Cultural distance is defined as the set of factors creating a need for knowledge or barriers to knowledge flow. Examples of factors contributing to the cultural distance are differences in language, education, business practices, and culture and industrial development. In business transactions, the two parties - buyer & seller - need symmetrical information about each other to establish mutual trust in each other's ability and willingness to fulfil their commitments.

If your company is entering a new market or having some established relationships with foreign partners, but is facing difficulties in communicating, aligning goals and managing processes in the country in question, you can obtain a one-day customised seminar for your management and employees to comfort existing concerns.

The goal of the seminar is to decrease possible risks related to a cultural business distance that occurs or may occur in your relationship with foreign partners.

Throughout the seminar you become acquanted with a target country's cultural dimensions and characteristics, so you will be able to understand possible cultural  influence on your business activities in a new country. You will receive guidelines for local communication and management tactics (recommendation on optimal leadership style) and answers on all issues that interest you. We would also like to take into consideration an occured conflict (if any) and try to explain its roots and give solving recommendations.

Seminars on the local cultures available for the following countries:

• Russia
• Poland
• Ukraine
• Estonia
• Latvia
• Lithuania
• Belarus
• Armenia
• Denmark
• Sweden

It is rather complex to generalize guidelines for all cultures, but there are number of DO’s and DON`T’s. Go East Consulting will enlighten and provide you with necessary tools for productive communication with your partners in a foreign market.

Target group: Management and employees

Total duration: 6x45 min (or tailored, upon an agreement, send us your request)

Subject of the course:

• A study of the particular business culture
• Managerial style
• Business environment in a social and historical context

Reasons behind:

• Soft issues in management
• Cultural know-how as an organisational capability of the company
• Cultural and communicative competences as a key-competence of human capital
• Factor of effectiveness and competitiveness of the company

Goal of the course:

• To develop competences and skills for doing business in a country in question
• Cultural competence
• Communicative competence

You will be able to:

• Increase your cross-cultural awareness of the local business culture
• Understand and adequately interpret the local managerial values, behaviours and attitudes
• Obtain skills for establishing relationships with potential business partners
• Communicate and negotiate effectively with your foreign partners