In Good Company with Nicolai Tangen

Erin Meyer: Cross-cultural management, leadership and trust

Aug 28, 2024

Erin Meyer, a leading expert on cross-cultural management and author of "The Culture Map," shares insights on how cultural differences shape communication and trust. She explores distinctions between low-context and high-context communication styles, highlighting their impact on feedback and interpersonal interactions. Meyer discusses the dual nature of trust—cognitive and effective—and how this varies across cultures. Additionally, she delves into the evolution of leadership styles and the necessity of fostering an inclusive corporate culture for global success.

38:47

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Episode guests

Erin Meyer

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Episode notes

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Quick takeaways

Cultural context significantly influences communication styles, as low context cultures prioritize explicitness while high context cultures rely on nuanced understanding.

Building trust in international collaboration varies across cultures, with cognitive trust focusing on reliability and effective trust emphasizing emotional connections.

Deep dives

Cultural Insights and Personal Experiences

The speaker shares their background, highlighting the transition from a monocultural upbringing in Minnesota to teaching in Botswana, which significantly broadened their understanding of cultural differences. This experience revealed that traditional motivational techniques in education are not universally applicable; cultural context plays a crucial role. The speaker emphasizes the importance of understanding varying communication styles and dynamics in motivating students and employees across cultures, ultimately leading to their research focus on cross-cultural management. This journey ultimately initiated a comprehensive study of how cultures interact and communicate in international settings.

Intro

2min

Navigating Cultural Communication

16min

Exploring the Dual Nature of Trust Across Cultures

3min

Cultural Dynamics in Leadership

10min

Creating Corporate Culture at Irene and Nikolai Inc.

5min

Understanding Cross-Cultural Communication for Young Professionals

3min

How do cultural differences influence the way we interact and communicate? What defines an ideal organizational culture? And what influence have the Vikings had on Scandinavian corporate culture? In this episode, Nicolai welcomes Erin Meyer, a leading specialist in cross-cultural management and author of "The Culture Map." Erin shares fascinating insights into communication, the importance of understanding cultural nuances in feedback, and the varying ways trust is built across cultures. This episode is a deep dive into the complexities of cross-cultural interactions and offers valuable lessons for anyone working in a global environment.

In Good Company is hosted by Nicolai Tangen, CEO of Norges Bank Investment Management. New episode out every Wednesday.

The production team for this episode includes PLAN-B's Pål Huuse and Niklas Figenschau Johansen. Background research was conducted by Kristian Haga and Isabelle Karlsson.