Book Description
As U.S. organizations continue to explore overseas business opportunities, they will be challenged to adapt to the new market's local characteristics, legislation, fiscal regime, sociopolitical environment and cultural system. Riding the Waves of Culture shows international managers how to build the skills, sensitivity, and cultural awareness needed to establish and sustain management effectiveness across cultural borders. This revised edition is updated with new research and statistics.
More than an encyclopedia of cultures and customs, this essential guide:
- Describes successful and failed cross-cultural business transactions of multinational organizations such as AT&T, Heineken, Motorola and Volvo
- Offers techniques managers can use to anticipate and mediate some of the difficult dilemmas of international management
- Uses country-by-country graphs, examples, and other comparisons to illustrate how different cultures regard and respond to various management approaches
- Includes a CD-ROM of graphs, charts, and exercises to help readers evaluate their effectiveness as a global manager
Customer Reviews:
Outstanding research results in clear & useful guide.......2007-09-19
I was surprised to have my horizons expanded greatly though I had initially expressed skepticism at another book on diversity. On the contrary, this one contains real, practical, appropriate cultural nuances and advice on particulars for many national and cultural traditions. I heartily suggest it as a cornerstone of a modern cultural analysis of the factors that can contribute to enhancing diversity. Even though a bit dated, their research still is valuable. I cannot wait for the next edition!
Essential reading for executives - and politicians.......2006-02-26
This book is deservedly already an international management classic, and should be required reading for anybody who needs to interact with other nationalities and cultures. Hofstede got there first with his classifications of cultural dimensions, but Hampden-Turner & Trompenaars' are arguably more compelling, and - more importantly - the book is both highly readable and replete with case studies. It gives American and Northern European business people insights into why their assumptions about what motivates people from other parts of the world are wrong, and why so many US-centered initiatives founder on the rocks of unrecognized cultural differences. Send a copy to the White House!
For Business Poeple and Managers.......2005-06-30
This is a shorter, and more condensed version of the authors' earlier book 'Building Cross Cultural Competence'. In this book, the authors' target managers and business people who are looking to understand cultural differences and how to deal with them in a variety of circumstances and situations. Each chapter begins with am introduction to one of the dimensions, a discussion of how the differences manifest themselves and concludes with 'tips' on how to deal, and how to do business, with the different culture explored in that chapter.
The authors use the same six dimensions of culture introduced in their earlier work (universalism vs. particularism; individualism vs communitarism; specificity vs. diffusion; achieved status vs. ascribed status; inner direction vs. outer direction; and sequential time vs. synchronous time), but they present these dimensions in a much more accessible and simple manner with more emphasis on what each dimension actually means for business people and how it affects business-related situations.
This book has become the reference for business people and managers in the area of culture. Simple and very well written without losing credibility; this is a book that will enlighten and guide any manager in dealing with people from other cultures. While in some ways it is a 'western-centric' book (targeted to Western - especially US - managers), it remains very useful for managers from other cultures since the authors have attempted to keep the examples and discussion culturally neutral.
A Great Introduction to Intercultural Understanding.......2004-05-03
At last from Europe, a clear, concise, readable explanation of the critical dimensions of international management. It places culture in a perspective that allows for applications internationally and within the diversity of single nations.
David C. Wigglesworth, Ph.D. is an international/intercultural human resource, management, and organization consultant and president of D.C.W Research Associates International in Kingwood, Texas, USA. He can be reached at dcwigg@earthlink.net
Riding the Waves of Culture.......2003-10-02
An excellent overview of culture and cultural differences. For a more specific look at Americans, read Working with Americans (Stewart-Allen/Denslow)
Customer Reviews:
Is a required textbook for my managing diversity class.......2005-09-21
This isn't a bad book. It was required for a managing diversity class I am taking in graduate school. The content is short readings on various topics generally centering around cultural diversity and discimination. There are group exercises in between some of the readings. The book is very much centered around being used in a group-discussion oriented classroom. I don't think it is worth what is being charged for it, but as far as textbooks go, it is pretty inexpensive.
