This workshop equips employees involved in international business (e.g. international assignees, business travelers and local employees dealing with international colleagues) with customized information and focused business strategies to work effectively within a specific country in Asia.

Participants learn how the national business culture shape business practices, especially: government-business relationship, decision-making process, relationship and time orientation and communication patterns.

Through an interactive session with the trainer, participants learn about their cultural and personal profiles on the following dimensions of culture: time orientation, hierarchy, decision-making, risk-taking, communication style and leadership.

• We get participants to share their first impressions of the local culture. We then discuss how the local community perceive foreigners, highlighting similarities and differences in perceptions.



• We explain the whys behind these differences by looking at the history,geography, demographics and values of the destination country.
• We discuss the “Do’s and Don’ts” to minimize cultural faux-pas.



• We work together with the participant to devise strategies to build good rapport and overcome possible clashes when interacting with locals.

This section includes the following, as applied to the participant’s business context:

• Business etiquette (e.g. seating arrangements, exchanging name cards, gift-giving)



• Communication strategies (e.g. body language, addressing a client)



• Boardroom and workplace culture (e.g. hierarchy, silences)



• Cross-cultural teambuilding (e.g. leadership, authority, coercion)

• We introduce participants to the first 50 survival words or phrases in the local language.



• Participants learn how to communicate effectively with the locals both in the local language as well as in English.

• Participants make a list of key tasks participants need to accomplish in the first 3 months.



• Participants outline the steps they would normally take to achieve these goals.



• Trainer works with participants to identify if any adjustment in approach is needed to accomplish these tasks successfully in the new culture.

• 6h (1 full day or 2 half days)



• Pre-departure or Post-arrival



• Individual or Group



• 1 Cross-cultural Trainer and at least 1 Home country Presenter