The Blog for Culture Vultures

The giving and receiving of gifts is an important part of professional and personal life in the Middle East.

Closely tied up with the need to maintain relationships and as a way of gaining and giving face, gift giving bonds people together.

Guillaume Rey, a French waiter, was sacked from his job in a Canadian restaurant for being ‘aggressive, rude and disrespectful’

Upset by the sacking Rey believes his employees simply did not understand French culture. A complaint was filed
his previous employer, Vancouver restaurant on Canada’s Pacific coast, under British Columbia’s Human Rights Tribunal in which the waiter claiming  “discrimination against my culture”.

Freelance linguists often complain of isolation, monotony and increasing competition within the profession. Those looking for something new should consider cross cultural training as it naturally lends itself to the talent of translators and linguists.

The translation and interpreting profession is without doubt mainly powered by freelancers. Although there are great benefits to working as a freelancer, it can also be tough. Many find the isolation difficult, the work monotonous and the pay sometimes not all that desirable.

Ignorance Is No Excuse and Can Land You in Jail

In light of the story of the British woman jailed for smuggling painkillers into Egypt, Punter Southall Health & Protection have warned companies sending personnel abroad that it is their "duty of care to ensure employees understand the legislation and cultural differences of that country."

British retail worker Laura Plummer, was recently arrested in the Red Sea resort of Hurghada after she was found to be carrying 290 Tramadol tablets in her suitcase, a painkiller which is legal in the UK but which is banned in Egypt. She was convicted of smuggling and is now serving a 3 year sentence.

As cross-cultural training specialists, we sometimes come across resistance from delegates who have been obligated to attend a cultural awareness session by their boss, HR or the Learning and Development department.

Resistance may stem from many factors, not least of which may be that the benefits and background to the training course have not been fully communicated.

Do you want to sell your products or services internationally? Global sales are important for businesses looking to expand their client base, increase revenues or attract investment.

As many who work in international sales can attest to, finding and bringing in sales can be tough but also very rewarding...when you get it right.

How a Homogenous Approach to International Training Stifles Success

In a global market place, companies are increasingly rolling out training courses across international offices with the intention of providing consistent and homogenised messages to all their staff – regardless of location.

There is sometimes little, if any thought, given to whether the materials will be well received by the recipient international office.

The UK's innovation agency has just released a report highlighting what investors are looking for in potential investment targets.

‘Scaling up: the investor perspective’ is the result of research commissioned by Innovate UK which was overseen and publish by the market research company, Ebiquity.

One of the effects of globalisation is that global brands and companies with international ambitions must be spread themselves geographically.

Employing a global workforce is essential in today’s hypercompetitive marketplace.

As 2017 draws to a close, expectations that Asia will overtake the US as the largest global consumer market in the next couple of decades, are becoming increasingly credible.

The Asian Development Bank reported in 2017 that growth prospects for Asia are continuing to strengthen following economic expansion of 5.9% in 2017 and anticipated expansion of 5.8% in 2018. 

Have you read about the backlash Pearson Education received regarding a section about cultural awareness in a recent nursing textbook?

Initially it started with a Facebook post outlining some crude cultural stereotypes, but the complaints soon grew large enough and loud enough for Pearson Education to take note.

With 2017 flying by and 2018 fast approaching, the team at Commisceo Global have decided to share a snapshot of some of the cross-cultural training trends we have witnessed so far this year.

Remember this is only what we have seen as a company, not what the whole cross-cultural training sector is experiencing.

President Trump’s recent speech outlining his stance on the Iran nuclear-deal has caused outrage among Iranians, not for his position on the deal and potential new sanctions, but for his knowledge of geography.

When referring to his decision to withdraw presidential certification for the Iranian-deal, Trump stated that Iran’s regime “harasses American ships and threatens freedom of navigation in the Arabian Gulf and in the Red Sea.”

Culturally diverse teams are becoming more and more the norm as international businesses continue to hire in talent from around the globe.

Anyone who has worked in a multicultural team knows that this comes with challenges.

Doing Business in Brazil?  
A ‘One Size fits All’ approach will sink your ship in Brazil.  Here’s why….

With the largest economy in Latin America and the seventh largest economy in the world, there is every reason why companies and investors have their eye closely set on Brazil.

Having worked in Dubai for over 10 years, one of the things that constantly amazes me about visitors to the Emirate is that they think they have landed in some sort of desert version of Las Vegas, where everything goes.

Well, as British IT consultant Jamil Ahmed Mukadam has found out - it is anything but.

Working remotely, across time zones, with different cultures and through various communication channels is becoming more and more common.

Over the last 10 years or so, training demand for courses that focus specifically on helping remote and culturally diverse teams have grown year on year.

Relocating to a foreign country for work is a big deal. New home, new language and new culture! There is a lot to get your head around. Without doubt Japan is one of those countries that, culturally speaking, causes confusion for the foreigner.

A distinct island culture, formed over thousands of years, with its own nuances and subtleties... it takes time to genuinelly understand the Japanese.

Being the helpful cross-cultural consultancy we are,  we have scoured the internet to find what we consider to be the best 3 videos on Japanese culture!

These videos will help make your relocation to Japan a little smoother, enabling you to learn about Japanese people and culture, so that you have a head start in terms of behaviour and how best to conduct yourself.

A word of warning for anyone travelling to Saudi Arabia - stay well away from any dabbing. The move could see you spending some time in jail.

Abdullah al-Shahrani, a Saudi entertainer, was recently detained by Saudi authorities after dabbing during a concert in the city of Taif.

A research report commissioned by Air France-KLM to try and work out what is causing tensions within the airline company has discovered that cultural differences between Dutch an French employees is potentially ripping the merger apart.

Air France-KLM, which is the result of a 2004 merger, asked Philippe d’Iribarne from the French Institute of Science and Niels Noorderhaven of Tilburg University, to carry out the research which involved 47 interviews with Air France and KLM staff between January and April 2017.