Graduates in the Cultural Anthropology program from Missional University will enhance their organizations they serve by the following:

They will have skills in understanding how organizations are socially constructed.  Institutions of any size are developed to achieve goals and so they have structures in place to achieve these objectives through relationships and agreed values, beliefs, and behavior.  As in the larger society, anthropological theories and concepts can be used to study organizations of any kind.  An employee who does this kind of research (with permission) demonstrates a high level of commitment to improvement and positive change.

Graduates will also enhance organizations by increasing their understanding of “organizational culture” – the norms, values, symbols and beliefs shared by members of a specific organization.  This creates a definable environment that is usually historically developed.  But it also shows how the organization is developing (or not) and learning from its experience.  A careful study of this internal culture provides valuable information that may improve teamwork, clarify communication, and help in decision-making.  Students who understand culture can use this knowledge to benefit organizational purposes and its collective knowledge.

Moreover, graduates will understand the norms and assumptions of organizations and how they function.  Organizations are created entities, and they make sense from those who work together and share a common purpose.  As previously noted, a holistic view of an organization shows the group values and what motivates the employees.  This meaningful purpose can be expressed in symbols that show shared meanings, creating a sense of teamwork.  It is a powerful way to build effective teams and enhance communication, especially with multicultural teams, where flexibility and respect are vital.

The ability to work with multicultural teams is essential in almost all organizations today.  In this global reality, individuals need to work with those who have different worldviews.  For example, some cultures are active, wanting to achieve and bring about change quickly, while others are more passive and relationship oriented.  Some are focused on autonomy and self-reliance, while others want individuals to do what the group thinks is best.  Putting these different individuals together on teams is a major challenge, but anthropology is an effective tool to understand these differences (and many others) and provide ways to solve conflict and misunderstandings.

Another skill that the graduates will acquire is that they will be able to see both insider (emic) and outsider (etic) perspectives, which is a unique contribution of anthropology.  Organizations have a wide range of views from their employees who are on the inside.  These individuals experience things that non-employees don’t see.  But others outside of the organization see things that the insiders usually don’t, as outsiders are not invested in the emic ideology.  This is where graduates can be very useful in interpreting both perspectives to reach a holistic view.

They also should contribute ethical perspectives in whatever position they have.  As Christians, there is a concern for transcending self-interest, practicing fairness, and acting with integrity.  There should be a focus on the common good, rather than just organizational growth.  And in all decisions, there should be prudence – which has strong links to Christian virtues.  All of this benefits an institution as it helps to create a value-based environment.  Graduates will be better equipped to facilitate positive change and innovation and to bring wisdom to organization – with knowledge and Christian discernment.