Product Description
Based upon 17 years of ongoing research involving more than 40,000 people from over 25 cultures, extensively field-tested, and adopted internationally by Fortune 500 companies, Human Dynamics? is a developmental system that demystifies the complexities of how people function and interact with one another. Human Dynamics presents a powerful framework for understanding the distinct ways in which we process information, learn, communicate, relate with one another, manifest stress, maintain well-being, and develop as human beings. At the heart of Human Dynamics are the three universal principles we all share in different capacities--mental, emotional, and physical--fundamental threads that cross culture, age, race, and gender to unify us all. As we learn to appreciate our commonalities and differences, we can use our unique gifts and apply new understanding to enrich our relationships, heighten "collective intelligence", communicate more effectively, work together more productively, enhance creativity, optimize team learning, and strengthen organizational performance. Actual accounts from major companies including Intel Corporation, Intermountain Healthcare System, and London Life Insurance Company document how Human Dynamics can optimize business relationships, organizational learning, teamwork, and communication.
Customer Reviews:
A Proper Examination and Explanation of Human Action.......2001-01-24
If you have found most personality tests insignificant, unhelpful, or unrevealing, then perhaps this book is for you. Human Dynamics goes into much more depth and provides a greater understanding of human communication and actions than any simple personality test. While people can be placed into certain "dynamics," these dynamics are not nearly as restraining or stereotypical as personality tests tend to be. Rather than explaining one's personality, dynamics explain how groups of people tend to process information, not necessarily how aggressive, passive, or "likeable" they are. This book helped me in terms of personal discovery, and has also helped me understand why it always seemed that so many people "just never seemed to think like me."
Great book.......2000-07-09
Models to describe human personality are presented. Each model has it unique characteristics, its strengths and weaknesses. Each model will respond most effectively to certain modes of communications. This understanding of the different models presented will help a manager, a teacher, a student or just about anybody to understand themselves and people around them better. This will enable better communication of ideas and thoughts. Students will learn better and managers will be able to communicate more effectively with individuals. The models can be taken up to an organizational level. The applications of this book are far and wide. It is also simply and clearly written.
improving teamwork in your organisation,family & community.......1998-11-06
the first time that I have found an approach which looks at humans holistically and systemically. It is not a group of personality characteristics describing superficial behaviours, but a way of understanding and recognising internal processes particular to various human dynamics. It therefore goes much deeper than any other personality assessment technique I have seen and because of this can not be reduced to a paper and pencil test. However, the gift this approach brings is that it can be taught to everyday people and can provide access to better relationships and a greater understanding of how to release our judgement of others. A truly life changing book.
A most complete study of human diversity........1998-08-24
It is obvious that Dr. Seagal has worked extremely hard to confirm her research since 1979. Her style of writing is clear, concise and void of jargon. I found the content easy to absorb, understand and apply. Just the heightend awarness of how diverse we are has made a significant difference in how I work and related to people. I can see some real possibilities for applying in a business context.
A most complete study of human diversity........1998-08-14
It is obvious that Dr. Seagal has worked extremely hard to confirm her research since 1979. Her style of writing is clear, concise and void of jargon. I found the content easy to absorb, understand and apply. Just the heightened awarness of how diverse we are has made a significant difference in how I work and relate to people. I can understand why this work is being applied internationally, especially in business and education.
Book Description
"This is an important and excellent book for every negotiator." -The Negotiator Magazine
The premier guidebook for conducting cross-cultural business
Doing Business Internationally, Second Edition, is a nontechnical, accessible resource for managing today's multicultural organizations. Revised, restructured, and refocused from its classic first edition, it introduces the revolutionary Cultural Orientations Inventory (COI), a unique and valuable tool for identifying critical skills gaps and practicing style-switching, potentially increasing effectiveness and improving performance.
This fully updated edition revisits the first edition's groundbreaking strategies and techniques, plus presents new tools developed in conjunction with Harvard University, Columbia University, AT&T, and other leading universities and corporations.
- Concentrates on team building, executive development, problem solving, and other essential activities
- Features management and negotiation tips for global leaders
- Provides in-depth analyses of six key global regions
Customer Reviews:
Excellent book for learning more about managing multicultural organisations........2006-08-28
This is an excellent book for learning more about managing multicultural organisations. Already in its second edition after being first published in 1995, it has improved. The COM or Cultural Orientation Model integrates all the cultural dimensions of famous authors Hofstede, Hampden-Turner and Trompenaars, Stewart and Bennett/Rhinesmith, Kluckhohn and Strondtbeck/Hall and Edwart Hall into a cartwheel.
