OLEAD 410: Leadership in a Global Context

Cultural Leadership blog

Africa’s Corruption Problem

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There seems to be a cyclical component to Africa’s woes. The same story told over and over with different names. Some might say Africa is a broken continent, that it cannot save itself from its deep troubles. Others might see hope or a light at the end of the tunnel for the troubled nation. In order to determine whether or not there is actual hope for a promising future in Africa, it is important to analyze the past and the current happenings within the nation as deep rooted causes need to be remedied before expecting any long-term change to hold. We will explore one of the nation’s main issues, corruption, and why it exists.

Ripe with corruption, African nations seem to have an affinity for following corrupt leaders, known as the powerful man (PSU WC, 2017 L. 14). These leaders assume power during chaotic times and provide a temporary sense of stability for the people though underlying corruption and oppression are actually taking place (PSU WC, 2017 L. 14). As an example, it has been noted by CNN in an article covering Africa’s corruption that 7 out of 10 people in Liberia, a country in Africa, say they have had to pay bribes in order to access basic services like schooling and healthcare (M. Veselinovic, 2016). The same article quotes José Ugaz, chair of Transparency International an organization that leads the fight against corruption, who said, “Corruption creates and increases poverty and exclusion. While corrupt individuals with political power enjoy a lavish life, millions of Africans are deprived of their basic needs like food, health, education, housing, access to clean water and sanitation.” (M. Veselinovic, 2016).

So why is corruption such a constant in Africa. An article in The Guardian entitled, The awful legacy of Africa’s top-level corruption is a culture of mistrust, purports that there is a strong lack of trust within the nation and that people have lost faith in the good nature of people. Because of this, “People practice corruption because they are convinced others are doing the same. The cycle continues.” (R. Adekoya, 2014).  Could it be that a culture with a storied history of corruption and mistrust no longer has the ability to trust their governments or even their neighbors?

It has been noted, “70% of the world’s poorest countries are located in this region (Africa) competing over resources that could make a very big difference to individuals as well as nations and cultures” (PSU WC, 2017 L. 14) and that, “60% of the continent is underdeveloped by modern global standards.” (PSU WC, 2017 L.14). Another reason corruption is prevalent may be the dependence Africa has on foreign aid, international institutions and export revenues (K. Somerville, 2016). This dependence enables the ruling elites to control incoming and outgoing financial flows and broker political deals that in the process fatten their pockets and continue the cycle of power and oppression, supporting the old saying, “The rich get richer and the poor get poorer”. (W. Harrison, 1840).

A final reason for the corruption in Africa may be the lack of accountability African governments have in reporting their earnings, allocation of funds, salaries etc. (T. Halka, 2015).  If there is no watch dog, there is more opportunity for corruption.

These are only some of the reasons corruption exists in Africa, they will need to be fixed before real change can take place.  It is important that nations supporting Africa also support ethical leadership and hold themselves accountable to ensuing the resources and funds provided enter the right hands and are distributed appropriately, keeping in mind that there is a bigger picture than just money and resources.

 

References:

Veselinovic, M. (2016, January). Why corruption is holding Africa back. CNN. Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/2015/12/24/africa/africa-corruption-transparency-international/

Penn State University World Campus. (n.d.). Africa. Retrieved April 20, 2017, from: https://psu.instructure.com/courses/1826457/modules/items/21654195

Adekoya, R. (2014, July). The awful legacy of Africa’s top-level corruption is a culture of mistrust. The Guardian. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/sep/03/africa-top-level-corruption-culture-mistrust-ebola-crisis

Somerville, K. (2016, October). Keeping it Family: How Africas corrupt leaders stay in power. Global Geneva. Retrieved from http://www.global-geneva.com/keeping-it-family-how-africas-corrupt-leaders-stay-in-power/

Hlaka, T. (2015, April 10). Transparency and Accountability. The way forward in fighting corruption in Africa. Retrieved from http://corruptionwatchconnected.org/show/my-corruption-free-africa/post/127/transparency-and-accountability-the-way-forward-in-fighting-corruption-in-africa–by-oluwatosin-omole

Cultural Synergy Intersecting With Team Synergy

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Due to the United States being such a melting pot of cultures, there is a higher probability of cultural synergy intersecting with team synergy inside of our organizations.  Synergy is a cooperative or combined action, and occurs when diverse or disparate individuals or groups collaborate for a common cause. The objective is to increase effectiveness by sharing perceptions and experiences, insights, and knowledge. Moran, Abramson, & Moran (2014, p. 266).  Cultural synergy and team synergy must be in sync in order to support the goals of the team and the organization.  One cannot exist without the other in order to create a high-performing team.

