We hear a lot in the news about cultural differences with Western companies going East, but rarely about Eastern companies coming to the West.

A great little article in the South China Morning Post by Mark Magnier suggests that when it comes to navigating different business cultures, Chinese companies are finding very similar challenges when working on the global stage, especially in the USA.

Cultures experience time in different ways.

When working across cultures, this can cause problems.

Want to learn the basics about Judaism?

Welcome to our quick intro to the religion of the Jews!

When doing business abroad it is important to understand the local culture.

Culture includes areas such as a country's norms, values, behaviours, food, architecture, fashion and art.

Business etiquette is essentially about building relationships with colleagues, clients or customers.

In the business world, it is these people that can influence your success or failure.

Are you involved in negotiations with people from other countries and cultures?

Do you sometimes get confused with the negotiation process?

Do you want some advice on giving presentations abroad or to multicultural audiences?

Then you are in exactly the right place!

Cultural differences have a long and rich history of ruining marketing campaigns!

Although a little cruel, cross cultural marketing fails are a humorous means of understanding the impact poor cultural awareness can have when selling or working abroad.

Globalisation, internationalisation and trans-border trade are all terms that have been coined over the past decade(s) to reflect the reality of international trade.

Although international trade has long been in operation, the scale, frequency and speed at which it is conducted today is incomparable.

"Guanxi" (pronounced (jwan-see) is one of the most powerful forces in Chinese culture.

Though the direct translation of "guanxi" is "relationships", the concept as it is used and applied in Chinese culture is much richer and encompassing.

Looking to sell globally?

Export marketing will be crucial to your prospects – however it is key to always remember “cultural differences” in the back of your mind when putting together a strategy and approach.

Will we see a business brain drain?

Britain’s impending exit from the EU has rallied a host of cries from its European brethren, encouraging businesses to continue accessing European skills and resources by relocating elsewhere.

Many people love learning languages or would like to learn a language and use their language skills in a job.

In today's global economy the demand for language skills continues to grow as governments, businesses and organisations build relationships with foreign interests.

Having received great feedback on my blog about the place of "tarof" in Persian culture, a few people have requested a brief guide to doing business in Iran for companies making the journey over.

So here goes....

It’s nearly a year since the restrictive sanctions imposed on Iran were lifted.

These sanctions were not only applied by the UN, EU and US but also included sanctions from third party countries.

:: As of this week Brexit negotiations have officially commenced.

:: The UK will be leaving the EU within the next few years.

We are delighted to announce the release of an online cultural awareness training course on British culture.

Did you know that in The UK they celebrate a 'pancake day'? Yes! And it involves a pancake race too!

We are delighted to announce the release of our latest online cultural awareness training course - on China.

The new addition to our catalogue of online courses offers lots of fantastic insights into Chinese culture, the people and of course, Chinese business practices.

Imagine you’ve been asked to play an unfamiliar board game and that you’re instructed to play it without any understanding of the rules.

You soon begin to irritate other players by making mistakes and getting things wrong and, after a while, the game becomes a stressful and confusing experience.

Did you know that Saudi Arabia segregates people at restaurants according to gender?

Yes, it’s true, but the internet and media have been buzzing with news that the country has stopped the practice.