Lori Madden, a teacher of Spanish, Portuguese, and Latin American culture, uses her cultural knowledge to help employers bridge language and cultural barriers with Spanish-speaking employees. One of her business clients was a cookie producer where about one-third of the line workers were Hispanic, mostly of Mexican origin. A union was attempting to organize the workers, and the company wanted to present its side of the decision more effectively. Looking at the longer term, the company also saw the union-organizing effort as a sign that it needed to ensure that workers were satisfied.

The manager who hired Madden as a consultant took her on a tour of the factory. During that time, a Spanish-speaking janitor approached Madden and asked her to translate a question: when would he get a raise? The manager could only remind the janitor of the company’s wage structure and policies for granting raises, but the janitor already knew the policies. As she translated the exchange, Madden realized that something else was going on. The janitor was concerned about his family role. His wife also worked for the same company, but as an office worker, she earned more than he did. According to the janitor’s cultural view of family roles, it was an embarrassment that he earned less than she did.

In this kind of situation, restating company policy would never lead to worker satisfaction.

The manager could not expect to change his employee’s entire understanding of proper family roles. Nor could he violate company policy to make the employee happy. However, he could identify this janitor as an employee who would be highly motivated to work overtime or gain the skills that would qualify him for higher-paying positions at the factory.

This problem came as a surprise to the manager. Although he was able to bridge the language barrier with the janitor through an interpreter, the Hispanic employees generally did not speak up to air complaints or to put forward their opinions. They had a culturally based understanding that such behavior would be disrespectful. Madden’s presence on the factory floor provided an opportunity for the janitor to raise the issue indirectly, as a question. Her cultural awareness gave her the insight that something lay behind the question, and she was able to probe for a greater understanding.

Besides playing this role as interpreter, Madden suggested other ways that the cookie company could create a more positive environment by addressing the needs and culture of its Hispanic employees. One step the company took was to create Spanish-language versions of instructions written for factory workers. Madden noted that translating English into Spanish was only part of the need: the instructions used highly technical language. Simplifying the writing in both languages would help all the factory workers understand instructions. She also encouraged the company to improve language skills by offering both Spanish instruction for supervisors and English instruction for the Hispanic workers. Furthermore, Madden noted that apprenticeship is a valued part of the Latin American work environment, so she encouraged the company to incorporate counseling or mentoring relationships into the development of employees.

Why go to all this trouble? The company where Madden consulted valued these employees. The manager who hired Madden described the Hispanic workers as typically hardworking, reliable, and willing to follow instructions. Of course, workers from other ethnic groups could also offer these or other strengths, but it was to the company’s advantage to draw out the best from the talent it had.

What else might supervisors in this factory do to improve the way the company manages diversity?