It’s all about perspective!
This week many of us, not just here in Scotland but worldwide, will have celebrated Burns Night! Pretty impressive considering Rabbie Burns died over 300 years ago. He wrote some wise words too.
Having the ability to take a step back and look at a scenario from different perspectives, be that a face to face or online meeting, negotiation, phone call or just a casual chat, is a valuable skill in any environment. In an international business environment, it can be even more significant.
How many times have you talked to someone about a film that you loved, and discovered they hated it? Two different interpretations or preferences. Both valid points of view. You may well come away amazed though that the other person has interpreted the storyline differently to how you did.
In a multicultural business environment, we regularly see businesses that struggle in a new market simply because individuals are interpreting issues that arise from only one perspective. Their own.
Large multinationals have worked in a global market for decades, however it is only recently that it has become so easy for small companies to work internationally. A soletrader can have clients in numerous countries that they connect with on a daily basis via an online communication tool such as teams.
In our case, a small business based in Aberdeen, Scotland, we might well come out of one online meeting in Kazakhstan and move straight onto another video call with company in Argentina. Two very different cultures, in the space of an hour. And we haven’t left our desks!
If you don’t have the cultural knowledge and competence to work in these complex environments, you will quite likely struggle. That is why cultural awareness is so important in any international business. We need to understand and acknowledge different perspectives. We need the tools to know how to avoid misunderstandings that can very easily lead to unnecessary conflict, even loss of business.
It is an important skill that many companies are only beginning to recognise the importance of, however maybe Rabbie Burns was ahead of his times. He seemed to appreciate that “seeing ourselves as others see us” is a great gift.
If we are working with a client entering a new market, for example in LATAM region, our knowledge of the area allows us to introduce other perspectives that might be worth considering. It can be as simple as the way someone has behaved in a meeting, what has been said (or not said, but misunderstood). We provide coaching and workshops in developing intercultural skills for international business for management and personnel at all levels. We can work with you to tailor our courses to meet your requirements, depending on your scope of work and issues you see in your own business environment.
And in the meantime just remember that not everyone sees the world exactly as you do. That is ok. Diversity makes us Unique. Learn to understand and respect differences and find ways to seek common ground.
