How to Use Culture to Connect in a New Country
By Gabriela Burian, Global Sustainable Food Systems Lead, Crop Science
It was September 2012 when I landed in the United States. My company had just transferred me from Brazil, and I was moving to a new country with my two kids and husband. I was excited by the new opportunities but worried about the cultural change and our adaptation.
English was my third language. Back then, my kids were both beginners in English and their father was the only other one supporting their integration into their new life. As I began my new job, my main focus was understanding the local culture — especially related to sustainability — to ensure innovation and collaboration.
Be Courageous and Empower Others
Moving to a different country, leaving behind the region and the language you feel comfortable with is a test of your confidence, to say the least. If you are an extrovert like me, you know how hard it can be not being able to share a smart comment or funny joke, or not understand one. You can’t just ask, “Can you please repeat the joke?” Often the moment has passed. It’s the same feeling when you see your kids complaining that they had an answer, but they were not able to clarify in time for the teacher. We all needed courage and to feel empowered to face these challenges.
Collaborate and Connect
This was our beginning — far away from family, from our original language and from our community. To get a sense of belonging, we started making connections with people who had common ground with us through our kids’ school community and with people who shared our passion for Latin culture.
At Bayer, I was happy to find Unidos, a Business Resource Group that focused on the Hispanic-Latin community to help build connections and offer opportunities to collaborate. Today, I am proud to serve as the National Co-Lead. This community has a vision to celebrate its culture while creating value for communities and the company. It helps to better prepare talent and, at the same time, better connect with each other. A great surprise was to see the number of allies who participate who have no Hispanic or Latin background. These allies make up about 40 percent of our national Unidos team.
Unidos is a Business Resource Group (BRG) at Bayer. Business Resources Groups (BRGs) are a vital part of Bayer’s Inclusion and Diversity strategy. BRGs are voluntary, company sponsored and employee led groups who work together to promote inclusion within Bayer and provide a multicultural lens to Bayer’s engagement of our customers and the communities in which we have operations.
Lead with Purpose
During September and October, we are celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month. An important part of this celebration is sharing our culture, learning about the issues facing our Hispanic communities and enhancing a diverse and inclusive workplace at Bayer. Inclusive leadership, being culturally competent and understanding the changing demographics of our customers and our communities is critical to our ability to reach our global sustainability goals and achieve our vision of Health for All, Hunger for None. The only way we can deliver it is by leading with purpose. This is our life. I am honored to be part of it.
