05/01/2026

Career Development Without Borders: Culture, Global Connectedness, and AI

By Sonja Robinson, Hildah Mokgolodi, and Mary Ellen Earnhardt

A New Era of Global Career Development

Career development is being reshaped by three powerful forces: artificial intelligence (AI), intercultural connectedness, and cross-cultural competency. As professionals work across borders physically, virtually, and digitally, and as employers recruit globally for specialized skills (OECD, 2023; World Economic Forum [WEF], 2023), practitioners are now tasked with supporting cultural navigation, responsible AI use, and the skills clients need to thrive (UNESCO, 2021). Career construction theory reminds us that careers are shaped by the social, cultural, and technological contexts in which people live and work (Savickas, 2011).  Understanding how culture and AI intersect is essential for equitable, globally responsive practice.

AI as a Cross-Cutting Force

Culture is not a backdrop to career development; it is central to it. The values, family systems, and social contexts in which clients live shape how they define success, make decisions, and envision their futures. For career practitioners working across diverse populations, intercultural competence is no longer optional; it is a core professional skill.

It is within this cultural context that AI is rapidly transforming how individuals explore careers, build skills, and access guidance. AI-enabled platforms now support career exploration, labor-market forecasting, skills matching, and personalized learning pathways (Bimrose et al., 2021; WEF, 2023). When used with cultural awareness, AI offers meaningful possibilities, including expanded access to career information for underserved populations and multilingual tools that reduce linguistic barriers. However, AI is not culturally neutral. Algorithms reflect the values and assumptions of their designers, often grounded in Western, industrialized settings (Benjamin, 2019; Noble, 2018). For example, AI tools may prioritize linear career pathways or individual achievement, which may not align with collectivist cultural values. Without cultural oversight, AI risks reinforcing systemic inequities and marginalizing culturally rooted definitions of success. Career practitioners serve as ethical mediators between technology and lived experience; consistent with NCDA’s Framework for Ethical and Effective AI Use in Career Services (NCDA, 2024), AI should augment not replace the human dimensions of career guidance.

Intercultural Connectedness and Cultural Influence

Intercultural connectedness has become essential for workforce participation. Employers increasingly value cultural intelligence, adaptability, and global communication skills alongside technical competence (Ang & Van Dyne, 2015; OECD, 2023). Career practitioners must support clients in navigating cross-cultural communication styles, power distance and hierarchical norms, expectations around collectivism versus individualism, credential recognition, and transnational work environments, recognizing that careers are no longer bounded by geography but shaped by global systems and social context (Arthur et al., 2005; Baruch et al., 2016).

In many cultural contexts, career decision-making is deeply relational. Family expectations, spirituality, gender norms, and intergenerational history shape career pathways (Leong & Hardin, 2017; Oyserman et al., 2007), and in collectivist cultures including Caribbean, African, Middle Eastern, and immigrant communities, career choice is often negotiated within family and community systems (Fouad et al., 2008). Effective practice requires cultural humility and systems awareness, helping clients honor both personal aspirations and cultural realities.

To practice effectively across cultures, practitioners must cultivate cultural awareness and humility, cross-cultural communication skills, ethical and culturally responsive practice, global labor-market literacy, and technology and AI literacy (Evans & Sejuit, 2021; NCDA, 2015; UNESCO, 2021). These competencies align with NCDA’s Minimum Multicultural Career Counseling Competencies and broader international guidance frameworks emphasizing equity, inclusion, and contextualized practice. For practitioners seeking to deepen their cross-cultural practice, Evans and Sejuit (2021) offer a practical framework in Gaining Cultural Competence in Career Counseling, which provides concrete strategies for building the cultural awareness and responsiveness essential to effective global career work. With these competencies as a foundation, regional perspectives help illustrate how they apply across diverse global contexts.

Regional Perspectives

The connectedness dynamics plays out differently across regions, illustrating how cultural context shapes career pathways in practice.

In the Caribbean, career development is shaped by resilience, faith, extended family networks, and inequities rooted in colonial history. Practitioners help young people navigate limited resources and underemployment while envisioning global possibilities (Parra Torrado, 2022). In Iran and similar Middle Eastern contexts, gender roles, family duty, and social reputation strongly influence career decisions, requiring practitioners to balance cultural respect with advocacy for individual agency (Assaad et al., 2018). In Southern Africa, Ubuntu , “I am because we are,” shapes career identity; decolonized, community-centered approaches are essential, as Western frameworks can result in misaligned interventions (Chilisa, 2019; Mokgolodi, 2016). In Indigenous and rural United States contexts, career development must be trauma-informed and aligned with tribal sovereignty, with success defined relationally rather than economically (Brayboy et al., 2012). For immigrants and newcomers, tailored, culturally responsive approaches are essential for navigating credential recognition, language barriers, and acculturation stress (Guichard, 2018; OECD, 2023).