Though the authors are very much pro-convergence (even claiming in Chapter 1 that Global harmonization of consumer buying preferences will dominate certain industry-goods and services-sectors.) as to Globalization they manage to build up a comprehensive argument about the high role of culture in the process of organizational globalization.
Busy international managers could find the approach of breaking the complexities of cultural differences into value orientations a bit theoretical in the absence of case examples and critical incidents. There are some good case studies in chapter 4:A Survey of Cultural Patterns but there are too few of them in the whole book. In fact more of these would have helped in getting a vital point accross that cultural boundaries are not national boundaries. For people involved in designing performance management systems and strategic planning in multicultural organisations this book is highly recommended reading. HR-practitioners in multicultural organizations would also benefit from reading this book.
Which type is to become a global manager?.......2001-01-22
Recently I wrote a book about multinational management published in 1968. After finishing this book, I realized that the conflicts between multicultural and multinational difference are stands still under the similar managerial circumstance, though we are living in the digital-dominated world. So I studied this book compared with its' phenomenon as described in "International Management". Keeping a flexible communication skill in multinational-cultural is the key factor to achieve meaningful outcome. For this, the open-minded, instructive and far-sighted personality required first. When they acknowledged difference not wrong each other, they can start to talk about what they want for negotiation, next proceed to persuade or yield a little. This means the more internationalized people there as a matchmaker, the more the company benefited from them. Then how to get Mr. Right for global manager? They all born naturally? Or trained? Both are all right. Person who has got global brain with digital management skill (as Mr. Bill Gatz called) must appeal to adapt extreme change and more action to cope with international risky problem. They could continue to get or lose by trial and error and learned what's the best, step by step and case by case. There are no standard learning system to teach them. That's not the lost rather than investment for human resources for each company ultimately. If you are would-be-global manager or second-rate reginal manager or have a dream of international manager, read this book and write down and analyze what's your strong/weak point more carefully. Then take into action to the first-rate global manager. If anyone who is in a top-management read, they can set effective multinational goal to come and get. How about students or average person? Of course, they will be fine.
Valuable guide to building a successful worldwide company........1998-10-11
This book should be on the desk of every marketing and human resources manager involved in foreign trade. It is not only for larger companies that have already built a global sales network. It is also for beginners who should consider these cross-cultural factors BEFORE they start selling their goods and services in overseas markets. John R. Jagoe, Director, Export Institute.
Book Description
In this ground-breaking new book, acclaimed diversity expert Mark Williams offers ten "eye-opening" lenses to help you, your organization, and everyone in it, understand how cultural diversity affects the way we live and work. There's the Assimilationist who believes that everyone should act like a true blue American, and the Culturalcentrist who believes that a person's race or ethnicity is central to their personal and public identity; the Meritrocratist who is sure that if you have the abilities and work hard enough you can make your dreams come true regardless of race or culture, and the Victim/Caregiver who believes that because of bias they will never succeed. Learn more about these lenses, as well as six other lenses that Mark Williams has developed to respond to cultural diversity.
Customer Reviews:
The 10 Lenses: Your Guide to Living & Working in a Multicultural World.......2007-01-04
I first read the 10 Lenses several years ago after meeting author Mark Williams at a Summit on Leading Diversity Conference in Atlanta. I have been using The 10 Lenses in our diversity education programs ever sense. This book has proven to a great conversation starter, without the usual "blame and shame" sometimes associated with diversity training. In fact, we have even established a very successful four-week course around "The 10 Lenses" in our Hampton Diversity Leadership Academy. Mark has advanced the entire discussion of "diversity" with this book. I highly recommend it to any diversity/inclusion professional.
John L. Johnson
Certified Diversity Professional
Executive Director
Hampton Citizens' Unity Commission
22 Lincoln Street, 5th Floor
Hampton, VA 23669
Promising, but in the end Disappointing.......2003-12-04
This is a useful Guide to Living as & Working with Immigrants in a Multicultural USA, not a Multicultural World. It really has little or no street-credibility outside the USA.
I've worked for a US Fortune500 Company for 20 years, and in over 30 Countries.
