Cross-Cultural & Intergenerational Leadership

Course Summary

This 1-day interactive program equips leaders, managers, and project leads with the tools to navigate and lead across cultural, generational, and communication differences in the modern workplace. Today’s teams often consist of diverse age groups (from Gen Z to Baby Boomers), ethnicities, values, and working styles—each shaped by different life experiences and expectations.

Through guided reflection, case-based scenarios, and adaptive communication practices, participants will learn how to embrace diversity, bridge value gaps, and align teams around shared goals—while avoiding misunderstandings, bias, and exclusion.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this course, participants will be able to:

    • Recognize how culture and generation influence leadership, feedback, and teamwork

    • Identify their own leadership assumptions and unconscious biases

    • Adapt communication style, delegation, and motivation strategies across cultural and generational preferences

    • Facilitate inclusive conversations and address misalignment constructively

    • Build psychological safety and belonging across a diverse team

Target Audience

    • Team leads, managers, and supervisors of multicultural or multi-age teams

    • HR professionals and diversity advocates

    • Regional project leaders managing distributed or hybrid teams

    • Anyone navigating communication or engagement challenges across age or cultural lines

Course Structure

1-Day Awareness, Skills & Practice Lab for Inclusive Leadership

Morning Session: Understanding Generational & Cultural Differences

    • Workplace Generations Overview
      Understand the values and workplace expectations of Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X, and Baby Boomers. Explore work pace, autonomy, tech, feedback, and recognition styles.

    • Culture & Leadership Expectations
      Review how cultural values (e.g., collectivism vs individualism, power distance, formality, directness) shape views of authority, initiative, and communication.

    • Your Leadership Lens
      Reflect on your leadership and communication preferences—and how they may align or clash with team members.

    • Common Clashes & Misinterpretations
      Real examples:

      • “They’re too sensitive.”

      • “She’s always late but says it’s normal.”

      • “Why won’t they speak up?”

      • “He’s so blunt—it feels rude.”

Afternoon Session: Bridging the Gap, Building Inclusion

    • Adaptive Communication & Delegation Strategies
      Learn to shift tone, framing, and delegation style across different age or cultural groups while staying authentic.

    • Feedback Across Generations & Cultures
      Use a flexible approach to giving feedback based on formality, directness preference, and saving face vs transparency.

    • Facilitating Inclusive Dialogue
      Create spaces where everyone feels heard, including quieter or hierarchical cultures. Address cultural friction without blame.

    • The Inclusive Leader’s Toolkit

      • “Curious First” conversation approach

      • Micro-inclusion actions in meetings

      • Asking for communication preferences

      • Cross-generational mentoring models

    • Action Plan: One Change, One Conversation
      Each participant selects one team member they will approach differently—applying inclusion, empathy, and adaptive leadership.

Final Deliverables

    • Inclusive Leadership Toolkit (Workstyle Matrix, Feedback Flex Chart, Conversation Planner)

    • Cultural & Generational Insight Guide

    • Inclusive Leadership Action Plan

    • Certificate of Completion (HRDC Claimable)

Course Duration & Format

    • Duration: 1 Day

    • Mode: Physical / Virtual / Hybrid

    • HRDC Claimable: Yes

    • Optional Add-On: Cross-Generational Dialogue Facilitation Lab

Trainer

Facilitated by cross-cultural leadership experts, certified inclusion trainers, and experienced team development coaches. This course blends workplace behavior science with Southeast Asian multicultural insights and global best practices.

Ready to Upskill?

Contact us today to schedule this course for your team or enquire about upcoming public sessions. Custom in-house versions are available upon request.