Communication between peoples has never been so important. Granted, there have been trade routes, diplomatic ties and other areas where people from different cultures and backgrounds have come in contact with each other for thousands of years. Yet today's world is drastically different. Domestic markets are now interdependent, transport has eased the passage of peoples across borders and advances in communication technology has given people greater access to information and contact with foreign lands. Borders have simply become administrative zones processing lines of tourists and business people. They no longer represent the end of 'us' and the beginning of 'them'.
Communication is Critical
Within the business world we have witnessed major shifts in supply chains, transformations in the organisational structures of companies and the number of business personnel dealing with foreign colleagues, clients and customers. If there was ever a time that better communication was needed it is now.
Success or failure on the international stage is no longer about management styles, sales techniques or having the cheapest product. It is about being able to adapt to foreign ways of thinking and working. Businesses are slowly waking up to the fact that investment in this area is a must. Thus HSBC's slogan about never underestimating the "importance of global knowledge".
Business Training
In domestic markets, companies allocate budgets on collecting details of the values, attitudes and buying habits of consumers and on training managers in company culture and management theory. Yet when it comes to the international arena many are not willing to invest the money, time nor effort in business training.
This is because companies are simply unaware of how culture impacts their business. The larger multi-nationals have for the past decade or so heavily invested in such business training and are witnessing the benefits. Yet this has not trickled down to medium and small businesses who view it as an unnecessary extravagance. Their is also a belief that other cultures have nothing to offer and that ours (European/Western) should be emulated by international business personnel.
As Professor Howard Perlmutter of the Wharton School of Business stated, "If you have a joint venture with a Japanese company, they'll send you 24 people here to learn everything you know, and you'll send one person to tell them everything you know.."
The world is changing and therefore businesses mentalities must keep in sync. Business training in terms of equipping people with the right intercultural skills is a priority.
For more information on our services please visit the following pages:
Cross Cultural Awareness Training
Translation Services and Interpreters
Multilingual Recruitment Service
Kwintessential are registered with and support the work of BLIS.
