When Two Cultures Meet
By Alice Arandia
Our cultural background influences our basic assumptions and values. In simple terms, it affects “the way we do things around here”.
When two cultures, or more, meet, that can lead to all sorts of misunderstandings as what seems normal to one group of people may seem very abnormal to another. I say this from first-hand experience, not only living and working in different countries and many distinct cultures but being married to someone who grew up in a very different culture to mine, the other side of the world, in Latin America.
It does surprise me though, how little thought I gave to cultural differences all those years ago. Maybe it was the naivety of my youth. I know however that the understanding and appreciation I have gained over the years of cultural differences has helped me both in my personal life and in business. There are factors we cannot, and should not, ignore. One of the biggest mistakes we can make is not acknowledging cultural differences. That does not mean that we should consider any culture superior or inferior to another. Just different.
It has been a busy few weeks for Finch Global. Luis joined us as Managing Director, we moved into new offices, and we gained some new clients. It’s all good and I am very excited to see the business grow.
Luis brought with him a wealth of knowledge, energy, and that infamous Latino flare for business. I am enjoying watching him at work... he’s unstoppable; on the phone most of the day, talking to his large network of contacts, drumming up business for us left, right and centre, and quickly giving clients new perspectives on opportunities that they hadn’t seen before. Of course, I’ve seen these skills develop over many years, from his early days running a business in Bolivia, to working in senior roles for multinational oil and gas companies, including expat positions in 4 different continents. I’ve watched this closely as I am also married to this man. We worked together way back in the 90s too, so this isn’t a new experience for us, but it has been a while.
Many would (and do) say that we are crazy. How can you work with your spouse? Well, there are challenges, but it can also work very well. Maybe, in our case, it is down to our cultural differences.
Luis’ meetings and calls are long... he can talk for hours, and I am often frustrated by how the conversations veer off on tangents, apparently unrelated to the business in question. In contrast my meetings are driven by agendas, by an ‘agile approach’ to business. And yes, of course we clash: I will inevitably complain that his calls have dragged on too long, and he will complain that mine were too short, I missed something. But you know what... at the end of the day, we complement each other. Sometimes I do see how those long calls gather information that I would never have gleaned from clients, and he has also come to agree that sometimes you have to curtail conversations in order to achieve all you want to in the day. After all these years neither of us are stereotypical examples of our cultural. We have been influenced by each other’s cultures, as well as all the cultures we have lived and worked in. That has undoubtedly enriched us as people, and in business.
It is incredibly important in business not to underestimate the importance of cultural differences. When you are talking to a client in Latin America, relationships are very important. Those long-drawn-out chats, where you deviate onto random topics of interest will build a trust and loyalty between you and your client that will lead to business in the long run. If you are unwilling to invest in this part, you are unlikely to develop your business in Latin America.
And I turn that advice around for Latin Americans trying to do business in the UK. Here we tend to prefer getting to the point; sticking to agendas, and wrapping up our meetings on time, with all points covered as effectively as possible.
Some might think we miss out on vital information, while others would say we get more done in the day. Its simply different perspectives. And that is exactly what cultural differences are – our beliefs, values and behaviours seen from different perspectives.