The book confesses upfront to its limitations : although the information is US-centric, Williams, Clifton & Thomas believe their concepts are universal - but they haven't the experience to back that up. They admit they don't know whether current observations will hold up in different cultures, or whether different cultures have different profiles with respect to the lenses. The initial research has focussed on race, culture, nationality & ethnicity. In practice 90% of its focus is on race & ethnicity. Sexual orientation is ignored, and the word 'gay' doesn't appear until over 80% of the way through the book - and its only for one sentence.
Consider some of the Lenses :
For the Assimilationist they talk about "adapting US business norms appropriately, given global norms and standards" - well I've never met a "Global norm" - and as for being able to adapt US norms, there's the problem - you have to reject US norms in order to get on with the outside world. The Assimilationist must think about "Western cultural arrogance" - woah - what about "US Cultural arrogance" - ask a Canadian or a Mexican or the French how they feel about US hegemony.
The Culturalcentrist talks about the "Irish, Polish & Italian Communities", and in the same breath about the "Asian Community" - I'm sure the "Asians" would argue they had less in common between India, Vietnam, Korea etc than those Europeans, who at least had Catholicism in common.
For the Seclusionist : "Globalisation ... diminishes the authority of the USA" - hmm, I thought everyone was rioting recently complaining that Globalisation meant US hegemony? The Seclusionist "rewards the efforts of the majority group" - oh so Williams has never thought of a Society where the dominant group is itself a Minority, such as in Apartheid-era South Africa, and a number of other inequitable Societies today?
The Transcendant options were just not for me - according to Williams you are either 'Religious' or you are 'Spiritual' - nothing else applies. I am neither, and quite happy thank you. I'm always made to feel uncomfortable with this aspect of US Society, and it would be good if Williams had a section on how to work with 'agnostics'.
The Elitist offered no alternatives - what about Communism or Socialism - the inequalities of US Society would not be tolerated in Scandinavia. As I say to my friends in Minneapolis, it's a pity the wrong shipload of explorers colonised North America.
For all the talk about race, there's no mention of working with people in mixed-race relationships or of mixed-race ethnicity - over 10% of marriages in the UK are mixed-race, even though the ethnic minorities constitute less than 8% of the population. I find mixed-race marriages in the USA to be a tragic rarity - and why aren't they promoted in TV programs?
There were no examples of other diversities which can be just as sensitive in Society, such as no case studies featuring Native Americans, Hindus, Moslems, Lesbians, Vegetarians or people with Physical/Mental disabilities.
The much-promoted mystical Chapter on the Eleventh Lens was a real disappointment - just some new world 'Nirvana' where everyone loved each other and did right by each other (I presume so long as you could still hire & fire at will).
When I looked through the Bibliography, I understood; of the 86 references, only 2 of them weren't published in the USA, and they were published in London (both looking back at the USA). You can't write a book about a Multicultural world if you don't read/travel widely.
Williams continually refers back to Title VII of the (US) Civil Rights Act (pity he didn't include it as an Appendix). It would have been nice to talk about the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights - since so much of US Society doesn't comply with it. I recall when one of our Senior US Executives starting to spout about Affirmative Action etc at a staff meeting in Germany - he had to be told to leave or they'd call the Police - because his US-speak was illegal under anti-Nazi legislation.
I scored myself on the Lenses : I am Colorblind, an Integrationalist, Meritocratist and a Multiculturalist. Williams was (in 2001) inviting Contributors to help them develop the book for a wider audience - I'm going to volunteer to help them, because boy do they need it.
The Eleventh Lens.......2003-03-01
Mark Williams' research outlining 10 human mindset "lenses" addresses the problems of conflicting worldviews both in and out of the workplace. His work is extremely well organized for easy reference; you'll recognize in yourself and/or others the Assimilationist, Colorblind, Culturalcentrist, Elitist, Integrationist, Meritocratist, Multiculturalist, Seclusionist, New Age/Transcendent and/or Victim/Caretaker. With hope, you'll also recognize the real point of the book and the research: that you've been reaching for your inclusive ELEVENTH LENS where paradoxical thinking acknowledges and discerns the strengths and weaknesses each limited lens brings to the whole personally, professionally and socially -- and globally. See also the integrative developmental framework in A Brief History of Everything by Ken Wilber and Spiral Dynamics by Don Beck and Christopher Cowan.
