PREFACE

Recent research has confirmed something that we have suspected for a long time—multicultural experience leads to greater creativity. People who have multiple cultural identities (multiculturals) are at the top of the list of people with significant multicultural experience. In this book I marry this new research with well-known findings from psychology and management to create a road map for understanding this growing segment of the workforce, the multicultural mind, and how organizations can leverage and model people with these unique skills to produce innovative organizations. The principles of innovation are not a secret, but the secret weapon in achieving innovation in your organization may be the multicultural mind.

While grounded in sound scientific research, this book is not an academic text. It is a guide for understanding the potential of a newly emerging and significant portion of the workforce that may hold the key to innovation for many companies. Unlike many management books, this book does not offer simple “back of the envelope” solutions to complex problems. Rather, I try to synthesize the existing knowledge about multiculturals and innovation in a way that managers will find useful. By understanding multicultural individuals and modeling their development, organizations can chart a course for innovation that takes advantage of a resource that has been hidden in plain sight, the multicultural mind.

The book is divided into three parts. Part 1 introduces multicultural individuals and describes how the same forces of globalization that have created the complex and dynamic environment in which organizations must compete have also provided a resource to help them compete: multicultural individuals. Part 1 also describes the sources of cultural identity; how growing up in a particular society shapes the way we think and behave, and how multiculturals internalize two or more sets of values, attitudes, and beliefs about appropriate behavior. Finally, part 1 describes the process of confronting cultural differences that results in a multicultural mind. This can occur in many ways, from moving to a new country to dealing with culturally different coworkers.

Part 2 is devoted to developing the kind of understanding of multiculturals that is required to engage with them effectively in organizations. I discuss the many ways in which multicultural individuals experience and manage their multiple cultural identities, and the implications that this has for them, their social relationships and for how their unique skills (broader worldview, heightened sensitivity and perceptual acuity, greater empathy, and greater cognitive complexity) can best be utilized. I also discuss the relationship of multilingualism to multiculturalism and the role that language plays in managing a culturally diverse workforce. Finally, I show how visible differences in individuals influence the way in which multiculturals see themselves and the world, as well as how they can help with strategies for managing dissimilar groups in organizations. The categorization of people according to surface characteristics can mask the value that they bring to organizations.

In part 3 I focus on what organizations can do to leverage the unique skills of multiculturals in the service of innovation. I discuss how important the work situation is in influencing multiculturals and on the process of innovation, and what organizations can do to create the type of climate (flexible situations, strong communication, and sufficient resources) that is needed. Understanding how the work situation fosters or supresses innovation is a key factor in leveraging the skills of multiculturals. I also outline the roles (bridging, integrating, mediating) that multiculturals can play to get the most out of multicultural teams, which we have long known are a source of creative ideas. Finally, I offer some ideas on developing organizations that allow multiculturals to assume roles in which they can best contribute to innovation. I also show how modeling the experience of multiculturals can lead to everyone developing a multicultural mind.

This book asks us to think differently about managing diversity in organizations. The multicultural mind is the product of the diversity that exists within individuals, as opposed to between individuals. Understanding the value of a multicultural mind is a significant step in creating organizations that work for and bring out the best in everyone.