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Isabell Dewitt

Leveraging the Differences in International Teams

Updated: Aug 8


ein Schreibtisch mit aufgeklappten Laptops, Dokumenten und Stiften von oben, darüber schlagen 5 Menschen miteinander ein, links ein Mann mit dunkelblauem Longshirt, grau-mellierten Haaren und Bart, oben eine blonde Frau mit Brille, die eine weiße Blus trägt. Von den restlichen Menschen sind nur die Hände und Arme zu sehen. Oben rechts der Arm von einem Mann mit hochgekrmpeltem Ärmel, unten rechts der Arm von einem People of Color Mann, man sieht das weiße Hemd unter einenm grauen Anzug, in der Mitte unten eine Frau mit langärmiger weißer Bluse.

Maybe you know this predicament: When dealing with other cultures, we tend to mistakenly assume similarity where there actually is none. You may go into an international project thinking “The others are all open and friendly, surely it will work just fine”? Far from it! 

💡 Conducting business in an interculturally competent manner does not

      mean completely adapting to the other culture, or pretending to, instead it

      means realizing one's own goals in collaboration with the partners and  

      recognizing the differences in processes, procedures and necessities. 

💡 Multiple studies have found, and continue to find, dysfunctionalities in

      international teams. Of course, conflicts and communication failure can

      have personal or situational reasons, but frequently they are due to a lack

      of awareness of intercultural differences.

💡 However, when participants are aware of their own bias and prepared for

      the encounter with other cultures, such conflicts can be prevented, and

      thus valuable time and energy are saved. 


For any intercultural training to be effective it is necessary to begin with developing a basic awareness of different cultural types; this in turn helps us to further understand our own culture’s characteristics and how they might be viewed by others. 🎯

From this basis of general cultural knowledge, we can then move on to better understanding how and why the cultural values of the target culture form the behavior we encounter in others. 🎯

A final step is developing practical strategies for avoiding problems and conflicts in working-day interaction. 

Being culturally aware does not mean manipulating or removing differences in behavior but instead exploiting or utilizing the differences one encounters to achieve effective communication.  🤝

What are your experiences with working in international teams?  🤝

All training content at das Seminarhaus is based on the specific needs and wishes of each participant group, taking into consideration the particularities of the respective cultures, such as languages, customs, and business etiquette. 

Why not sign up for your own personal intercultural awareness training and form a successful relationship with your foreign colleagues? 

 

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