"The Ten Lenses" -- A Breath of Fresh Air!.......2001-11-09
"The Ten Lenses" is a badly needed breath of fresh air -- a sophisticated, intellectually grounded, and constructive framework for thinking about diversity issues. It respects and values all people and all perspectives on diversity. It opens a path to understanding each different perspective, even those dramatically different from one's own. It helps take the emotional charge out of verbal interactions between people whose approaches and reactions to diversity issues are widely divergent. It provides a new framework and a new language through which we can talk about diversity and move towards greater understanding. "The Ten Lenses" was an enormous help to me and I highly recommend it.
"The Ten Lenses" Opens Your Eyes!.......2001-11-08
I live and work in Washington, D.C., one of the most diverse cities in America. My department at work was having a lot of problems due to such a diverse workforce. We could not communicate well and our projects were never completed on time and never completed correctly. My boss brought this book in one day after he stayed up all night reading it. He could not put "The 10 Lenses" down. In a very short time, my department has turned itself around using the premises in this book. If you want to have a successful business, buy "The 10 Lenses."
Average customer rating:
- THE ADULT LEARNER, SIXTH EDITION
- A classic, but it does not use its own advice.
- Andragogy for the 21st century
- Unreadable
- very comprehensive look at adult learning theory
|
The Adult Learner: The Definitive Classic in Adult Education and Human Resource Development (Managing Cultural Differences)
Ph.D., Malcolm S. Knowles ,
III, Ed.D., Elwood F. Holton , and
Ph.D., Richard A. Swanson
Manufacturer: Gulf Professional Publishing
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ASIN: 0884151158 |
Book Description
As leading authorities on adult education and training, Elwood Holton and Richard Swanson have revised Malcolm Knowles' exemplary work on adult learning. While retaining the best from the past editions, they incorporate the latest developments in adult learning theory and practice into this major revision.
This new book is divided into three parts. The first part contains the classic chapters that describe the roots and principles of andragogy. The second part contains four new chapters that examine:
*The latest perspectives on andragogy
*The application of andragogy in human resource
development
*New advancements in understanding adult learning
*Practical applications of adult learning theory
The new chapters incorporate developments from recent research in adult learning, human resource development, cognitive psychology, adult development, and educational psychology. The last part of the book contains an updated selection of topical readings that advance the theory and practice of adult learning.
This new edition is an ideal introductory book for adult learning practitioners and students.
The late Malcolm Knowles' cornerstone work on adult learning theory and practices is updated with the latest advances in the field. In this new edition, Elwood Holton and Richard Swanson build upon Knowles' foundation to give:
* The latest perspectives on adult learning and its application in adult education and human resource development.
* New developments in understanding adult learning (andragogy in practice)
* Methods for developing effective adult learning programs
* The basics of learning theories
* Why and how teaching adults is difference from teaching children
* A self-diagnostic tool (ready to photcopy) to determine your skill level as a trainer
Customer Reviews:
THE ADULT LEARNER, SIXTH EDITION.......2006-02-25
This book was in excellent shape. I received it sooner than I expected.
A classic, but it does not use its own advice........2005-07-03
Malcolm S. Knowles is the founder of the theory of Andragogy (Adult Education), and I agree with him on many of the points he makes.
The problem is that the book seems to have been written for academics to accept Malcolm's theories, and not written for students who wanted to learn to be better teachers in Adult Education.
Unless you have to use this book for a textbook for a class, I would not buy it as your first introduction to Adult Education. I'm not sure which book I would buy, but someone must have written a better one to actually learn the subject!
Andragogy for the 21st century.......2005-03-02
Since the term "andragogy" was first coined, several theoretical schools have developed around the topic of adult learning. This book provides a context for Knowles' ideas about andragogy and demonstrates the relevance of his ideas in the 21st century.
Unreadable.......2004-02-08
This book was the text for an adult learning course, and all 300+ students judged the book to be incomprehensible. So many complaints were received that the instructor apologized, saying it was the only book the school could find. There is good information in this book, but you need dynamite to unearth it. I have a better than average vocabulary, but I had to keep a dictionary by my side as I read, and even then I found words from the text for which I could find no definition. Some chapters had to be read 4 times before I understood the authors' message. Reading this book was a guarantee for a nap or a headache. Please, somebody stop this book before it kills again!
very comprehensive look at adult learning theory.......2001-05-11
This book is like a one-stop shopping guide to Adult education. It is so comprehensive that I doubt it leaves out one development in the history of adult education. My only warning is that the opening chapters which basically trace many theories of learning (both adult and traditional) are hard to get through -- it reads more like a research paper that summarizes every major educational theory since the beginning of time. But, if you don't want to know that much, you can simply skip these chapters and get right to the meat of the adult learning theories which are more appropos. For those who need a quick primer on learning theories, you'll love the first few chapters for their abundance of quick summary information. A useful guide to adult education.
