Cross-cultural training and workplace performance

The 2006 census found that around 30% of people residing in Australia were born overseas, a trend unlikely to be reversed in the short-term, given the Australian Government’s recent decision to signi?cantly boost the places in the permanent skilled migration program to help employers redress their skill shortages. In light of this, employers are likely to increasingly favour employees who can work and interact with people from different cultural backgrounds.

This study by Robert Bean investigated the contribution to workplace performance of cross-cultural training, a term used to describe training that develops a person’s ability to interact effectively with individuals from different cultures and in different cultural settings. The study is based on a survey of 134 vocational education and training (VET) graduates. The practices and views of 38 training providers and 31 employers on the current and future provision of cross-cultural training are also described.

The report highlights the positive experiences of VET graduates with cross-cultural training, as well as employers’ support for it. It lists the challenges for cross-cultural training as perceived by trainers, a speci?c challenge being to ensure that there is suf?cient and appropriate cross-cultural training embedded in training packages, particularly those covering sales and service industries, industries with high customer contact.

Key messages

• The increasing cultural diversity of the Australian population and workforce means that the ability to work across cultures is becoming a necessity for many workers.

• While employers acknowledge the bene?ts of having a culturally competent workforce, they do not yet see cross-cultural competencies as part of a generic skill set. Moreover, the current level of cross-cultural training provision in vocational education and training courses appears to be quite low.

• Acquiring cultural competence is a lifelong process that can be assisted by the formalisation of guidelines and criteria for the provision of cross-cultural training and the establishment of uniform benchmarks for learner outcomes.

Tom Karmel
Managing Director, NCVER

 

This study investigated the contribution made by cross-cultural training to the workplace performance of vocational education and training (VET) graduates and examined current practice in its delivery in VET. The study also sought the views of employers on cultural competence and the role of cross-cultural training.

Research background and rationale

The role of education systems in contributing to social cohesion has been recognised nationally and internationally in recent years (McGaw 2006), as has the importance of social capital to human capital (Putnam 2000). In multicultural societies in particular, social capital is underpinned by cultural competence, broadly defined as the ability to work effectively in situations characterised by cultural diversity. A review of the Australian and international literature for this study highlighted a broad recognition of the importance of cross-cultural training in the development of cultural competence and social capital.

A recent national study of cross-cultural training in the Australian public sector completed by the author found the training to be effective in improving workplace performance and in contributing to multicultural policy objectives (Standing Committee on Immigration and Multicultural Affairs 2006). In that study, as in this, the majority of employers surveyed predicted increased demand for cultural competence and cross-cultural training over the next five years in response to the expanding cultural diversity of employees and customers. Increasing globalisation of business practices was also predicted to affect demand for cultural competence and cross-cultural training. Most employers surveyed included cultural competence in career development strategies and planned to conduct cross-cultural training programs. Cultural competence was also included in recruitment and performance appraisal processes.

As the need for cultural competence becomes more widely recognised, employers in many industries will increasingly look for cultural competence among new recruits and for ways to develop it among existing staff. In anticipation of these trends and demands, this report set out to indentify what the VET sector needs to do to better understand the nature, scope and effectiveness of its current and potential capacity to provide cross-cultural training. Decisions to include cross-cultural training in VET qualifications require evidence that it contributes to the performance of learners in their workplaces and careers. A literature review, wide-ranging consultations with key stakeholders and online surveys of VET graduates, educators and employers were conducted to address four research questions:

• How has cross-cultural training undertaken by VET students contributed to their performance in the workplace and benefited their employers?
   

• What is the current extent and range of practices for teaching VET students cultural understanding and developing their cultural competence for employment?
   

• What approaches and models of cross-cultural training provision are most effective in particular occupational and industry domains and settings?
   

• What strategies and processes will best enable VET providers to develop and offer vocational training leading to cultural competence?
   

An online survey of VET graduates who had completed cross-cultural training as part of their qualification in the last five years generated 134 responses. The graduates had received an average of 31 hours of training in cross-cultural communication and working with cultural diversity. About 80% were employees in government agencies or private enterprises, the rest working for community and voluntary organisations. The cross-cultural training undertaken focused on general awareness, specific cultures and working with or managing diversity within 12 national training packages.

Sixty-one managers and teachers from 38 training providers who were identified as providing cross-cultural training within the relevant training packages responded to an online survey. Cross-cultural training was also provided as part of English language training, staff induction, professional development, Aboriginal cultural awareness and community programs. The most common objectives of cross-cultural training were to improve: customer service; workplace communication; community relationships; and compliance with equity policies and laws.

A telephone survey was conducted with executives and middle managers from 34 medium-to-large organisations (18 private, 16 public sector), representing a wide range of industries, and four industry skills councils, covering the relevant national training packages.

