Qu'est-ce que l'agilité interculturelle, concrètement ?

C'est la capacité à atteindre ses objectifs dans une interaction avec une personne d'une autre culture, en se comportant de façon à la fois efficace et appropriée. L'Intercultural Effectiveness Scale en distingue six dimensions comportementales : la flexibilité comportementale, l'aisance dans l'interaction, le respect de l'interlocuteur, la maîtrise des messages, le respect de l'identité de l'autre et la gestion de l'échange, comme prendre la parole ou répondre aux questions.

L'agilité interculturelle peut-elle vraiment se développer ?

Oui. La recherche distingue trois composantes : la connaissance des cultures, la sensibilité aux différences et l'efficacité comportementale (Chen et Starosta, 1996). Les deux premières s'acquièrent par l'information et l'expérience. La troisième, que nous travaillons, est faite de comportements observables qui s'entraînent en situation.

En quoi votre approche diffère-t-elle d'une formation interculturelle ?

Une formation interculturelle classique transmet surtout des connaissances sur les cultures, au risque des stéréotypes. Nous agissons sur les trois conditions d'un comportement, selon le modèle COM-B : la capacité (savoir le faire), l'opportunité (un environnement qui le permet) et la motivation (y trouver un intérêt). Nous entraînons donc les comportements sur vos situations réelles, et nous ajustons ce qui, dans l'organisation, complique les échanges : langue de travail, formats de réunion, décalages horaires.

Comment mesurez-vous la progression ?

Nous utilisons l'Intercultural Effectiveness Scale (Portalla et Chen, 2010), un questionnaire de 20 items qui mesure six dimensions de l'efficacité interculturelle. Sa fiabilité est satisfaisante (alpha de 0,85). La mesure en début et en fin de programme établit ce qui a progressé, dimension par dimension.

Quel lien avec nos projets de transformation ?

De nombreuses transformations rapprochent des personnes aux codes différents : fusions et acquisitions, centralisation de fonctions internationales, projets menés entre plusieurs pays. Les malentendus y sont fréquents et coûteux. L'agilité interculturelle permet de les prévenir et de faire de ces différences une ressource plutôt qu'un frein.

S'adapter aux autres cultures, n'est-ce pas renoncer à la sienne ?

Non. L'agilité interculturelle ne consiste pas à imiter l'autre ni à se fondre dans sa culture. L'une de ses dimensions consiste justement à rester soi-même tout en ajustant sa conduite, et une autre à respecter l'identité de son interlocuteur. Il s'agit de trouver un terrain d'échange commun, pas d'effacer les différences.

INTERCULTURAL AGILITY
‍PROGRAM

Adjusting your behavior to your interlocutor, engaging in exchanges with ease, respecting different points of view, and making yourself understood without compromising who you are. We develop these behaviors in your leaders and teams, and we measure their progress.

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SCIENTIFIC GROUNDING

Intercultural agility is not about knowledge. It is a behavioral competency that can be measured and trained.

These two behavioral competencies are directly correlated to a series of key performance and quality of life at work indicators.

Performance and productivity

The first component of intercultural effectiveness is behavioral flexibility: perceiving what the situation requires and adjusting your conduct, while remaining true to yourself (Portalla and Chen, 2010).

of confidence

People who are effective in intercultural interactions are significantly less anxious when dealing with someone from another culture. They are less hesitant to express themselves and participate (Portalla and Chen, 2010).

of sensitivity to differences

Intercultural effectiveness goes hand in hand with the ability to perceive differences in behavior and values, and to respect them (Portalla and Chen, 2010; Chen and Starosta, 2000).

Format

A Scientific, Structured and Measurable Journey.

The program

Working across cultures is a skill that can be trained.

Intercultural agility is visible in interaction: adjusting your behavior to your interlocutor, engaging in exchanges with ease, respecting different opinions, and making yourself understood without compromising who you are. We measure this using the Intercultural Effectiveness Scale (Portalla and Chen, 2010), then train these behaviors using your real-life situations. Finally, we work on the environment: meeting rules, working languages, and team rituals. This is the principle of the COM-B model.

Prevention or Remediation

Depending on your organizational context, activate this program in a proactive or curative mode.

Pragmatic

We develop this behavioral and relational competence at the heart of the action, for an immediate impact.

Measurable

We model this skill at the beginning and at the end of the program to measure its real impact.

Individual or Collective

This development program can be deployed at the level of an individual, a team and an organization.

Tailor-made

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Scientific foundations

For whom?