Book Description
Virtual schools are a result of widespread changes in knowledge about learning, in available technology and in society. Virtual schooling is growing in popularity and will continue to attract students because of the benefits it offers over traditional schooling. Stakeholders in virtual schools need information to guide their decisions. For the foreseeable future, virtual schools will continue to meet diverse student needs, and to evolve in response to further change. Development and Management of Virtual Schools: Issues and Trends brings together knowledge of virtual schools as a reference for scholars and other groups involved in virtual schools. The chapters review best practice from concept and development, through implementation and evaluation.
Book Description
Combining two of the hottest topics in business today, this expert executive and team coach breaks new ground with the first book to bridge the gap between coaching and interculturalism.
Customer Reviews:
Cross-Cultural Understanding for Coaches.......2005-12-15
This is the first, and currently only, book on coaching cross-culturally. The author brings the multifaceted perspective of culture into the coaching equation. The book starts with an introduction to coaching and culture and then goes in depth in cultural perspectives. The author wraps up the book with a couple chapters integrating all this into coaching practice.
Coaching is defined as "the art of facilitating the unleashing of people's potential to reach meaningful, important objectives" (page 4). Surprisingly there is nothing distinctly cross-cultural in the definition. Such as "the art of facilitating in culturally relevant ways the unleashing of people's potential..." This definition could come from any book on coaching. Culture is defined broadly to include not just nations and peoples, but corporate culture as well.
The real meat of the book is the second section, nearly half the text. The author presents a series of Cultural Orientations each with tools for how to assess them through coaching. Orientations such as a sense of power and responsibility, time, identity and purpose, organization and communication each have a chapter devoted to them. The author begins each chapter with a presentation of the various cultural perspectives on the Orientation, for example, concerning time there are grids of scarce or plentiful; one activity at a time or multiple tasks; and past, present or future orientation. The author presents a tool for the coach to understand the client's orientation, and for the client (and teammates) to understand himself or herself. The final section is a synthesis of the theory into practice. The author illustrates how he uses his detailed Cultural Orientation grid during coaching sessions.
This book is helpful for those interested in the cross-cultural issues. The book gets a bit lost in trying to reach a wide audience by focusing on at least three audience needs: skills for coaching people of other cultures, cross-cultural team awareness, and personal cultural awareness. The niche this book best fits would be a multicultural team trying to understand each other and how a team leader might coach them through that process of understanding.
STERN'S MANAGEMENT REVIEW RATES THIS BOOK EXCELLENT!.......2003-08-05
The book is not solely dedicated to the international arena but for everyone who works with people from different organizations and backgrounds. The author's aim is to raise the level of awareness of cultural orientations and suggests how to use differences constructively. The book breaks out of the usual confines of cultural assumptions to find creative solutions. It introduces coaching and cross-cultural concepts, provides a framework for integrating coaching and cultural perspectives, and examines numerous cultural orientations. Rosinski presents a Culture Orientations Framework to assess and profile culture, and a Global Scorecard to help set targets at all levels. Chapters discuss how to leverage power and responsibility, time management, identity and purpose, organizational arrangements, notions of territory and boundaries, communication patterns, and modes of thinking. This is a very thoughtful treatment of an unusual and highly important subject.
Don't bother if you ONLY deal with people JUST like you........2003-07-19
Let me be clear, I don't finish reading books these days unless they are good and I certainly don't bother writing reviews unless I think the book is top notch. So it is a pretty safe bet that if you like any of the other books that I have reviewed, you will like this one.
Coaching Across Cultures is another one of those - must have books - for any serious coach working with professionals. Even if you are not interested in an international practice, (and who isn't) this book still is required reading. The book is really about understanding and integrating our differences. Rosinski who lives currently in Belgium, is an Engineer and a MCC by training who has worked in Silicon Valley.
