This document discusses diversity and cross-cultural management in Australia and at Edith Cowan University. It notes that Australia is a multicultural nation with people from many backgrounds. Edith Cowan University celebrates diversity through various cultural events and training programs for staff and students. The executive team at the School of Business and Law itself demonstrates diversity with members born in several different countries. Developing cross-cultural intelligence is important for success in such a diverse environment, and managing issues like different communication styles and business customs across cultures. Embracing diversity can create synergies and innovation.

2. Ensino de Administração na
Austrália: Diversity - The
Spice of Life (and Work!)
Professor Maryam Omari
Executive Dean
School of Business and Law, Edith Cowan University, Australia

3. Australia
 “The ‘fair go’ multicultural continent nation” (Paull and Omari, 2016)
 “Outdoor recreational activities” (Gannon and Pillai, 2013)
 The land of contrasts: Sun, sand, surf, blue skies, deserts, rainforests, and
unique flora and fauna.
 Qualities of its people: Mateship, being ‘down to earth’, equality and freedom

4. The Rich Tapestry
 Assimilation or maintaining one’s cultural identity
 One culture or many sub-cultures?
 Different perspectives can bring about conflict but also strength
 Diversity can be seen even in seemly homogenous groups
 Ethnic culture as a ‘lens’ through which behaviour is seen and interpreted
 The eye of the beholder perspective
 The notion of ‘fit’
 Fluency in language does not necessarily result in understanding
 Jokes, sarcasm, humour, light-hearted banter, etc

5. Our ECU story ‘World-ready’ tagline
 Staff
 The Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) (2018 – 2021)
 Harmony Day (Australia wide)
 PE019 - Moorditj Mob: Sharing Intercultural Perspectives
 PE040 - Cross Cultural Awareness
 PE051 - Developing Cultural Competence
 PE095 - Managing Unconscious Bias in the Workplace
 PE109 - Culture shock - Working in diverse teams
 Students
 Orientation for International Students (from 100+ countries at ECU)
 Student Guild
 Ethnocultural Collective
 Student associations/groups (e.g. Middle Eastern or Omani student associations/groups)

6. Our School
 Very diverse
 We celebrate this diversity
 Not only do we as a School celebrate Christmas, we also celebrate:
 Chinese New Year
 Persian New Year
 Diwali
 Congratulatory notes are also sent for:
 Losar – the Bhutanese New Year
 Sinhalese New Year

7. Our School Executive Team
 Place of birth
 Australia x 3
 Malaysia x 2
 Iran x 1
 Indonesia x 1
 India x 1
 New Zealand x 1
 England x 1

9. Key success factors
 Cross cultural intelligence is a must have for success
 Beyond Ethnocentrism (i.e. own culture is natural and right)
 People are more comfortable with the ‘knowns’ and ‘likes’. They should learn to
cope with ‘difference’ and diversity, an ‘unknown’ should not be the cause of fear
 Learning a 2nd or more languages
 Non-verbal communication in different cultural contexts, misinterpretation is
easy and could pose significant difficulties
 High context vs Low context communication
 People should suspend judgement and refer to further analysis if you come
across an issue that is perplexing

10. Issues in cross cultural communications
 Chronemics (time)
 Proxemics (space)
 Oculesics (gaze/eye contact)
 Olfactics (smell)
 Haptics (touch)
 Kinesics (body language)
 Chromatics (color)
 Silence

11. Business and social custom
 Greeting and handshaking customs
 Verbal expressions
 Male and female relationships
 Humor in business
 Superstitions and taboos
 Dress and appearance
 Customs associated with holidays and holy days
 Office customs and practices
 Customary demeanor/behavior
 Bribery
 Special foods and consumption taboos

12. Yin and Yang – Harmony and Growth!
 ‘Outsiders’ may have difficulty accurately perceiving, understanding, and
responding to behaviours emanating from deep seated values. Educate them!
 Cultural convergence is already taking place in the younger generation due to
 globalization,
 technological advances, and
 the blurring of the boundaries between space and time.
 Build organisational capability through diversity
 Differences brings richness
 This can result in synergies, especially innovation and better problem solving
 Cross-cultural intelligence is a ‘must have’ for the modern world!

13. Thank you for your time.
Questions and comments are welcome!