Ireland Sees Diversity as Critical to Country’s Future

Standing upon the edge between Europe and the worlds across the Atlantic, Ireland for many centuries faced emigration to other lands. A surging economy and the rapid growth of foreign companies doing business in Ireland has created a once unthinkable situation: Ireland is a magnet for immigration.

Irish companies are just now beginning to recognize the impact that foreign-born workers will have upon them in the coming decade. Currently 15% of the Irish population is from a different cultural background. Most of the new immigrants to Ireland are currently from Poland. Ireland anticipates more immigrants coming from the European Union, Africa, the US and other far-flung lands.

The Irish Prime Minister, Bertie Ahern spoke at an Irish Management Institute conference in April. His remarked: “A further dimension of the importance of bringing people together is the increasing cultural and ethnic diversity of our population and workforce. It is clear that the many thousands of talented people who have come to Ireland over recent years are making a very significant contribution in many sectors of the economy. They are adding to the richness of our society and the vitality of our culture. It is vital that they are supported and assisted to become full participants in Irish economic and social life.”

Having seen the impact that immigration has had upon its European neighbors, Ireland is seeking to fully integrate new immigrants into the Irish way of life. The Prime Minister expounded upon this idea:

“The Government have put in place supports in the education system and elsewhere to ensure the integration of these welcome additions to the Irish family. I applaud the great efforts which have been made by employers and trade unions alike to make the Irish workplace a welcoming experience for those coming from overseas. We need to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to work at the level of their full talent and qualifications and that artificial barriers to their progress are removed.”

As companies increasingly compete in the global marketplace in addition to having employees from diverse backgrounds, developing a culturally competent workforce has gone from a luxury to a business imperative. While the audience heard about the importance of integration from the Prime Minister, they also had the opportunity to learn real world knowledge from visiting experts.

In a conference workshop led by Kari Heistad, Member of ISD International Subsidiary Development Inc. and CCI Culture Coach International, participants were presented with a model that outlined four stages that a company moves through in its development of a culturally competent workforce. Developed by CCI, the model explores four stages of cultural competency.

Awareness: step one for companies is being able to help employees understand the value of cultural competency, to define it for the company, and to complete core training programs for skill development.

Acceptance: stage two is the company has an acceptance of the value of cultural competency and it is integrating it into the corporate culture. Advisory/affinity groups are established and a strategy for company integration has been developed.

Facilitation: at the third stage the company has integrated the skills of cultural competency within the company and it is now using these skills to develop niche products and services, different languages are used effectively and cultural issues are discussed in new product development and marketing

Leading: the final step is to lead an industry. The company is known for its core cultural competencies and it uses these competencies to its advantage in the marketplace.

As European countries diversify through immigration, either from other European Union countries, or from other parts of the world, companies will need to assist employees in developing core cultural competency skills if they want to gain and maintain a leading market position. Culture will play an increasingly critical role in the success of firms around the world.

Kari Heistad, International Subsidiary Development Inc.