Symbols/Terms
This Cultural Onion layer includes flags, language, and traditional clothing.
Symbols
One advantage of workplace diversity that can lead to more novel solutions and ideas.
Creativity
In the Cultural Onion, these are people—real or imaginary—who serve as role models.
Heroes
Making a judgment about a person simply based upon their age is called this.
Ageism
Diversity can help employees find new ways of completing these, improving efficiency
tasks
A group associated with common ancestry and physical characteristics.
race
A diverse workplace can increase this pool of potential hires.
qualified candidates
Collective activities such as ceremonies and holidays are called these.
Rituals
A possible pro listed for older workers in the notes.
Punctuality
Give one example of an outer-layer cultural symbol a customer might notice.
Language, flag, architecture, or traditional clothing
The ability to develop new ideas or ways of doing things; often increased by diversity.
Creativity
Employees from different backgrounds may be more receptive to these, improving customer relations.
Customer needs
The innermost layer of the Cultural Onion that tells people what is important in life.
Values
A general word for a possible disagreement or difficulty that can arise in diverse workplaces.
Conflict
Name two benefits a workplace might gain from hiring diverse employees.
Increased creativity; larger pool of qualified candidates; better customer understanding; more empathy
A belief or generalization about a group of people with given characteristics.
stereotype
This emotional skill increases understanding and connection across groups.
empathy
Words in a language or cultural artifacts fall into this layer.
symbols
A general word for a possible disagreement or difficulty that can arise in diverse workplaces.
Conflict
If employees from different cultures misinterpret greetings, this layer of the Cultural Onion helps explain why.
Rituals
Shared beliefs, practices, and social behavior that shape how people think and interact
Culture
A potential logistical requirement when workplaces bring together many cultures and abilities.
Trainings
Which layer would a national monument (like the Eiffel Tower) best represent?
symbols
A company notices miscommunication between team members from different cultural backgrounds. List three steps management could take to address this based on the review sheet.
Possible answers: Provide trainings; encourage empathy-building activities; clarify communication expectations; create opportunities to share cultural practices.