Skip to main content

Small Biz Insider: Clear Communication in a Multicultural World with CEO of MasterWord Services

Published Nov 14, 2019 by Maggie Martin


Mila Golovine

The Small Biz Insider podcast is part of a digital series from the Greater Houston Partnership, where we highlight the innovative business owners, entrepreneurs and leaders of the greater Houston area making a big impact in the small business community. 

On this edition of Small Biz Insider, host Maggie Martin sat down with Mila Golovine. She is the founder, CEO and President of MasterWord Services. It provides translation, spoken and language interpreting, and other services to enable language access and ensure the success of international organizations.

Here are 5 key takeaways from Mila Golovine: 

Small businesses should make an effort to bridge different cultures together. Diverse teams achieve much better results than one where everyone is the same. “Diverse opinions allow us to look at multiple possibilities and come up with much more creative outcomes," said Golovine. She said the majority of business literature is geared toward Anglo culture, which is individualistic and highly competitive, while 70% of the world is representative of collectivistic culture, where the group result is valued more than the individual result. 

Don’t judge people based on your own biases. All of us have conscious and subconscious biases based on where we come from and what we’ve experienced. Be aware you’re going to pass that judgement. When you catch yourself in the moment doing that, ask yourself “why?” Go from that perspective and try to understand where the other person is coming from. 

It's very important for a business owner with a diverse team and/or diverse customer population to create a "company culture," where you set specific rules and say your company is diverse and open to questions.  

Over 90% of communication is non-verbal. Tone of voice and body language says even more than the words being said. And the body language can be different from culture to culture. For example, personal space as a concept is different in different cultures. 

Early challenges for a small business range from meeting payroll to generating steady cash flow and getting a bank loan. Golovine said she found inspiration through stories from entrepreneurs who got rejected over and over and just kept on going. “It’s having that support system and the idea that [rejection is] okay and learning how to deal with rejection. Knowing that you’re not the only one was the support I really needed.”

Listen to this and other episodes of the Small Biz Insider podcast here. Learn more about the Partnership's other small business resources.

Subscribe to Small Biz Insider through these popular podcast players:

Listen on Apple Podcasts Listen on Google Podcasts Listen on Spotify

Related News

Economic Development

Houston Region Asserts Biotech Excellence at BIO International Convention

6/25/25
The Greater Houston Partnership and regional partners showcased Houston’s thriving life sciences and biotechnology ecosystem at the 2025 BIO International Convention in Boston. As the premier annual biotechnology conference in the United States, BIO 2025 drew nearly 20,000 global attendees, offering a powerful platform to highlight the region’s momentum, innovation, and growing opportunities in the sector.    BioHouston, Galveston EDP, Partnership Lake Houston, Pearland EDC, the Sugar Land Office of Economic Development and Tourism and The Woodlands EDP presented the many assets and unique benefits the region offers to biotechnology companies from startup to full-scale, including 8 million square feet of life sciences space, strategic workforce and educational initiatives, as well as an overall favorable approach to incentives and permitting.    "Working alongside the different members of our region and telling the story of the amazing product that Greater Houston has to offer is invigorating," Galveston EDP Executive Director Joshua Owens said. "Being able to showcase our ecosystem to a worldwide audience is an exceptional step toward creating opportunities for the people of Houston."    Recent wins, such as Bionova Scientific's move to The Woodlands and United Therapeutics’ move to Generation Park, serve as testaments to the variety of options for life science businesses in our region. With pronounced capabilities in research and development, manufacturing and innovation, life sciences companies of all kinds can find a welcoming home in the Houston region.    To learn more about our life sciences and biotechnology ecosystem, visit our life sciences page. 
Read More
Digital Technology

Houston Advances Global Growth Strategy at VivaTech 2025

6/17/25
As Houston continues to expand its role as a global center for innovation and investment, the Greater Houston Partnership and Rice University led a strategic trade mission to Paris, France, to elevate the region’s presence at Viva Technology (VivaTech) 2025, the largest technology and innovation summit in Europe.  With 180,000 international attendees, VivaTech offered direct access to global business leaders, policymakers and investors exploring high-growth markets. Houston’s activation sparked opportunities for potential partnerships and drew attention from notable leaders, including French President Emmanuel Macron and Vanessa Wyche, Acting Administrator of NASA.   “They see Houston as one of the cities of the future, and they’re backing that up with their resources and attention,” stated John Cypher, the Partnership’s Vice President of International Investment and Trade. “We saw a lot of potential for partnerships that could bring more international startups to Houston and connect founders to new European markets.”  Beyond VivaTech, the delegation met with key players in France’s innovation and finance sectors, including Banque Publique d’Investissement France, Mouvement des Entreprises de France, and Station F.   The week-long trade mission also highlighted Houston’s global academic leadership with a guided visit to Rice University’s Global Paris Center, the university’s first international campus. “It’s a remarkable moment where Rice shows the world that we are an entrepreneurial-, science- and engineering-based tech accelerator,” said Caroline Levander, Rice’s Vice President for Global Strategy. The center represents a broader vision to connect Houston’s educational and entrepreneurial resources to Europe’s innovation ecosystem. The mission culminated with a reception at the former embassy of the Republic of Texas, celebrating the enduring ties between Texas and France and reinforcing a shared commitment to innovation and growth.   Houston’s role at VivaTech 2025 highlights the city’s innovation and role as a major hub for foreign direct investment. Strengthening international business ties remains a significant part of our growing economy and a way to spur further investment and advance innovation for our region.   Learn more about Houston’s growing role in the global economy.  
Read More

Related Events

Demography

2025 Houston Facts

The Greater Houston Partnership invites you to Houston Facts on Wednesday, August 6 to unveil the highly anticipated 2025 Houston Facts publication and dive deeper into…

Learn More
Learn More
Executive Partners