How do you get your contract signed?
Cultural courses, awareness and cross-culture training dramatically increase your personal and business effectiveness when doing business with India.
In business, time is of the essence and a lack of cultural awareness can create significant delays – and even loss of contracts when dealing with business people in India. They may speak our language - in fact some speak it better than we do – but their history and traditions are very different.
If you want your team to hit the ground running, then they’ll need the cultural awareness to work in the Indian marketplace effectively. If they experience cross-culture training, they will be able to achieve more in less time and without committing any cultural errors – that could result in the contract going elsewhere.
Cultural awareness is the key to successful business relationships – and in India business is based on relationships. It’s essential that your company’s representatives know how to build those essential relationships – and the quickest way to do this is to undertake cultural courses with experts who have lived and worked in India and have an in-depth knowledge of how the Indians do business.
Even though India has a history of western education, and many young people in India today have been educated wholly or partly in either the US or the UK, the roots of their traditions go very deep. Despite the cultural change that is happening, it’s important that your team know how to work on the two levels of modern business and ancient tradition – without committing any errors of judgement.
Cross-culture training encompasses everything from use of language, religion, traditions, business etiquette, accepting hospitality, business processes and contractual cultural awareness to meeting your business contact’s family! Don’t be surprised if you’re invited to join the family for dinner – the family will come first for most Indians, and it’s a good sign when you’re invited to join them; an invitation that it would be a mistake to refuse. Cultural courses help you to learn what to eat – and what not to eat – and the means of ensuring that you don’t offend your hosts in any way.
The knowledge that is acquired on cross cultural training is not only useful when travelling to India on business, it’s equally useful when doing business with Indian business people in our own country. To pay the visiting business person the respect of acknowledging and understanding their traditions and way of doing business by demonstrating cultural awareness may be the deciding factor in sealing a partnership that will benefit both parties for many years.
If you are working with an Indian business partner, or establishing an office in India, you will also come across the issues of cross-cultural management. The right training will help to ensure that every team member is able to operate at the optimum level.
Whether you are planning an exploratory trip, sending a negotiating team to close a contract (and that’s another completely different set of techniques in India), discussing a joint venture or partnership or welcoming potential clients or suppliers to Europe, your cultural awareness may be the decision maker for the other party. Can you afford not to undertake cross-cultural training? Don’t miss the opportunities that this rapidly developing business arena offers. Find out more now. |
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