We help leaders

of culturally-diverse teams lead with confidence.

Cultural Intelligence: The leadership skill no one is talking about, but everyone needs.

At The CQ Mindset, we help leaders strengthen their leadership skills by developing Cultural Intelligence (CQ)—a critical capability for today’s diverse and dynamic workplace.

Our training programs are designed to help leaders:

  • grow self-awareness

  • increase empathy

  • improve communication across cultural lines, and be equipped to navigate cultural complexity with confidence.

Whether through self-paced workshops, live customized programs, or 1:1 consulting, we empower leaders to build trust, improve team performance, and drive meaningful, measurable results.

What is Cultural Intelligence (CQ)?

Cultural Intelligence, or CQ, is the ability to relate and work effectively in culturally diverse situations. It goes beyond awareness and sensitivity—it builds real skills for communicating, solving problems, and leading across differences.

Within our own culture, we naturally understand the norms and values that shape interactions. But in diverse settings, those familiar cues may have very different meanings.

Culturally intelligent leaders can recognize their own worldview and adapt to others’, allowing them to:

  • communicate clearly

  • resolve conflicts

  • reduce bias in decision-making.

You are an HR manager, business owner or team manager and you:

  • feel overwhelmed leading your culturally-diverse team

  • don’t know how to begin implementing a DEI or inclusivity initiative

  • struggle with inclusive decision-making

  • have a hard time understanding the needs of your culturally- diverse team

  • grapple with conflict resolution

  • feel like productivity, collaboration and morale is low

Do you need to make positive changes to your organization’s culture, but have no idea where to start?

  • i don’t know how to manage conflict within my team

  • our team is experiencing high turnover

  • our organization is culturally diverse

  • i have a leader who lacks in diversity training

  • my team has poor collaboration

  • my leaders need to improve their communication skills

  • our company’s culture needs to be more inclusive

We will help you go from struggling to inspiring.  

FROM

  • just checking of the ‘DEI’ box

  • no solid implementation strategy

  • ineffective leadership communication

  • poor team performance and collaboration

  • failed conflict management

TO

  • truly understanding and implementing organizational inclusivity with cultural intelligence

  • custom step by step action plan to keep you on track now and in the future

  • leaders who communicate with empathy and strong decision-making

  • productive and effective teams

  • human-centric and strong conflict resolution abilities

  • "I feel pretty lucky to have met Carlos in my career. He was a leader from day one in every sense of the word. In the two years that I spent being mentored by him he showed me the value of integrity while building successful working relationships. Such an amazing experience...I learned so much from you Carlos." - Carlos Tavares, Managing Director at Robbinex Inc.

  • "The world is often unpredictable and can weigh us down, in those moments I’ve never been shy to reach out to Carlos. His authentic, humble and inspiring approach to life has inspired me and many others to see the hope that exists in every day, no matter how things may look. Carlos’ ability to leverage empathy and cultural intelligence to help others solve problems and be better human beings is truly commendable." -Andrew Go, Chief Digital and Data Officer at Staples Canada

  • "Carlos has an amazing drive to always do things better, and he is one of the truly data-driven leaders in our group. As a business analyst providing analytics support to his team, he has always kept me on my toes. I admire his ingenuity and commitment to excellence, and enjoy working with someone with such a strong ability to examine data and connect the dots between analytics and business performance." - Tav McGregor, Analytics at Best Buy Canada

  • "I had the privilege of hearing Carlos speak during a training webinar on Cultural Intelligence and Unconscious Bias and his approach sounded phenomenal. Working with The CQ Mindset has nudged our Leadership Team in the right direction, as we’ve successfully discussed some pretty weighted topics and subject matter. Carlos meets you and your organization where you are and has a realistic approach towards open dialogue. Inclusivity training got us talking about a number of uncomfortable things, it got us uncomfortable in order to be comfortable. That is definitely one of Carlos’s takeaway key phrases" - Adrian Carr, Director of HR for Access Health

How The CQ Mindset works

  • 1

    Speak with us about your current pain points, needs and goals and we will recommend the program best aligned to get your desired outcome.

  • 2

    Become a member of The CQ Mindset and see how your organization can transform into a place of understanding and inclusion.

  • 3

    Learn our methods and apply our step by step solutions to create an inclusive culture, all while getting the support you need.

  • 4

    Gain the tools, education and confidence to implement real inclusion action plans. Watch the leadership skills, team performance and output thrive.

Why CQ?

CULTURAL INTELLIGENCE or CQ®, is a globally recognized way of assessing and improving effectiveness in culturally diverse situations, including your organization. It’s rooted in rigorous, academic research conducted across more than 100 countries.

In culturally diverse situations, CQ predicts:

✓ Personal Adjustment and Adaptability
✓ Judgement and Decision-Making
✓ Negotiation Effectiveness
✓ Trust, Idea Sharing, and Innovation
✓ Leadership Effectiveness
✓ Profitability and Cost-Savings

CQ & Leadership

As a leader, having the skills to effectively communicate and relate to your team is crucial. Incorporating cultural intelligence into your leadership development allows you to become more curious, empathetic and aware of your team’s differences and similarities. CQ allows you to show up as a trustworthy and confident leader who recognizes that diversity is a strength, not a weakness.

“Diverse teams out-perform homogeneous teams when CQ is high. But when CQ is low, diverse teams experience lower levels of productivity and effectiveness.”

“Those who demonstrate high cultural intelligence are successful in cross-cultural interactions. They want and are willing to build trust, navigate difficult conversations, manage their biases, design positive conflict-resolution strategies, and build rapport quickly.”