Contribution of cross-cultural training to VET graduates’ workplace performance

Almost 60% of graduates who responded rated their overall satisfaction with their cross-cultural training as above average or excellent. Around 70% stated that the training had greatly or very greatly improved their: understanding of cultural diversity issues; cultural self-awareness; knowledge of cross-cultural communication skills; understanding of other cultures; and confidence in dealing with people from different cultures. Over 80% of graduates rated highly the importance of cultural competence for working with culturally diverse co-workers, clients and customers. These findings were supported by the graduates’ qualitative responses, which commonly reported increased awareness, acceptance, recognition, understanding and greater patience and empathy.

These positive messages are reinforced by the findings that over 60% of graduates would like further cross-cultural training, 85% would recommend cross-cultural training to others, and 89% believe cross-cultural training should be mandatory for all employees in customer contact positions.

The findings from the graduate survey are similar to those reported in the survey for the Standing Committee on Immigration and Multicultural Affairs (2006) report. Together, the two studies confirm the effectiveness and contribution of cross-cultural training, while identifying areas for improvement in the design, duration and approaches of cross-cultural training, organisational support and follow-up, and the professional development of cross-cultural training facilitators.

Current practice in cross-cultural training in VET

The VET providers’ ratings of perceived student satisfaction with their cross-cultural training and their improvements in workplace performance were very similar to those given by the graduates themselves. Providers’ ratings of the degrees of importance placed on cultural competence also closely matched the ratings given by graduates and employers. This general congruence of ratings across the three groups lends validity to the results, as does their close similarity to the findings of the public sector study (Standing Committee on Immigration and Multicultural Affairs 2006).

Over 90% of VET providers who responded expected increased demand over the next five years from employers for VET graduates to be culturally competent, particularly in the areas of community, health, business, government, hospitality, tourism and training. However, the current scope of cross-cultural training provision appears limited. Fewer than 23% of the training providers identified as providing qualifications that include diversity units responded, with several declining to participate because they did not provide cross-cultural training as such or had not done so in the study period of the previous five years.

While over two-thirds of the 31 responding VET cross-cultural trainers had more than six years cross-cultural training experience, 75% had not received any formal training in this area. Eight in ten indicated they would like professional development and about half recommended the development of training resources reflecting the Australian context. They also identified areas for further research and the need for more consistency in policy and provision of cross-cultural training in the VET system. Their responses closely matched those of trainers in the Standing Committee on Immigration and Multicultural Affairs (2006) study.

Cross-cultural training effectiveness

The study identified numerous models and learning pathways for cross-cultural training, most of which recognise that acquiring cultural competence is a lifelong process. While there are guidelines and criteria for training and trainer effectiveness, the cross-cultural training field is diverse and complex and, furthermore, contains no universal benchmarks for quality or outcomes of training.

The most common and most highly rated types of cross-cultural training undertaken by the responding graduates were general cultural awareness, working with or managing cultural diversity and culture-specific training. The most highly rated training approaches balanced lecturing and interactive exercises or combined lecturing and fieldwork. The knowledge and skills of the trainers was also rated as one of the best aspects of cross-cultural training.

Satisfaction ratings by graduates for elective cross-cultural training units were 12% higher than for core units. While three-quarters of responding graduates said the duration of cross-cultural training was appropriate, half suggested that increased time would improve the training. They also recommended increased interaction and content.

Strategies for developing cultural competence through VET

Given the positive views on the value of cultural competence among graduates and employers and the significant performance benefits reported, the VET sector should give serious consideration to expanding the current cross-cultural training provision. The policy, curriculum and quality frameworks are already in place. Support for the engagement and professional development of cross-cultural training facilitators would help to ensure capacity and capability to meet the anticipated growth in demand. A study of the quality and availability of existing training resources would assist in identifying areas for new resource development.

VET organisations need to be encouraged to formally review their current practices in the provision of cross-cultural training, in terms of student and industry needs. Using these research findings as a basis for benchmarking, longitudinal evaluations of the vocational contribution of cross-cultural training should be encouraged. The design and delivery of cross-cultural training should also include strategies to increase the teaching and learning focus on the deeper cognitive and attitudinal objectives of cross-cultural training and to ensure support for participants to continue their learning and apply it in their workplaces and communities.

Conclusion

The findings of this study provide further evidence of the importance of cultural competence for individual and organisational effectiveness and for the creation and maintenance of social capital in Australia’s multicultural society. The findings also demonstrate the effectiveness of cross-cultural training and its important role in developing cultural competence. The Australian VET sector, in consultation with industry, has a significant role to play in the further development and sustainability of the nation’s social capital.