Who: Everyone should learn how to conduct and manage themselves during conversations with people of other nationalities. In an increasingly globalised society, we can expect people to be from different parts of the world and thus they will conduct business differently than people from a different culture. This is especially important for business leaders who travel outside of their home company, as they will be dealing with people from other cultures.
What: Learning about differences at work involves researching other nationalities and how their people conduct themselves in meetings and other business settings. This may range from eating etiquette to business cards to some knowledge of the language.
When: It is never too late to learn about differences in culture, and everyone should do it. However, it is especially important to learn the culture when there is an international meeting coming up, or when you plan to expand the product into the international market.
Where: Learning of the culture can be done anywhere, however, sometimes it is best learned through experience (travelling to the country you are interested in).
Why: If differences in cultures are not understood when talking with someone from a different culture, there may be detrimental consequences. For example, if a business slogan is translated into another language, and research was not done as to its translation, the resulting wording could have a different meaning than what was intended. There is the possibility to lose out on markets or potential business partners if consideration is not taken in learning aspects of the culture and language.
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