How HR Leaders Can Develop Cultural Fluency in the Workplace
76% of job seekers consider workplace diversity a key factor in their decision to accept a job—but diversity alone won’t drive success. Without fostering cultural fluency in the workplace, companies risk losing top talent, innovation, and revenue.
As organizations grow more global and diverse, cultural fluency has evolved from a soft skill to a business necessity, shaping success in hiring, leadership, and team performance. Research by McKinsey indicates that companies with ethnically diverse leadership teams are 39% more likely to achieve financial success. Yet, many organizations struggle to go beyond superficial representation to truly benefit from diversity.
For HR leaders, developing cultural fluency is key to attracting top talent and fostering inclusion. HR plays a critical role in integrating cultural fluency into hiring, leadership development, and employee engagement. This article outlines actionable strategies for HR to cultivate cultural fluency, ensuring that diversity translates into high-performing, inclusive workplaces.
Contents
What is cultural fluency?
Benefits of cultural fluency in the workplace
Cultural fluency examples
How to develop cultural fluency across your organization
Developing cultural fluency in your HR team
What is cultural fluency?
Cultural fluency refers to the ability to understand and effectively interact with people from different cultural backgrounds. This involves respecting different cultural norms and perspectives, recognizing contextual cues in communication, and responding in a way that fosters connection and mutual understanding.
Cultural awareness involves recognizing and appreciating differences among cultures. This includes acknowledging biases and stereotypes and how these cultural differences impact our interactions with others. Cultural fluency expands on this awareness by actively applying knowledge of cultural differences in real-time interactions. It enables individuals to navigate these differences and build authentic, sensitive, and effective relationships.
In an increasingly interconnected world, cultural fluency represents a critical competency that enables professionals to navigate cultural differences effectively in several distinct ways:
- Cultural knowledge and awareness: Understanding the historical and social factors that shape cultural expressions and recognizing personal biases in interactions.
- Adaptive communication: Adjusting verbal and nonverbal communication styles to align with cultural context and expectations.
- Culturally attuned emotional expression: Recognizing and responding sensitively to variations in how emotions are expressed in different cultures.
- Cultural agility: Prioritizing collaboration while adopting an open, optimistic attitude toward engaging with diverse cultures.
- Finding common ground: Identifying shared values and experiences to build connections and foster mutual understanding despite apparent differences.
Cultural fluency enables professionals to move beyond simply recognizing cultural differences to effectively applying that knowledge in their interactions with others, building trust, and creating inclusive environments that bridge cultural divides.
Cultural fluency vs. cultural competence
While cultural competency and cultural fluency are often used interchangeably, they are not exactly the same. Understanding the difference is important to developing deeper, more effective cross-cultural interactions in the workplace. Here’s a breakdown:
Definition
Understanding and respecting cultural differences, including beliefs, values, and norms.
The ability to adapt, navigate, and effectively engage across diverse cultural contexts.
Focus
Awareness and acknowledgment of cultural diversity.
Dynamic and adaptive cross-cultural communication and collaboration.
Application
Diversity training, reducing bias, and increasing cultural awareness.
Hands-on experiences such as cross-cultural assignments, mentoring, and immersive learning.
Development
Primarily developed through training programs and education.
Requires continuous practice, real-world application, and deep engagement.
Outcome
Lays the foundation for effective cross-cultural interactions.
Enables professionals to bridge cultural gaps and create meaningful relationships.
While cultural competence enables employees to work together more effectively with people with different cultural backgrounds, it does not encompass the dynamic and adaptive capabilities and nuanced communication skills associated with cultural fluency.
Culturally fluent professionals don’t just recognize and respect differences—they actively navigate and bridge them, fostering deeper collaboration and stronger working relationships. Understanding this distinction is key for those looking to thrive in diverse, high-performing environments.
Developing cultural fluency starts with empowering HR to champion every voice in the organization.
With AIHR for Teams, your HR professionals will build the skills to become true people advocates—leading inclusively, communicating across cultures, and driving meaningful change that reflects the diverse needs of your workforce.
Benefits of cultural fluency in the workplace
As organizations expand globally and their workforces become more multicultural, the ability to navigate cultural differences has become essential. Research shows that companies with strong cultural fluency achieve better financial performance, innovation, and employee retention, making it a key driver of success.
