From Hardship to Hope: the role of Cultural Intelligence to promoteworkplace harmony in the Indian garment industry

Migrants often encounter circumstances that call for the use of cultural intelligence (CQ), or the ability to communicate effectively with people from different cultural backgrounds. Empirical evidence suggests that developing cultural intelligence improves migrant workers’ general well-being and aids in their adjustment to new environments. The purpose of this research endeavour is to explore the impact of cultural intelligence variables like cultural intelligence strategy, knowledge, motivation and behaviour with a mediating role of multicultural workforce on workplace harmony. The study employed a cross-sectional research design and implemented a convenience-sampling technique to collect primary data through nine months from March 2023 to November 2023 through a well-structured questionnaire, which was circulated among 358 migrant women workers from readymade garment industries in the Indian states of Karnataka and Punjab. Data was collected through a structured questionnaire and analysed using Partial Least Squares-Structural Equation Model. Hypothesis shows that cultural intelligence and multicultural workforce have a significant influence on workplace harmony. The results of IPMA and PLS-MGA analysis show the similarity in the results of total effect and path relationships. This study provides theoretical foundations and empirical findings on conceptualizing the antecedents of workplace harmony. The outcomes of this research serve as significant input to policymakers and readymade garment industries to facilitate the enhancement multicultural workforce to achieve workplace harmony.