Canada has a competitive advantage in the global economy provided senior management can effectively motivate diverse cultural groups to work together creatively.

Domestic multiculturalism means that native-born citizens don't have to leave their home country to experience a wide variety of cultures from around the world.

Canada is home to many different cultures and languages -- from South Americans to people from the Middle East. Canadians are in an enviable position to learn about different cultural norms and values without travelling to other countries. This includes specific subgroups within each culture, like older immigrants who typically have different values than younger members who may be more adapted to North American ways.

Cultural Competitive Advantage

Canada therefore has a competitive advantage in understanding how different groups of people behave, which tends to reduce thinking in terms of cultural stereotypes. Many Canadian have experienced first-hand that not all Chinese necessarily want to be shining stars in mathematics, physics and chemistry.

Ineffective Multicultural Groups

But not all multicultural teams are highly effective. Many are ineffective because of the group’s:

• Lack of cohesion
• Low morale
• Mistrust of others
• Misperceptions and false assumptions about other cultures
• Miscommunication, attitudes of superiority and biases.

Innovation and Creativity

Cross-cultural groups are more effective when facing tasks that demand innovation. Culturally diverse teams have the potential to generate more and better ideas. This in turn enhances creativity, leads to better decisions, and results in more effective and productive performance.

Multicultural Team Guidelines

Canadian managers should also understand that building a multicultural team requires a well thought-out plan that defines roles and responsibilities for team members. For example, leaders must help the multicultural group commit to the team’s overall goals, and provide positive feedback to the group.

Team members must:

• Be selected for their task-related abilities
• Recognize and be able to deal with their teammates’ cultural differences
• Have equal power on the team and must respect each other

Multinational Mindsets

Canada has world-class banks and insurance companies that continue to grow their global trade footprints. To be successful, these organizations have had to change their thinking from an ethnocentric multinational corporation which stressed Canadian nationalism with home office executives in charge of key international management positions.

Many Canadian multinational corporations have evolved into polycentric models in which local nationals in India, the Philippines and Hong Kong now occupy key positions. These local executives are able to appoint and develop their own people.

Grading Multicultural Team Effectiveness

Single-culture group performance ranges from low-average to high-average effectiveness. Using a report card metaphor, grades for single-culture teams range from D to B+.

Multicultural group performance ranges from highly ineffective to highly effective. Just as group member cultures are highly diverse, so potential grade ranges widely vary from an F to an A+.

With proper leadership, Canada is a unique position to realize outstanding performance in international trade tasks based on creativity and innovation from its many multicultural teams.

Geocentric Global Decision Making

Canadian multinational corporations need to transform their strategic models through a global approach to decision making which strives to integrate diverse regions of the world. That is, Canadians should choose the best-suited candidates regardless of country of origin.

Given the rich supply of multicultural teams on the Canadian homefront, Canada already has a headstart in excelling in the global economy.