Ethnocentrism – we’re all guilty of it to some degree. Everyone at some point has weighed their own culture against the culture of a foreign country and found that the home team almost always comes out on top, so to speak. Ethnocentrism is defined as “the belief in the inherent superiority of one’s own ethnic group or culture” (Dictionary.com, n.d.). Generally, those who have this view have little firsthand experience with other cultures and the only ‘experience’ they have is through long-perpetuated stereotypes. The reality is that no one culture is superior to another; all cultures have value and developing a deeper understanding of foreign cultures is a critical component to growth within the global business community.
I work for Baker Hughes, a GE company. At the facility I work in, we manufacture oilfield pumping units – gigantic structures that weigh many thousands of pounds. I never realized just how big these things were until I saw one up close and personal. Sure, I had seen them in the local oilfields from the vehicle I was riding in, but never in close proximity. So, yes, these pieces of equipment are quite impressive. We assemble and paint these units as component parts. They are shipped in containers from China as it is more cost-effective than using American fabricators. With that, I come to my example of ethnocentrism for this blog.
My story begins in November of 2017. We were told by our manager to expects 16 containers of parts coming from China through the port at Long Beach, California. As the containers arrived, myself and my three co-workers gave them a once-over. To me, it was interesting to see something that had come from another country and the fact that the container was sealed in China and was about to opened in front of us was probably a little more exciting than it should have been. As we unpacked the containers, we found we had issues with some of the support structures holding the components. The steel was buckling under the weight of the parts. We all blamed poor Chinese craftsmanship for the problem (ethnocentrism #1).
After we had unloaded the containers are were moving the parts to inventory, our inspector started asking about the sizes of the parts. The size was listed on a laminated placard tied to the part, which he could clearly see. I looked at the placard and said the sizes are in metric units. After I helped him convert from metric to standard, he said jokingly that “everything should be measured in American.” (ethnocentrism #2).
I’m not going to claim to be above such statements – I have made many similar remarks myself. However, after unloading all of those containers, I started to think about the process the Chinese used to get those parts to us. Another co-worker, curious as to how the containers were loaded, looked up a Youtube video on the subject; we were all impressed with the Chinese innovation and technology and agreed we would benefit from some of it here. I thought about how well the materials were secured inside the containers and it made me admire the Chinese work ethic – they certainly do what it takes to get the job done.
As I conclude this blog post, I want to reiterate that everyone has a bit of ethnocentrism in them – it’s perfectly natural to believe your tribe is better than their tribe. But, in today’s world where equipment you assemble and paint to be shipped to North Dakota is comprised of parts from China and bearings from Romania, it’s worth it to take the time to appreciate the hard work of all the people involved in that process. As our textbook states: “Culture does count,” (Moran, Abramson, & Moran, 2014, p. 5). A good leader recognizes the value that other cultures can add to an organization and takes the time to understand those cultures and the value they contribute.
References
Dictionary.com (n.d.). Ethnocentrism. Retrieved from http://www.dictionary.com/browse/ethnocentricity
Moran, R. T., Abramson, N. R., & Moran, S. V. (2014). Managing Cultural Differences (Ninth ed.). New York: Routledge.
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