Cultural Differences & Cultural Diversity in International Business

About This Week's Guest Lisette Sutherland Lisette Sutherland is the Director at CollaborationSuperpowers.com, a company that helps teams work together from anywhere. She is also a Founder of Happy Melly, a company helping to globalize companies that are improving the lives of knowledge workers. With over 10 years of experience with web-based collaboration tools and online community management, her goal is to get the best people working together regardless of location. Lisette Sutherland gives three tips to become more culturally competent: Slow down. Ask what you don't know. Although you might not know what you don't know (a blind spot) still ask questions and more questions. When working virtually, you can create a Holiday Calendar. Holidays are important in every country and this way you can find out more about the other culture by asking why the holiday is and how it is celebrated. Create a "Personal Map"; like a mind map, but then you put your name in the middle. Around your name, you write things about yourself. But you don't explain it yourself, you let your virtual team members ask what they see. This is a great way to get to know each other and do virtual team building. Create a virtual water cooler or  "Kitty Talk" (this is explained in the podcast). This means that you simply pick a time when you all meet online and just chat. Not about work per se. This can be about everything. Interview Links Links that are mentioned in this episode: Twitter: @lightling Website: http://www.collaborationsuperpowers.com/ Build Your Cultural Competence In the Culture Matters podcast, we interview real people with real stories. Every other week there is a guest with broad international experience and lots of cultural insights. I interview real people with real stories. To subscribe directly using iTunes or Stitcher, Click here, or here (or click any of the images below). How To Get In Touch With Culture Matters I'd love for you to get in touch. There are a couple of ways you can do this: Via this website: Just use the “Ask Your Question” tab on the right of the screen and leave a voicemail Email me at chris.smit@culturematters.com Send me a Tweet: @chrissmit Finally Thank you so much for taking the time to read this far, and to listen to my Podcast. I hope you will be back for the next episode of the Culture Matters Podcast!

Cultural Differences for Startups About This Week's Guest Trajan King on Cultural Differences for Startups Trajan has worked and lived in 6 countries, speaks a handful of languages, and works for clients worldwide. He's consulted for Apple, Adobe, Yahoo!, eBay, IBM, and others.  He currently runs a membership community for entrepreneurs, InvincibleStartup.com. After starting over 15 companies, running a couple of multi-million dollar companies, and working on both Wall Street and Silicon Valley, he helps companies worldwide grow and earn more money. He's consulted for Apple, Adobe, Yahoo!, eBay, IBM, and others. He currently runs a membership community for entrepreneurs, InvincibleStartup.com. After starting over 15 companies, running a couple of multi-million dollar companies, and working on both Wall Street and Silicon Valley, he helps companies worldwide grow and earn more money. He currently runs a membership community for entrepreneurs, InvincibleStartup.com starting over 15 companies, running a couple of multi-million dollar companies, working on both Wall Street and Silicon Valley, he helps companies worldwide grow and earn more money. After starting over 15 companies, running a couple of multi-million dollar companies, and working on both Wall Street and Silicon Valley, he helps companies worldwide grow and earn more money. His three tips to become more culturally competent are: Meet people from different cultures and take an interest in them. See what you can learn from them first. Don't just watch the news and make your own judgment from this. Watch different sources of news, watch a YouTube video on the culture, and open an English newspaper site from that specific country. Learn a bit of the language. It shows respect and even if you get it wrong people will appreciate you for it. Interview Links Links that are mentioned in this episode: Twitter: @trajanking Website: http://inviciblestartup.com Do's and Don'ts in International Business Six things that can go wrong in international business Build Your Cultural Competence In the Culture Matters podcast, we interview real people with real stories. Every other week there is a guest with broad international experience and lots of cultural insights. I interview real people with real stories. To subscribe directly using iTunes or Stitcher, Click here, or here (or click any of the images below). How To Get In Touch With Culture Matters I'd love for you to get in touch. There are a couple of ways you can do this: Via this website: Just use the “Ask Your Question” tab on the right of the screen and leave a voicemail Email me at chris.smit@culturematters.com Send me a Tweet: @chrissmit Finally Thank you so much for taking the time to read this far, and to listen to my Podcast. I hope you will be back for the next episode of the Culture Matters Podcast! Cultural Differences for Startups on Culture Matters

