CROSS-CULTURAL INTELLIGENCE
Almost overnight the world has become smaller and bigger for cross-cultural leaders from corporate and diplomatic worlds. Smaller, because of extensive networking through telecommunications and as a result, is surrounded by partners and dialoguers worldwide. Bigger, due to the fact there are significant business opportunities evolving beyond domestic boundaries more than ever before.
Cross-cultural modules are the first step to understanding cultural diversity. Discovering and learning the historical background will help to understand the underlying culture and traditions or religious aspects that may have an impact on everyday business life. It is extremely important to appreciate these fundamental issues to avoid ethnocentrism occurring during future business and diplomatic relations.
Tips and tricks…
To many in India, a gift made of leather is not appreciated because of religious prohibitions (The cow is a sacred animal).