The World Isn’t Just VUCA Anymore—It’s BANI. Are You Ready?
BANI stands for Brittle. Anxious. Nonlinear. Incomprehensible.
Jamais Cascio from the Institute for the Future introduced this framework to describe the reality we face: fragile systems that break under pressure, overwhelming uncertainty, unpredictable cause-and-effect, and complexity beyond comprehension.
So, how do we succeed in a BANI world?
The Belonging Breakthrough: Unlocking True Inclusion
When employees from different backgrounds don’t feel a sense of belonging, they disengage, innovation suffers, and turnover increases. Conversely, when organizations facilitate meaningful interactions, employees experience greater psychological safety, stronger professional networks, and improved collaboration. These benefits extend beyond the individual to impact team effectiveness and overall company performance.
How Microlearning is Transforming Soft Skills Development
In today’s fast-paced work environment, traditional, lengthy training sessions often fall short in engaging employees and effectively developing essential soft skills. Enter microlearning—a transformative approach that delivers content in concise, focused segments, making learning more accessible and impactful.
The Most In-Demand Soft Skills for 2025—And Why They Matter More Than Ever
As technology advances and industries evolve, one truth remains: soft skills are the foundation of professional success. According to LinkedIn's 2024 Workplace Learning Report, aligning learning programs to business goals and upskilling employees are top priorities for organizations, underscoring the critical importance of soft skills in today's workplace.
Move Over DEI: There Is a Smarter Way to Foster Inclusion
True inclusion isn’t about performative efforts—it’s about creating workplaces where everyone can thrive. Companies embracing cultural agility are setting a new standard, moving beyond outdated DEI initiatives to drive real, measurable impact.
The Key to Workforce Adaptability: Contextual Agility
In today’s unpredictable and interconnected world, organizations face an unprecedented level of complexity and ambiguity. Adapting to these challenges is not a matter of chance—it’s a matter of cultivating the right competencies. That’s where contextual agility comes in.
Contextual agility is the ability to assess, understand, and effectively navigate diverse and ever-changing environments. Building a workforce with this capability is not a quick fix; it’s a continuous journey of development.
Track & Measure Students’ Cultural Agility Over Time
Universities worldwide are investing in courses, experiences, and co-curricular activities to cultivate cultural agility—the ability to adapt and succeed in diverse environments. But how can educators know if these efforts are truly effective? Many universities are finding answers with myGiide, a digital platform offered by Skiilify, designed to develop and track cultural agility.
The #1 Reason Your Remote Team is Failing
As businesses expand globally, managing remote teams across diverse cultures has become essential. While remote work offers flexibility and access to global talent, challenges arise when cultural differences are overlooked. Companies often fail to recognize the importance of developing cultural agility, leading to miscommunication, low engagement, and productivity loss. Here are five common pitfalls…
The Surprising Factor that Makes or Breaks Global Negotiations
In today’s global business environment, the ability to navigate cultural differences can make or break international deals, such as mergers and joint ventures. While the financials and strategic fit are necessary, trust and cultural understanding are often the true keys to successful cross-border partnerships. Before entering negotiations abroad, most companies prepare their teams to engage with their cross-border colleagues with diverse cultural values. Want an advantage?
Why Your Expats Say That the Cross-Cultural Training Didn’t Help
If you’ve received feedback from your expats that,“The cross-cultural training didn’t really help,” you’re not alone. Companies often invest in cross-cultural training programs, but when employees are on the ground (or figuratively, if virtual), those efforts fall short. Why? Because traditional training focuses too much on surface-level “dos and don’ts”—without equipping people to navigate real-world cultural complexities.
Three Ways to Get Better at Understanding Others’ Cultural Values
Understanding the cultural values of others is a professional superpower for building strong relationships and fostering effective communication. myGiide.com provides practical strategies for enhancing your ability to understand and respect cultural differences.
Five Ways for International Students to Thrive on Campus
Studying in another country offers an exciting opportunity to learn, grow, and adapt to a new culture. However, it can also be challenging for international students to navigate an unfamiliar environment. Here are five actionable ways international students can thrive on campus by enhancing their cultural adaptation skills.
Five Actionable Steps to Build Cultural Adaptability
In today’s interconnected world, cultural agility is a must-have for anyone navigating diverse teams, learning a new organizational culture, working with generational differences, and working in multinational environments. One of the key aspects of cultural agility is cultural adaptability—the ability to adjust your behavior, communication, and expectations when interacting with individuals from different backgrounds.
Cultural Adaptability is More Than Fast-Food Menu Changes
Everyone who needs to (quickly) describe cultural adaptability will point to the time when they visited a McDonald's in another country and describe something local on the menu that they wouldn’t find in their home country. Yawn. Cultural adaptability is far more than recognizing the differences in rather obvious regional tastes and preferences.
Enhancing Virtual International Assignments with a Cost-Effective Training Solution
Virtual international assignments are becoming an essential tool for organizations seeking to expand their global footprint without the costs of relocating employees. Yet, for global mobility managers, the challenge remains: how can you effectively train employees to navigate the complexities of international work when they aren’t physically immersed in another culture?
Building Student Resilience: Problem vs. Symptom-Focused Strategies
Resilience is a vital skill for university students as they navigate academic challenges, social pressures, and personal growth. Core to building resilience is understanding how to cope effectively with stress.
Universities can do more to help students build resilience. In addition to teaching students about the strategies discussed below, universities can encourage students to use myGiide to further develop resilience. myGiide offers self-awareness and personalized insights and tips to strengthen students’ ability to manage the novel situations they are facing.
Students should also learn the difference between two key coping strategies and when to use them.
Employees with Diverse Networks Are the (Surprising) Key to Future Business Growth
In today's fast-paced, interconnected world, having a workforce that brings a range of experiences and perspectives is essential for success. While skills and qualifications are often the primary focus during the hiring process, there’s an often-overlooked asset that can bring tremendous value to an organization: a candidate’s professional network.
Three Secrets to Foster Inclusion
One of the most effective ways culturally agile leaders can create an inclusive environment is by embracing the practice of perspective-taking. This means that each of your team members knows how to step into their colleagues’ proverbial shoes, see the world through their eyes, and understand their experiences and viewpoints.
Build the Soft Skills You Need for an AI-Driven Future
As artificial intelligence (AI) changes how we work, it's not just technical skills that matter anymore. While automation can handle many tasks, the future will belong to those who can combine their tech expertise with key soft skills. If you want to stay ahead in this AI-driven world, mastering self-management and relationship-management skills is essential.
Crisis? What Crisis? How to Keep Your Cool and Your Team Connected During a Meltdown
When a crisis hits, keeping your cool as a leader is important. It is equally important for leaders to make sure their team does the same, staying cool, connected, and cohesive. Every team member will respond to stress differently, and understanding these differences can be the key to leading your team through turbulent times. Whether the crisis is external, like an industry shift, or internal, like a major project breakdown, the ability to navigate tension effectively is an invaluable leadership skill. Leaders need to know (ideally before a crisis) how team members will respond in moments of high pressure. At Skiilify, we prepare leaders with three key insights on their team that will affect how they respond to stress: resilience, tolerance of ambiguity, and communication styles.