To enhance team collaboration and cohesion, HR and leadership are organizing team-building workshops.

These workshops are an ideal tool to combat disengagement and "quiet quitting."

 

They are also particularly helpful when teams are working in new configurations, such as during company restructurings or when staff join new teams or departments. This is also relevant when new projects are launched or when firms merge or partner with other companies.

These team-building workshops are often facilitated by professionals accredited to use specific personality tests. Numerous personality assessments are available on the market, widely used by people around the world.

 

For many employees, taking such a test and discovering their personality traits, work styles, and ways of thinking is a first-time experience.

In these workshops, participants not only learn about themselves but also about their colleagues and leadership. In a safe environment, they compare and discuss their differences, helping to clear up misunderstandings and fostering acceptance of diverse personalities.

The goal is that, after the workshop, colleagues will adjust their communication and behavior in ways that make collaboration more respectful and effective.

What a great way to fight disengagement and quiet quitting! But... not in all circumstances.

These tests focus exclusively on personality traits, often overlooking cultural differences.

However, the way we interact with others is shaped by both culture and personality.

 

Consider this: in Europe alone, companies based in any of the 29 Schengen countries can hire employees from across those diverse cultures. Beyond Europe, many countries participate in economic integration areas or trade agreements, making cultural diversity a cornerstone of most teams globally.

 

Despite this, many HR departments and leaders underestimate the value of cross-cultural teambuilding. They often assume cross-cultural training simply provides superficial cultural tips. Let me offer an example of what I address in my cross-cultural sessions.

Lisa, a Mexican HR director transferred from the USA to Switzerland, attended one of my training sessions feeling confused and frustrated. Her boss had told her she spoke too much during meetings, which left her puzzled.

Her strong personality had always been an asset, propelling her career forward both in her home country and the USA. So why, now that she was in Switzerland, was her strength seen as a weakness?

Lisa needed help to address her disengagement and restore trust with her boss.

 

Could what was perceived as a personality issue actually mask undetected cultural differences between Lisa and her foreign boss? That’s what I helped Lisa uncover. We delved deep into the invisible aspects of both cultures to understand the true meaning behind her boss’s feedback.

This new perspective allowed Lisa to overcome her frustration and develop a more effective way of working with her boss.

This situation also highlighted that Lisa's boss needed to broaden his perspective when providing feedback to his international team. Otherwise, he might unintentionally interpret cultural differences as personal shortcomings.

 

 

Given that Intelligent Economist recently reported that managers spend 25% of their time resolving misunderstandings within their teams, cross-cultural team-building workshops are an indispensable tool for improving engagement and satisfaction in diverse, multicultural teams.