offers a four-step cycle you can run through every time you jump into a new cross-cultural situation.
AWARE: What is the four-step cycle?
Livermore: I recommend following a four-step cycle when preparing for all cross-cultural interactions:
1. Examine your motivation (CQ drive)
2. Seek to understand (CQ knowledge)
3. Think outside the box as you plan (CQ strategy)
4. Lead with respect (CQ action)
AWARE: Can you walk us through each step?
Livermore: CQ drive, the motivational dimension of cultural intelligence, is one of the most important features of the cultural intelligence model. It’s the perseverance required when the novelty of being in a new place wears off and the differences begin to chafe. Leaders with high CQ drive are motivated to learn and adapt to new and diverse cultural settings. Their confidence is likely to influence the way they perform in multicultural settings.
CQ drive helps a leader move beyond his or her fears to take new risks and grow in the ability to perform effectively in places that seem foreign. Examples include trying new foods, taking in some of the local culture and persevering through the fatigue of relating in a different culture.
People can develop CQ drive by:
- Being honest with themselves
- Examining their confidence level
- Eating and socializing
- Recognizing the perks
AWARE: What about Step 2: CQ Knowledge?
Livermore: Leaders who have CQ knowledge have a rich, well-organized understanding of culture and how it affects the way people think and behave. They understand how cultures are alike and different and how culture shapes behavior.
People can develop CQ Knowledge by:
- Seeing culture’s role in themselves and others
- Reviewing the basic cultural systems
- Learning the core cultural values
- Understanding different languages
AWARE: Please discuss Step 3: CQ strategy.
Livermore: Leaders with high CQ strategy develop ways to use cultural understanding to develop a plan for new cross-cultural situations. These leaders are able to monitor, analyze and adjust their behaviors in different cultural settings. They are conscious of what they need to know about an unfamiliar culture.
Leaders develop CQ strategy by:
- Becoming more aware
- Planning cross-cultural interactions
- Checking to see if their assumptions and plans are appropriate
AWARE: Finally, what about CQ Action?
Livermore: Leaders with high CQ action draw on the other three steps to translate motivation, understanding and planning into action. They possess a broad repertoire of behaviors which they use depending on the context.
AWARE: Anything else?
Livermore: The importance of leading with cultural intelligence is becoming more significant. You can have all the right policies in place and make all the right tactical decisions, but if you don’t engage with cultural intelligence, forget it!
David Livermore is President and Partner of the Cultural Intelligence Center (www.culturalq.com) in East Lansing, Michigan. He’s written several books on the topics of global leadership and cultural intelligence. He is a visiting fellow at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore and has consulted with leaders in 100 countries around the world. His newest book on cultural intelligence, The Cultural Intelligence Difference, offers dozens of strategies for improving your CQ and comes with a unique code to access the online CQ assessment. For more information, visit www.davidlivermore.com.
