Melissa speaks on business school panel

Melissa reports back on her panel experience:

Yesterday I joined two esteemed experts, Soumaya Khalifa of Emory University and Gary Muldoon of Hitachi, on a virtual panel at Brandeis International Business School. In two sessions, we spoke with undergraduate students in organizational behavior about their backgrounds, shared personal experiences in living and working across cultures, and discussed strategies for adapting successfully.

Soumaya had a unique perspective as someone who immigrated from Alexandria, Egypt, to Dallas and the U.S. South as a child. In addition to teaching university courses and working as an independent cultural consultant, she also has received recognition for her work in interfaith dialogue.

Gary talked about the dynamics of direct and indirect communication on global teams. He noted that one of the roles you can play in a global organization is a bridge builder between people and cultures that may misunderstand each other.

I cautioned that even when you make an effort to adapt, people may still make incorrect assumptions about you based on the culture you are from. I shared a story about people in South Korea who stereotyped me according to what they thought American culture was like.

We three panelists were tremendously impressed by the students, who joined the virtual session from places as wide-ranging as Columbia, Inner Mongolia, South Africa, Singapore, and beyond. They had deep, thought-provoking questions and are grappling with the complexities of crossing cultures in a very advanced way. We all wish them the best and look forward to hearing about their bright futures ahead!

Thank you to Professor Andy Molinsky and Brandeis for hosting us! And if you’re from another institution and would be interested in having Melissa or Michael talk about global skills, please let us know!