The book is a bit of a smorgasbord. However, it is well designed and packaged so that each section can be considered a self contained component on cultural issues. Part One makes the case for a cultural framework when coaching and points out the dangers of our assumptions and belief systems when working with others of any origin or background. Part Two provides a high level overview of the key components of developing a cross cultural mindset. Although generalized in content, it also provides concrete examples and practical applications of how this plays out in our interactions with others. Part Three is a bit more conceptual and is well suited to those who come from an organizational development perspective. Roskinski has created his own Global Scorecard approach that is tied into his Cultural Orientations Framework. For my reading, it seems thorough, usable and comprehensive.
Coaching Across Cultures is well documented with references, a glossary and some interesting appendixes. There is little to find fault. Perhaps that is because, Rosinski himself is careful never to find fault. He is a great diplomat and finds a place for all styles and approaches whether it is the transactional techniques of some North American coaching styles to the transformational style of others.
If there is one area that I find a little weak, it is his discussion of self-assessment as a precursor the organizational assessment through his Global Scorecard. Now I am the first to admit that assessments are not only my area of interest, it is my business - so I have a bias. That said, I found Rosinski focus on the tools he prefers (the MBTI specifically) left me with the impression that this is THE tool. I also believe that this was not Roskinki's intention - as he does mention a few others but not some that I would have expected. Now don't get me wrong, I love the MBTI and the others he includes but I thought that at least a few more should have been mentioned or acknowledged.
This is a solid, well-written and great new contribution to the field of coaching and working within the global setting. Don't just get this book - read it. I can almost guarantee it will have a positive affect on how you will interact in the future with your clients.
Book Description
This beautifully written book weaves reflections on anthropological fieldwork together with evocative meditations on a spectacular landscape as it takes us to the remote indigenous villages on the shore of Lake Titicaca, high in the Peruvian Andes. Ben Orlove brings alive the fishermen, reed cutters, boat builders, and families of this isolated region, and describes the role that Lake Titicaca has played in their culture. He describes the landscapes and rhythms of life in the Andean highlands as he considers the intrusions of modern technology and economic demands in the region. Lines in the Water tells a local version of events that are taking place around the world, but with an unusual outcome: people here have found ways to maintain their cultural autonomy and to protect their fragile mountain environment.
The Peruvian highlanders have confronted the pressures of modern culture with remarkable vitality. They use improved boats and gear and sell fish to new markets but have fiercely opposed efforts to strip them of their indigenous traditions. They have retained their customary practice of limiting the amount of fishing and have continued to pass cultural knowledge from one generation to the next--practices that have prevented the ecological crises that have followed commercialization of small-scale fisheries around the world. This book--at once a memoir and an ethnography--is a personal and compelling account of a research experience as well as an elegantly written treatise on themes of global importance. Above all, Orlove reminds us that human relations with the environment, though constantly changing, can be sustainable.
Customer Reviews:
Excellent.......2003-04-13
(Planeta.com Journal) -- Lines in the Water (University of California Press, 2002), a beautifully written ethnography of rural fishermen and their families. The book's subtitle "Nature and Culture at Lake Titicaca" specifies the center of action, but the scope is much broader and deeper. It's actually hard to find the words to say how delightful this book is. Author Ben Orlove is an environmental science professor at the University of California, Davis, and his book is based on three decades of trips to Peru and Bolivia. The book is a showcase of fresh writing and a major contribution to the literature about South America. Orlove provides a frank account of the role academics themselves play. He includes himself in this story and shares candid observations -- from his reactions to office politics to daydreaming about museums. This book is highly recommended. Eco travelers visiting Lake Titicaca would do well to read this book in advance.
A gem of a cross-disciplinary book.......2003-02-24
This is a gem, written with great respect for the indigenous people who live aound Lake Titicaca, well-annotated and with wonderful photographs by the author. Orlove has broad interests - anthropology, economics, natural history, environmental issues, to name a few, and a talent for accessing interesting memories. He conveys his astute observations in clear and vivid prose.The book is organized nicely - I especially liked the material in the final chapter, entitled "Paths", which offers an antidote to the sad fact that roads and highways are so often destructive to local people and to biodiversity. Paths, literal or metaphorical, also provide valuable linkages and essential connections among the various components of this remote but very interesting and community with ancient roots. Orlove provides the reader with a sense of having traveled those paths for a short while with him.
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