Page 127 - Harnessing the Strengths

110 ■ Servant-Leadership in the Intercultural Practice

The Dilemma

In some cultures, a good leader is seen as the one who pro-
vides his or her organization with direction by means of
specifi c tasks. This can lead to an emphasis or focus on
shareholder value over and above other defi ned objectives.
Other cultures have a preference for a leader who has a
broader perspective and remains aware of social responsi-
bilities, going for market share above profi t.
In the fi rst situation, we can talk about a “specifi c”
culture. These cultures concentrate more on the individ-
ual parts. Focus is prioritized above context. In the sec-
ond example, we speak of a “diffuse” culture, in which the
reverse is true. The greater whole is of more importance,
and context is more signifi cant than focus.
People from specifi c cultures have a preference for
dividing the whole into manageable parts in order to ana-
lyze them more easily. In these cultures, “the whole is truly
the sum of its parts” and people feel most comfortable with
“hard facts,” numbers, standards, contracts, and other mea-
surables. This need to narrowly defi ne things in the work
context also carries over into the private sphere, where every
social activity is separate from other activities. The public
space of a specifi c-oriented culture is much bigger then its
private space. This means that, in the fi rst instance, a new-
comer is easily accepted, but afterward, it is much more dif-
fi cult to move from someone’s public space into the person’s
private sphere. The boundaries between work and private
life are often well defi ned and protected. In specifi c cultures,
people can easily conduct business without having fi rst built
up a relationship.
While specifi c cultures focus on quantity, diffuse cul-
tures focus on quality. There is a notion that the separate