Cultural Competency- What is it?

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Cultural Competency by professional classification is the ability to interact efficaciously with people of different cultures. As leaders, it is critical to demonstrate this proficiency as we work with customers, the community, and others. Diversity is pervasive, and the workplace presents an incredibly complex atmosphere to test abilities. The advantage here is that by having leaders better comprehend their own beliefs, they will be better able to target approaches to support others and appreciate one another’s commonalities and differences.

Some challenges of diversity are apparent, while others may not be so transparent. Every challenge does not have a clear-cut remedy. There is no specific rule or policy on which to rely. Still, by working under the presumption of favorable intent and mutual respect, open communication will help resolve fears and concerns that might otherwise become wide gaps of misinterpretation.

Cultural competence is a voyage — a devotion to discovering ourselves, the world around us, our strategies in it, and how our actions affect others. No matter where you are along your cultural competence trajectory, this post will encourage new learning for you. Developing our cultural competence requires a multi-pronged approach to learning and behavior change. I am reminded that one of the many ways we can think about building cultural…