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© Culturosity.com 2004
Where Growing Minds Go Global…
Effective Multi-Cultural
International Business
Meetings
In international business meetings, cul-
tural differences between professionals
can and do clash. Neil Payne of
Kwintessential shows us how to mini-
mize the negative effects of cultural
differences with careful and effective
planning, organisation and considera-
tion prior to meetings.
by Neil Payne
One of the many areas in international business
where cultural differences manifest is in the cor-
porate meeting room. International meetings are
an area where differences in cultural values, eti-
quette, interpretations of professional conduct
and corporate rules are at their most visible and
challenging to control.
In international business meetings, cultural differ-
ences between professionals can and do clash.
Although it can not always be avoided, the nega-
tive effects of cultural differences can be mini-
mised with careful and effective planning,
organisation and consideration prior to meetings.
Culture influences what we do, say, think and be-
lieve. Culture is different in different countries
and contexts. In the context of international
business it affects how people approach, per-
ceive and contribute towards meetings. A few
examples include:
Time
Not all cultures live by the clock. Time orientated
cultures such as the British or Germans will have
strict approaches to how meetings run. The start
time, finishing time and all the different stages in
between will be planned carefully. Other cultures
will see the start time as an approximation, the
finish time as non-fixed and all the different
stages in between as flexible.
Hierarchy
The hierarchical nature of a culture can have a
massive impact on the input given by participants
in an international meeting. For those from hier-
archical cultures speaking one’s mind, criticising
ideas, disagreeing openly, giving feedback and
reporting problems in front of the boss or man-
ager are all areas the