Business performance and financial impact
Diversity is vital for business success, but without cultural fluency, organizations may not tap into its full potential. Not only are ethically diverse companies more likely to outperform their competitors, but the Boston Consulting Group also found that diverse leadership teams generate 45% of their revenue from new products, significantly higher than their less diverse counterparts.
However, mere diversity is not enough; cultural fluency is what allows organizations to harness the true value of diverse perspectives and transform them into innovation and financial growth. Organizations that cultivate cultural fluency foster inclusive environments where diverse talent can thrive, resulting in stronger business outcomes.
Team performance and innovation
Cultural fluency enhances creativity, problem-solving, and collaboration. Research from BCG shows that companies prioritizing global diversity are 2.2 times more likely to be top innovators and 2.5 times more likely to experience rapid growth. However, only 5% of executives have successfully built globally diverse teams, with cultural shifts being a major concern for leaders.
Cultural fluency is crucial for creating environments that value diverse viewpoints in decision-making. When managed effectively, multicultural teams can leverage their perspectives to drive innovation and avoid the pitfalls of groupthink common in homogeneous groups.
Attracting and retaining talent
Cultural fluency is essential for talent acquisition and retention. A Glassdoor survey found that almost one-third of job seekers won’t apply to companies lacking diversity.
However, diversity alone won’t bring the desired benefits, and with a lack of focus on inclusion, employee disengagement can occur. In the same survey, it was also reported that nearly half of Black and Hispanic employees have left their jobs due to discrimination.
Organizations that embrace cultural fluency create inclusive environments where employees feel valued, leading to higher retention and engagement. This approach not only drives innovation and business success but also ensures that organizations move beyond mere intent to achieve real impact.
Cultural fluency examples
Cultural fluency is best understood through real-world application. The following examples showcase how companies and leaders have leveraged this competency to build trust, foster collaboration, and drive business success.
Campbel Soup: Adapting leadership for cultural sensitivity
While serving as CEO, Doug Conant learned a valuable lesson about cultural fluency during a visit to the company’s production facilities in Mexico. He held a large group meeting with staff members, aiming to foster a candid and open dialogue. Although this approach was successful in the United States, he soon realized that the Mexican employees found the meeting and his style uncomfortable and disrespectful.
Instead of dismissing their reactions, Conant acknowledged his lack of cultural understanding and apologized to the local management. By demonstrating humility and recognizing cultural differences, he was able to change his approach, thereby building trust with local employees rather than alienating them.
Siemens: Turning cultural differences into strengths
A project team at Siemens was struggling with cultural misunderstandings, hampering productivity. Recognizing the need for cultural fluency, they implemented exercises within their virtual workspace, which focused on fostering an environment of trust and respect across cultural differences.
Rather than avoiding sensitive topics, these meetings became a safe space for team members to share their cultural perspectives and learn from each other. By moving beyond cultural awareness and applying what they learned about their colleague’s cultures in how they engaged with each other, the team was able to create an environment where differences were seen as an advantage and not a barrier in collaboration.
Ingersoll Rand: Developing leaders for a global workforce
At Ingersoll Rand, developing cultural fluency is an important aspect of leadership development. To prepare leaders for a global workforce, the company mandates a two-year international assignment before promotion to senior leadership.
For those who cannot relocate, the company simulates cross-cultural challenges by assigning leaders to unfamiliar projects and diverse teams. The impact is clear: a leadership development program spanning Latin America, Europe, and the U.S. led to cost-saving innovations while broadening senior leaders’ perspectives. Leaders who return from these experiences demonstrate greater cultural awareness, improving global team cohesion and business outcomes.
How to develop cultural fluency across your organization
HR professionals play a pivotal role in building cultural fluency in organizations. Here are key strategies HR teams can implement to cultivate cultural fluency across all levels of the organization.
1. Build cultural fluency in leadership
Leaders set the tone for cultural fluency. Make cultural fluency a core leadership competency by:
- Integrating cultural intelligence and inclusive leadership into leadership training programs
- Hosting roundtables to share intercultural expertise and strategies for building inclusive teams
- Providing Immersive experiences, such as international assignments, cross-cultural projects, or virtual collaboration with global teams
- Holding leaders accountable by including cultural fluency in performance evaluations and promotions.
