Transitioning into the workplace
Over the last 3 months we have had an intern working with us who is an international student. We were contacted by her as she is studying at one of Melbourne’s top universities doing a…
Bright Spots
This month’s newsletter topic was prompted by my friend Duncan Smith, one of Australia’s most experienced D&I consultants, when he shared a link from the Heath Brothers called ‘Bright Spots’. In a nut shell ‘Bright…
Cross Cultural Project Team
About 8 months ago we began discussions with an IT project manager who was overseeing a project with people from 4 different countries and spanning 2 very different organisations. This was a large digital transformation…
Lessons in Leadership
I was in discussions recently about the Thai Cave rescue. You may recall the situation where a soccer team of 12 boys and their coach were rescued from 2.5 km inside a cave filled with…
The Power of StoryTelling
Story telling has been an integral part of learning, communication and culture since the dawn of humankind. As children we yearn to hear stories from our parents and from that we receive wisdom, life lessons,…
A Perspective on the Indigenous Worldview
A couple of weeks ago I travelled to New Zealand and had the opportunity to meet with a Maori Elder there. He was introducing Maori leadership principles in an MBA program. We discussed some of…
Guiding Principles
I have recently been working with a group of leaders in the global IT business. In a group coaching session one of the participants from this group, who is a few months into the role…
Should I stay or should I go?
During a recent conversation with a client, the issue of relocation came up and she wanted an opinion on whether taking up an international assignment was a good opportunity for her. I don’t think there…
Loneliness and Mental Health Part II
Last month’s newsletter on mental health and loneliness received an overwhelming number of responses, in fact the most feedback ever received in the more than 10 years of publishing the Cultural Synergies newsletter! Readers were…
Loneliness and Mental Health
The death of Anthony Bourdain by apparent suicide earlier this month was a huge shock to me. Bourdain was a tremendously successful celebrity chef, author, travel documentarian and television personality, and was considered one of…
