“No Culture can live if it attempts to be exclusive.”  – Mahatma Gandhi

In the global market – knowledge, awareness, and skills not only mean influence, they also mean survival. Cultural competency is one of the most challenging aspects of operating globally. A strong foundation of cultural competence and proficiency is mission critical in building, operating, and succeeding beyond the homeland; making cultural competence and intelligence crucial to both public and private sector enterprises seeking to advance objectives across international boundaries.

Understanding the customs and cultural norms of other nations and people is usually only gained through personal experience. However, effective cross-cultural training can serve to bridge the gap between lack of personal experience and the need for understanding subtle differences between cultures. Recognizing and understanding these differences are critical steps in ensuring effective communication

Both multinational corporations and the public sector understand the need to prevent cultural misunderstandings and boost competitiveness in a global marketplace. Using effective strategies that include:

• Cultural Profiles – Demographics, religious breakdowns, dominant languages, political landscapes, and general cultural understanding. Cultural profiles target countries and respective regions, tracking general propensities in areas such as decision-making, communication (verbal and non verbal), negotiation styles, and orientations to time, risk and hierarchy.
• Surface Culture vs. Deep Culture – In order to really know a new culture, it is necessary to understand the distinction between surface culture and deep culture. Surface culture refers to the observable behaviors (habits, customs, mannerisms, etc.) and physical objects (artifacts, literature, tools, etc.) associated with a group of people. Deep culture refers to the commonly accepted attitudes and beliefs shared by a group of people. These two components should not be viewed separately as they are very much intertwined. Understanding any culture requires not only knowledge of its surface features but also some knowledge of the deeper, shared pool of attitude and belief which is often passed from one person to another.
• Awareness Training – Tailored data, gathered by experienced country specialists, on issues such as protocol, etiquette, greetings, entertaining, tipping, gift-giving, meetings, working in established relationships, and more;
• Simulation – Case studies and create real world scenarios to match client objectives, that allow participants to identify where cultural differences can block successful interactions.
• Achievement Plans – Cultural learning put into actions toward real-world objectives. Creating real work action plans for key tasks/responsibilities participants need to accomplish to be effective in a global environment.