2. Integrate cultural fluency into employee development
Employees bring cultural fluency to life through daily interactions, collaboration, and decision-making. Ensure cultural fluency becomes a continuous journey, not a one-time training session. Support this by:
- Providing ongoing training on topics like unconscious bias, cultural norms, and inclusive communication skills
- Encourage real-world application through reflective exercises, case studies, and role-play scenarios
- Implementing cross-cultural mentoring, pairing employees from different backgrounds for mutual learning and skill-building
- Supporting employee-led forums like employee resource groups (ERGs) to provide employees with authentic exposure to diverse perspectives.
3. Foster cross-cultural collaboration and interaction
Cultural fluency grows through authentic exposure and experience. Here’s what your HR team can do:
- Offer structured opportunities for employees to collaborate with diverse teams through cross-functional projects and global initiatives
- Encourage participation in cultural exchange programs and ERG events to promote deeper understanding
- Provide coaching and feedback mechanisms to help employees navigate cross-cultural interactions effectively.
4. Embed cultural fluency in talent acquisition and onboarding
Hiring and onboarding are critical moments to establish a culturally fluent workplace. Promote cultural fluency by:
- Implementing hiring practices that aim to reduce bias, such as structured interviews, diverse hiring panels, and inclusive job descriptions
- Showcasing DEIB efforts in employer branding to attract diverse talent
- Incorporating cultural fluency into onboarding programs for new hires, for example, by adding a “Cultural Fluency at Work” session, where they learn about diverse communication styles and collaboration norms through real experiences of their new colleagues.
5. Align performance management and workplace policies with cultural fluency
To ensure cultural fluency becomes a standard expectation in the workplace, HR can:
- Implement evaluation criteria that reward leaders and employees who demonstrate inclusive behaviors
- Adapt workplace policies to reflect cultural inclusivity, such as floating holidays, religious accommodations, and clear anti-discrimination guidelines.
6. Foster a speak-up culture and accountability
Creating a safe space for employees to raise concerns and contribute to an inclusive environment at work requires:
- Creating clear channels to report bias or discrimination with options like open-door policies, anonymous hotlines, or online feedback forums
- Actively invite input on inclusivity by conducting pulse surveys and focus groups, allowing employees to share their experiences and suggest improvements
- Take action based on reports and feedback, and communicate the steps being taken in response
- Recognizing and rewarding inclusive behaviors by celebrating employees and leaders who contribute to a culturally fluent workplace.
Developing cultural fluency is not a one-time initiative but an ongoing organizational priority. By embedding it into leadership, employee development, hiring, performance management, and workplace culture, HR can create an inclusive, high-performing workforce that is well-equipped to leverage it as a competitive advantage.
Developing cultural fluency in your HR team
For HR to effectively lead cultural fluency, it is important to cultivate it internally in HR teams. When cultural fluency is deeply ingrained in HR, it empowers Human Resources professionals to advocate for employees, implement equitable HR strategies, and align people practices with business success.
HR leaders can embed cultural fluency in their teams by:
- Developing T-shaped HR professionals: HR professionals should possess a mix of technical and interpersonal skills, including business acumen, change management capabilities, and the ability to unite people under a common vision. A key part of this is strengthening people advocacy, which ensures HR not only represents employees’ voices but actively fosters an inclusive and culturally fluent workplace. This means proactively addressing cultural barriers, championing equitable policies, and empowering leaders to create an environment where every employee feels valued and heard.
- Continuously upskilling: As cultural norms evolve, your HR team members should engage in continuous learning through formal training and immersive experiences, such as rotations in different departments or cross-functional projects.
- Encouraging relationship building and actively listening: Make it a point for HR team members to engage with different employees and learn from their experiences. This could be done in formal settings like ERGs or focus groups or more informally by attending cultural events or celebrations or engaging in organic conversations.
- Actively seek feedback on inclusivity and cultural sensitivity: Use input from employees and external consultants to identify issues. By treating feedback as a learning opportunity, HR can better support the workforce and enhance its cultural fluency.
To sum up
Cultural fluency is a business imperative, not just a nice-to-have soft skill. It enables organizations to fully benefit from diversity, foster innovation, and create inclusive, high-performing teams. Without it, diversity efforts remain surface-level, limiting real impact.
Embedding cultural fluency into leadership, employee development, hiring, and HR practices helps companies navigate cultural differences with confidence, build stronger relationships, and gain a competitive edge in a global workforce. Prioritizing continuous learning and fostering an inclusive environment where cultural differences are strengths will future-proof success and drive long-term business growth.
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