Are you working in an international business environment? Is there a business meeting or negotiation abroad ahead of you? In today’s globalized workplace merely having strong business communication skills is not enough, you also need to have strong intercultural skills.
We could define cultural fluency as the ability to easily and naturally interact with people from different cultures, picking up the nonverbal and non-linguistic information, and giving relevant and genuine reactions. Briefly we could say that cultural fluency is always feeling at home in the given context of a culture.
Whatever aspects of business communication we choose to talk about in order to better understand what it takes to build a successful intercultural business, I think it all comes down to trust. Each successful business deal, just as each failed one is a story of trust or the lack of it.
The psychology of success is always an interesting and complex field of research, and yet another area of psychological studies that are affected by cross-cultural differences.
Uncertainty avoidance has also a major say in the business and workplace ethics of a country. For example in business it’s really important whether partners’ or potential partners’ views on risk taking are similar or not.
Mastering languages enables us to give more to the world, by understanding more of it.
Business may be business, but is still conducted by people. So when aspiring to maintain a fruitful business relationship, being able to connect with people on a real, human note is crucial. And when travelling to a new country, or working with people from different cultures, new challenges arise. So get prepared for them, and do your homework in advance!
Where is your place at the new place?
I recently read about a case when a business negotiator lost an important deal in India. The reason was that the partner had the feeling that she was rushing through the talks, while the negotiator was consciously talking and acting in that rhythm, because she wanted to be efficient, and not make the partner feel that she is wasting her time. This is a perfect example of how cross-cultural differences can affect business, and communication in the workplace.
In the matter of cross-cultural knowledge I think it’s safe to say that the term cultural jet lag is of crucial importance. It was introduced by Marc Perraud when he was conducting his research in cross-cultural psychology.