I can think back to my experiences on teams and how some deeply embedded cultural synergies within the team members influenced the team synergy as a whole. I currently work on a team that has a large Hispanic membership, including the 2 main leaders of the team. Though this is a work team, it is a lot more familial than other teams I have been a part of as there is high-value placed on the emotional connectedness of the team members and working together to accomplish company goals.

Hispanic cultures are, generally, known to be more collectivist or synergistic than the individualistic nature of the United States. (The CDC provides a wonderful list that provides insight to Hispanic culture). Synergistic cultures are described as more cooperative for mutual advantage, leadership fostering sharing wealth and advantage for the common good and an open system of people who tend to be more helpful and friendly. Moran, Abramson, Moran (2014, p. 266-267).  The natural synergistic nature of the Hispanic culture and the influence it has had on the leaders and majority population of the group has positively influenced the team synergy as a whole since the general idea of a team as described by Moran, Abramson & Moran (2014, p. 269) is a number of people associated in some joint action, while teamwork is described as a cooperative or coordinated effort by people working together.

The team I previously mentioned works well together, are very giving of their time to support the team objectives and enjoy helping other members of the team.  This promotes a positive work environment on the team which was aided by the positive cultural synergy intersecting with the team synergy.

References:

Moran , R. T., Abramson, N. R., & Moran, S. V. (2014). Global Teams and Global Leadership. In Managing Cultural Differences (pp. 266-291). New York, NY: Routledge.

CDC. (n.d.). Building Our Understanding: Culture Insights Communicating with Hispanic/Latinos. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dch/programs/healthycommunitiesprogram/tools/pdf/hispanic_latinos_insight.pdf

Reversal: Can Deep-Level Diversity Experiences Also Influence Surface-Level Diversity?

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The differentiation between surface-level diversity and deep-level diversity is of particular interest to me, as I had not previously heard of the two terms as ways of describing types of diversity. Surface-level diversity, things such as age, skin color, weight, and height, is defined as “the characteristics that we can notice about each other that distinguish us.” (The Pennsylvania State University, 2017). This type of diversity is most heavily discussed and the general public is, arguably, more aware of surface-level diversity as an actual type of diversity.

Deep-level diversity, which includes differences in values, religious beliefs and attitudes, is more specific to how a person behaves. It is defined as, “differences that a person has acquired through learning.” (The Pennsylvania State University, 2017). As the name allots, this type of diversity is on a more cerebral level and can be influenced by our surface-level diversity experiences. Deep-level diversity tends to be harder to change but can be altered if new information is learned. (The Pennsylvania State University, 2017).

This actually took me to an interesting place as my mind began wandering into surface-level diversity that is easily observed when comparing the appearance of thin and overweight people; the stigmas that can surround being overweight and how those stigmas can affect deep-level diversity. This article from The Guardian (2010) highlights many of those stigmas: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2010/apr/18/obesity-nutrition-weight-diversity .

As an example of surface-level diversity experiences influencing deep-level diversity, let’s say a mother has a childhood where her appearance and being overweight was constantly being harped on by her parents, kids at school and teachers (surface-level diversity, she was singled-out for being overweight). This experience deeply hurt her and influenced the way she raises her child. Thirty years later, the mother’s child grows up in a household where her mother is constantly making her conscious of her figure or that the implications of eating too many chips/burgers/candy etc. will result in her becoming overweight and lamenting about how undesirable being overweight is. The surface-level diversity experienced by the mother in her childhood has created deep-set attitudes and beliefs towards overweight people and there is a high likelihood that deep-level diversity will be instilled and reflect in her daughter’s attitudes and ways of thinking towards overweight people and potentially herself if she were to become overweight.

I would imagine that not only can surface-level diversity experiences influence deep-level diversity but that the cycle can bounce back and deep-level diversity experiences can also influence surface-level diversity. As this article from Romper (2016) notes, attitudes towards overweight people and therefore deep-level diversity influences begin at home: https://www.romper.com/p/7-ways-to-raise-a-child-that-doesnt-fat-shame-because-body-positivity-starts-at-home-3566 . Oftentimes a person does not have to experience differences firsthand in order to develop opinions or attitudes about those differences, they can be learned.

