Who Benefits, And Why Should I Care?

We've reached the age in which global structures have become the key components of any viable corporation. Large or small, corporate America is now recognizing the importance of reaching out to other nations. No longer an issue of whether or not one will choose to become international, if you're in business, it's almost a fact of life. The United States itself has blossomed into a nation of some 103 cultures from around the world. As a result, we've become international right here at home.

To many people in America's corporations, the word "multicultural" has become synonymous with civil rights and affirmative action. Junior executives sent to multicultural and cultural diversity seminars frequently ask what multiculturalism has to do with them. And just as often, someone in the room will reply, "It's good business. It's the bottom line."

But multiculturalism is more than good business and the bottom line. From the marketing standpoint, it's natural to assume you'll want to learn some of the customs and societal bugaboos if you're marketing in a foreign land. Yet if you're plunging into international waters, you'd better know more than how to sink

"We have a tendency to believe if it's good enough for America, it's good enough elsewhere," Donald Utroska of Paul R. Ray & Co., Inc., in Geneva, Switzerland told World Trade reporter Robin Tierney in a 1993 special report. "You can't just set a U.S. template on another country."

But America was not the nation they'd been promised, where the streets were paved with gold. Many newcomers knew that from experience because "they" were doing the paving! As a result, people began to realize that the concept of the melting pot just wasn't realistic. Every one of our ancestors had added something special to that culture stew, whether it was from their geographical and cultural perspective, religious beliefs, or something more visible: a racial classification.

Yet even in America, taking the time to learn more about multiculturalism and to develop a multicultural attitude will be critical, not only in the marketplace itself, but even at the most basic level of staff development. Whether you're a small business owner of the candy store on Main Street, Any City, USA, or you're one of the big boys who recognizes the entire world as your corporate playground, the key to "more" success begins with the attitude. Multiculturalism isn't about race and gender relations. It's the art of developing awareness, acceptance, understanding, and adaptation to the nuances of each one of our world's cultures, races and religions.

In the American business world, we're inclined to rush, moving to a first name basis often by the second

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1027
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)