In this episode of Learning for Good, we explore how nonprofit leaders can navigate the complexities of global teams with guest Dr. Lori Beyar, Global VP of Strategy & Organizational Development at Cru. If your nonprofit is scaling across borders, or even just managing diverse teams, you’ll want to hear this conversation on nonprofit leadership development, building trust, and creating high-performing multicultural teams.

We dive deep into how to build a foundation for consistent performance across teams by cultivating awareness, acceptance, and appreciation.

▶️ Key Points:

01:20 Miscommunication at work often starts with mismatched expectations

03:18 Meet Dr. Lori Beyar and her global leadership development work

05:52 Lori’s unexpected path to executive coaching

08:35 Key principles for building trust across cultures

12:30 The 3 A’s: Awareness, Acceptance, Appreciation

21:08 Identifying the difference between the result and the path to result

26:05 Advice for nonprofit leaders working across cultures

Cross-Cultural Leadership

What happens when you lead a team that spans seven continents?

You quickly realize that the “right” way to lead isn’t about rigid processes or one-size-fits-all solutions.

It’s about listening.
It’s about trust.
And it’s about letting people show up fully and authentically in their own cultural and professional context.

In episode 143 of Learning for Good, Dr. Lori Beyar, VP of Leader Strategies at Cru, shares her experience developing leaders and scaling impact in a global, multicultural environment. Her lessons are invaluable for anyone designing training, leading teams, or building culture in nonprofit settings.

Inclusive Leadership Framework

Lori frames inclusive leadership using a simple but powerful framework:

1. Awareness

Know yourself and your context. What are your own cultural assumptions, habits, and blind spots?

2. Acceptance

Recognize that others will bring different experiences and that difference isn’t something to fix. It’s something to understand.

3. Appreciation

Go beyond acceptance to celebrating the diversity on your team. Invite stories. Learn from perspectives. Make people feel seen.

This framework is essential for developing trust and shared purpose, especially when teams are spread across languages, time zones, and lived realities.

Facing Cross-Cultural Challenges

In the episode, Lori challenges the tendency to jump to training or solutions before understanding the real issue.

“If there’s a performance challenge, it’s rarely about someone being lazy or resistant. It’s almost always about lack of clarity, capability, or connection.”

That’s why she emphasizes tools like:

Asking clarifying questions
Story-based learning
Coaching conversations instead of directives

When you dig deeper, you often find that people want to do great work; they just need the right support and trust.

How Your Nonprofit Can Thrive Cross-Culturally

Nonprofits often operate in complexity. They are often working across geographies, cultures, funding models, and political landscapes. The best leaders (and L&D pros) know that behavior change and leadership growth happen through:

Clarity
Empathy
Trust
And intentional design

Lori’s insights offer a roadmap for doing all of that while holding space for difference and driving toward shared purpose.

To learn more about cross-cultural leadership, tune into episode 143 of the Learning for Good podcast.

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