The Key to Successfully Hosting an

International Business Delegation

Introducing the

welcome.kit

So much can go wrong

when hosting an

international business

delegation…

What‘s wrong

when…

… your guest

considers

Munich to be a

poor city

because of its

old town hall?

What do you do

when…

… your guest

asks for a

prostitute in

the middle of

the night?

Culture has an influence…

… on whether

we feel

welcomed or

not.

Culture influences…

… what is

”right“ food

and what is

”good” food.

Culture influences…

… the way

we think

about a

successful

business trip.

… and a lot more.

So it‘s a good idea…

… to keep cultural

differences in mind

when hosting an

international

business

delegation.

There is help…

… a simple

tool to

consider all

relevant

aspects to

make your

guests happy.

The welcome.kit

Example: Arabia

And that‘s how it works.

You need…

1. Knowledge about the

relevant cultures…

Cultural Categories

2. Cultural Standards and Dimensions

3. Religion

4. Etiquette

1. Personal Acquaintance

2. Puzzle pieces of

the travel program for a

delegation…

Puzzle Pieces

a. Planning Process

b. Program and Schedule

c. Accomodation

d. Meals and Beaverages

e. Social Program

f. Degree of care needed

g. Gifts and Presents

Now just put together the

cultural categories and the

puzzle pieces and you have…

… the welcome.kit

Let‘s try a second expample.

Shall we?

Example: China

Example: China

Use the welcome kit and you will see for yourself

that for your Chinese business partners…

… this accommodation is

a better choice…

… than this.

Some Basic Rules

1. In order to use this tool knowledge about cultural standards and

dimensions is needed.

2. Always put “Personal Acquaintance” first. It outrules categories like

dimensions or religion.

3. Do not forget to give all relevant information to colleagues who as well

have do deal with your guests.

4. Remember: it has always to do with comparing two cultures. This

presentation is written from a German point of view. It might not apply for

other cultural combinations.

Now you have the key to

successfully hosting an

international business

delegation

You want to talk about this?

And maybe enjoy

a nice cup of

coffee?

Steffen Henkel steffen.henkel@change-project.de http://www.crossculture-academy.com https://www.facebook.com/crossculture.academy http://twitter.com/cp_academy http://www.xing.com/profile/Steffen_Henkel http://www.slideshare.net/SteffenH Google+ -> Steffen Henkel

Sources:

Slide 1: ©Gerd Altmann pixelio

Slide 3: Wikipedia, Neues Rathaus München

Slide 4: Wikipedia, Schloss Neuhardenberg

Slide 6: ©birgitH pixelio

Slide 10: ©S. Hofschlaeger pixelio

Slides 11+12: ©Bernd Boscolo pixelio

Slides 19+20: Wikipedia, Schlosshotel Kronberg + Wikipedia, Royal Hotel München

Other pictures are purchased at http://www.veer.com