What do you think? Does the influence only flow in one direction with surface-level diversity experiences influencing deep-level diversity…or can deep-level diversity experiences also influence surface-level diversity?

 

References:

Carpenter, L. (2010, April 17). Why “weight diversity” activists are standing up for the right to be fat. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2010/apr/18/obesity-nutrition-weight-diversity

De La Cretaz, B. (2016, January 6). 7 Ways To Raise A Child That Doesn’t Fat Shame, Because Body-Positivity Starts At Home. Retrieved from https://www.romper.com/p/7-ways-to-raise-a-child-that-doesnt-fat-shame-because-body-positivity-starts-at-home-3566

The Pennsylvania State University. (2017, January). Deep- Versus Surface-Level Diversity. Retrieved from https://psu.instructure.com/courses/1826457/modules/items/21654094

Ethnocentrism and Elections

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Given this past week’s events, it was hard for me not to choose another topic on culture to cover other than the recent election and all of the conversation around ethnocentrism it has sparked throughout the country and around the world. I’m going to base this blog on facts as referenced in the noted articles and keep my personal opinions out of it.

This weeks lesson defines ethnocentrism as, “an exaggerated tendency to think the characteristics of one’s own group or race is superior to those of other groups or races.” (Introduction to Culture: Ethnocentrism, 2017). In contrast, the article Trump’s ethnocentrism will bring voters to the polls, pro and con (Patterson, 2016) defines ethnocentrism as, “the tendency to partition the human world into in-groups and out-groups: into “us” against “them.” These groups might be based on nationality, race-ethnicity, or religion, or any other salient social category”. In either definition, the clear point focuses on the “us” against “them” mentality.

As noted in the article Trump’s ethnocentrism will bring voters to the polls, pro and con the findings from applying the term “ethnocentrism” to politics in the 2009 book Us Against Them: Ethnocentric Foundations of American Opinion (The University of Chicago Press, 2009) still hold today. The book uncovered that ethnocentrism informs a wide range of policy opinions, including support for war, opposition to foreign aid and opposition to immigration (Patterson, 2016). If that is the case, why not use ethnocentrism to influence the opinions of the public on who to vote for?

In rallying votes for an election, some may see using ethnocentrism as a smart strategy and a way to pit one candidate as better than the other…as in an election, it is truly “us” against “them”, Republican against Democrat, and in this case Trump against Obama.

Such topics as building a wall at the Mexican border, taxing companies for moving business overseas and creating a Muslim database (regardless of how true or untrue these statements are, they have all been largely debated in the news throughout the election) served as strong messages to sway opinion and votes…and the choice of these topics for use on the campaign trail could be seen as driving an agenda on an ethnocentric platform.

Whether right or wrong, it makes me wonder if that was that the plan all along?

References:

Patterson, J. (2016, May 26). Trump’s ethnocentrism will bring voters to the polls, pro and con. Retrieved from https://news.vanderbilt.edu/2016/05/26/trumps-ethnocentrism-will-bring-voters-to-the-polls-pro-and-con/

Pennsylvania State University. Introduction to Culture: Ethnocentrism. (2017). Retrieved from https://psu.instructure.com/courses/1826457/modules/items/21654085

Kam, C. D., & Kinder, D. (2009). Us Against Them: Ethnocentric Foundations of American Opinion. The University of Chicago Press.

Hello from California!

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My Name is Christian and I am based in Los Angeles, CA.  My current position is in Talent Acquisition for a large footwear company.

Professionally I would say I am more or less mid-career and on the cusp of likely making a transition in to Learning and Development though lately I have concerns that I may miss the recruiting/interviewing aspect of my current role. My long term goals are to eventually start a consulting agency that helps companies build more efficient talent ecosystems and helps hiring managers become better at assessing the right talent for their organizations.

I currently oversee the corporate market for my employer and have 7 direct reports and 30+ indirect reports that I provide direction and guidance in regards to talent assessment and hiring.  In the past I have held similar roles at companies within the fashion industry.

My favorite leadership quote is: “Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.” – Albert Einstein. I enjoy this quote because I believe leaders should focus on their teams strengths instead of their weaknesses. Sometimes it takes a great leader to uncover strengths in others that they had not yet uncovered in themselves.

In addition to work and school (which consume much of my life haha!) I love karaoke, strategic computer games and am obsessed with food (eating not cooking).

Christian

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