Across these contexts, a common thread emerges: effective career practice requires cultural grounding, relational awareness, and tools that meet clients where they are. These regional examples point directly to the intentional practices that make the greatest difference in culturally responsive career work.

Best Practices

Global career development brings challenges (e.g., cross-cultural miscommunication, systemic inequities, digital divides, and unequal access to AI tools) and significant opportunities, (e.g., AI-supported career access, recognition of diverse global talent, and community-anchored practice). Meeting both requires practitioners to lead with intentionality. Effective global career practice integrates:

• Storytelling and narrative approaches (Savickas, 2011) — invite clients to share their life narrative, including family history and cultural values, as a foundation for career exploration
• Cultural Intelligence (CQ) development (Ang & Van Dyne, 2015) — building CQ helps practitioners recognize culturally specific barriers and adapt their guidance accordingly
• Inclusive and contextualized assessment — use tools validated across diverse populations and supplement with open-ended questions that surface clients’ cultural values and community-based definitions of success
• Community engagement and partnership — partner with cultural organizations and faith communities to deliver guidance in trusted spaces
• Ethical, transparent AI use — disclose AI use, evaluate cultural assumptions critically, and apply human judgment where algorithmic recommendations may not reflect a client’s cultural context (NCDA, 2024)

Preparing for a Connected Future

Career development is no longer local — in fact, it is without borders. The regional perspectives explored here affirm that cultural grounding and relational awareness are not add-ons to career practice; they are essential to intentional best practices. By embracing cross-cultural competencies, leveraging AI responsibly, and honoring cultural foundations, career practitioners can empower individuals and communities to thrive in an interconnected world.

References

Ang, S., & Van Dyne, L. (2015). Handbook of cultural intelligence. Routledge.

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Assaad, R., Krafft, C., & Selwaness, I. (2018). Youth transitions in the Middle East and North Africa. International Labour Review, 157(3), 321–349.

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Benjamin, R. (2019). Race after technology. Polity Press.

Bimrose, J., Barnes, S.-A., & Brown, A. (2021). The role of AI in career guidance. British Journal of Guidance & Counselling, 49(6), 815–829.

Brayboy, B. M. J., Fann, A. J., Castagno, A. E., & Solyom, J. A. (2012). Reclaiming Indigenous education. Routledge.

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NCDA. (2024). Ethical and effective use of AI in career services. https://www.ncda.org/aws/NCDA/pt/sd/news_article/392370/_PARENT/layout_details/false 

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Sonja Robinson, Ph.D., is the Country Director of International Samaritan Jamaica. Guided by Michael Manley’s belief that “any realistic vision of change must be based on the empowerment of people,” I have dedicated my life and leadership to creating pathways of possibility for youth in Jamaica. My purpose is rooted in the conviction that circumstances of birth should never define access to education, career opportunity, or personal growth. Raised by a strong Jamaican mother who taught me that service is both a responsibility and a privilege, I learned early the power of humility, community, and care. My own journey leaving Jamaica for graduate study, navigating financial hardship, and finding support through the International Peace Scholarship network reinforced my belief that empowerment begins when people feel seen, valued, and connected. That belief deepened through years of working with marginalized youth and was further shaped by my Ph.D. in Workforce Education at Penn State University. Today, as Country Director of International Samaritan Jamaica, I lead integrated programs in education, mental health, youth leadership, and workforce development. My commitment is unwavering: to amplify unheard voices and build pathways that enable young people not only to dream, but to thrive. She can be reached at sonja@intsam.org 

Dr. Hildah L. Mokgolodi is a Counsellor Educator at the University of Botswana with over 20 years of professional career counselling experience. She holds a PhD from the University of Pretoria and a Master’s in Counselling and Human Services from the University of Botswana. Her teaching and research focus is on career development, workplace issues, and indigenous counselling, with publications in journals, books, and international conference presentations. Dr. Mokgolodi is an active member of professional counselling and career development associations and serves on the University of Botswana’s Ethics Committee, ensuring ethically grounded practice.

Mary Ellen Earnhardt has over thirty years of experience as an educator serving pre-school through college.  She has been an educator, coach counselor, student support employee and Director of the Community Learning Center (21st CCLC) Grants and the Montana Department of Labor Career Lab.  She has been awarded three of the NCDA Global Awards: “Fellow”, “Outstanding Career Practitioner” and the “Ken Hoyt Outstanding Career Educator Award”. She currently serves as Trustee on the NCDA Board in charge of International Relations and IAEVG’s International Correspondent for the US.