Monday, October 7, 2013

Preparing to do Business in Another Country--Country Reports [20140930 update]

Preparing to do Business in Another Country

Please look for information about these topics:

Culture
What cultural or regional differences should visitors know about?
Which religions are important in this country? Are there any conflicts?

People--Women, Friends, Foreigners
What is the role of women in business and in society as a whole?
How and where do people meet and make friends?
How do people feel about foreigners?

Public & Private Lives
What sort of gifts are appropriate? Is bribery common?
Are public, business and private lives mixed or kept separate? When and Why?

Food & Drink
What sort of food and drink is typical? How do people eat and drink? Is street food common?

Work & Free Time
What are working hours like? Do people work efficiently? Do they follow rules well? How do people feel about doing overtime?
What do people like to do in their free time?

Clothes & Body Language
What sort of clothing is suitable (for men and women)?
Body language: what should visitors know about?

Conversation & Negotiation
Which topics are safe for small talk? Which topics should be avoided? 
How do people negotiate? Are contracts respected?

Language
Which languages are commonly spoken?
How do you say a few common expressions such as "Hello! Goodbye! Please..., Where is ..., Can you help me? Thank you! I don't speak [...]"

Adapted from Communicating in Business, 2nd edition, page 12

2 comments:

  1. There're too many sources we may use it, so we are not decided yet.

    ReplyDelete
  2. You need to use your judgment. Which facts are useful and important? What information is not necessary? Try to tell an interesting and useful story. Don't make your listeners go to sleep with dozens of unconnected facts.

    ReplyDelete