A different challenge for every stakeholder in your transformation.

Global performance and competitive advantage

Intercultural effectiveness goes beyond the limits of individual skills to ensure your international success. This program develops the 6 behavioral pillars — flexibility, respect, control of messages, mastery of messages, identity management, relational ease and interaction management — to transform your teams into a strategic lever capable of achieving your most ambitious goals and exceeding the competition in a globalized market.

Team cohesion and operational success

Intercultural effectiveness transcends individual differences to unite your teams around a common goal. This program reinforces key skills — behavioral adaptation, clear and respectful communication, and management of multicultural dynamics — to transform your employees into a cohesive and efficient force, capable of overcoming challenges and exceeding expected results.

Inclusion and fulfilment at work

Intercultural effectiveness creates an environment where each individual feels respected and valued, well beyond simple diversity initiatives. This program acts on the essential levers — mutual respect, relational ease, identity management — to transform diversity into a source of well-being and commitment, and to make multiculturalism an asset for the development of all.

Talent development and global excellence

Intercultural effectiveness is the invisible skill that distinguishes a successful team from an exceptional one. This program targets the 6 critical dimensions — behavioral flexibility, message control, interaction management — to prepare your employees to excel in a globalized world, succeed in their international missions and become key players in the transformation of your organization.

Cultural agility and project success

Intercultural effectiveness is the catalyst that accelerates the success of your transformation projects in a multicultural context. This program transforms behavioral barriers into drivers of change, equipping your teams with the skills they need to navigate cultural complexity, ensure the smooth adoption of new practices, and reinvent the future of your organization.

OUR JOB

Setting the stage for your next transformation to succeed.

Because transformation shouldn't be driven in the dark, we model and build your teams' capacity to navigate upcoming changes. Our goal: maximize the success rate of your transformation initiatives while safeguarding your human capital.

Driving AI Adoption

AI adoption is less a technological hurdle than a human and behavioral challenge. Using the COM-B framework (Michie et al., 2011), we dissect what comes down to capability, opportunity, and motivation, role by role. We then adapt workplace conditions and practices, tracking usage nature and frequency before and after the intervention. The result: real, daily, and measurable adoption.

Delivering Strategic Project Success

A strategic initiative rarely lands on a blank slate; it usually layer onto ongoing reorganizations, tech rollouts, and shifting priorities. The pressure to move fast can mask underlying change fatigue and hidden execution risks. Before launch, we assess team readiness and conduct a pre-mortem to uncover unspoken friction. These insights enable clear trade-offs on pace, scope, and resource allocation.

Successfully managing a reorganization

Changing an organizational chart means changing managers, teams, and sometimes even roles for hundreds of people. We measure team readiness before the announcement, prepare managers to lead the transition, and then monitor the implementation of new ways of working. The goal: a living structure, not just a diagram.

Transforming your corporate culture

Transformations rarely start on a blank slate: teams are often already navigating other changes, sometimes leading to cumulative fatigue. We assess their readiness, evaluate the existing change load, and stress-test the project through a pre-mortem. This allows you to set the stage and make informed decisions on launch, scope, and pacing. Throughout deployment, we track targeted behaviors to guide necessary adjustments.

Building a More Resilient Organization

Strengthening your teams’ adaptability in these uncertain times is a strategic imperative. Yet resilience, much like agility, is not a personality trait; it is a set of cognitive and behavioral skills. As such, it can be measured and developed.

Bringing Your Organizational Culture to Life

A company’s culture is nothing more than the sum of its members’ micro-behaviors. We translate your core values into clear, measurable managerial routines. By shaping the work environment, we enable desired norms to emerge naturally and sustainably.

Developing your resilience and agility

When changes happen in rapid succession, teams wear out before they can adapt: shifting priorities, delayed decisions, and quiet disengagement. We measure their ability to withstand pressure and reorganize, then develop this as a core competency so they can navigate uncertainty without burning out.

Successfully managing an integration/merger

A strategic project is often added to changes already underway, and the pressure frequently masks team fatigue. Before launch, we assess their readiness for change and conduct a pre-mortem to uncover unspoken risks. This allows for better decisions regarding scope, pace, and resources.

Changing your business or operating model

Shifting from a product-based to a service-based, platform-based, or agile model changes everyone's work without necessarily touching the organizational chart. Habits from the old model often persist for a long time. We identify the routines that need to be replaced and design the conditions that make new practices easier to adopt than the old ones.

INSIGHTS