Don't Mention the Word Culture When You Talk About Culture; Tim Kuppler About This Week's Guest Tim Kuppler Tim is the Director of Culture & Organization Development with Human Synergistics. He also founded CultureUniversity.com which features insights from top culture experts. He led major performance and culture transformations regionally and globally as an automotive supplier executive so he has loads of practical experience.  He now collaborates with many cultural experts and focuses on driving meaningful change in the world through cultural awareness, education, and action. His three tips to become more culturally competent are: Understand Culture Fundamentals from the top experts in the world. Commit to a personal and organizational learning journey. If you're changing your organizational culture it is not a one-time effort. You have to connect your first initiatives to either a top problem, challenge, or goal. Interview Links Links that are mentioned in this episode: Email: http://www.cultureuniversity.com/contact-us/ Website: http://cultureuniversity.com Human Synergistics Website: www.HumanSynergistics.com Human Synergistics Blog: www.ConstructiveCulture.com More on this, here. Build Your Cultural Competence In the Culture Matters podcast, we interview real people with real stories. Every other week there is a guest with broad international experience and lots of cultural insights. I interview real people with real stories. To subscribe directly using iTunes or Stitcher, Click here, or here (or click any of the images below). How To Get In Touch With Culture Matters I'd love for you to get in touch. There are a couple of ways you can do this: Via this website: Just use the “Ask Your Question” tab on the right of the screen and leave a voicemail Email me at chris.smit@culturematters.com Send me a Tweet: @chrissmit Finally Thank you so much for taking the time to read this far, and to listen to my Podcast. I hope you will be back for the next episode of the Culture Matters Podcast!

About This Week's Guest Jeanne Boden Jeanne Boden is Managing Director at ChinaConduct, a company specializing in training and coaching European, Chinese, and people from around the globe in EU-China cooperation and communication. As a Belgian/European Jeanne Boden holds a PhD. in Oriental Languages and Cultures. She spent many years in China studying, conducting research, and working in many contexts and positions all over China, including Hong Kong and Taiwan. Her five! tips to become more culturally competent are: Become aware of the difference between your culture and the Chinese culture; although you should realize that there is no magic wand to do this. Study not only the culture but also the context where your business will take place. Who are the people? Where do they come from? What is the company like? The region that you're doing business... etc. Experience the culture. Here and there. Know the reality. Not only working long distances but also when you're there. Go out and get lost and learn and enjoy that experience. Don't be naive about the other culture. It is not that you should either admire or deny it. Cultural differences are always "grey". Connect to people, both when you're there and also when they are here. Interview Links Links that are mentioned in this episode: Website: http://chinaconduct.com Email: info@chinaconduct.com An article about how to "behave" in an international environment can be found here. Build Your Cultural Competence In the Culture Matters podcast, we interview real people with real stories. Every other week there is a guest with broad international experience and lots of cultural insights. I interview real people with real stories. To subscribe directly using iTunes or Stitcher, Click here, or here (or click any of the images below). How To Get In Touch With Culture Matters I'd love for you to get in touch. There are a couple of ways you can do this: Via this website: Just use the “Ask Your Question” tab on the right of the screen and leave a voicemail Email me at chris.smit@culturematters.com Send me a Tweet: @chrissmit Finally Thank you so much for taking the time to read this far, and to listen to my Podcast. I hope you will be back for the next episode of the Culture Matters Podcast! Another article about China and the Chinese can be found here.

Third Culture Kid About This Week's Guest Third Culture Kid with Tayo Rockson The CEO of UYD Media and host of the As Told By Nomads podcast. His three tips to become more culturally competent are: Be curious. Explore what is out there. Explore what you don't know or think you don't know. Travel. By travelling you expand your world like nothing else can. He also suggests to get lost on purpose. This way you will meet and interact with people you otherwise would have never met. Be open-minded. Tayo thinks it is dangerous to think that your way of thinking and judging is the only and absolute way. There are other ways as well. For sure. Interview Links Links that are mentioned in this episode: Email:  tayorockson@uydmag.com Website: http://www.uydmedia.com Twitter: http://twitter.com/tayorockson Build Your Cultural Competence In the Culture Matters podcast, we interview real people with real stories. Every other week there is a guest with broad international experience and lots of cultural insights. I interview real people with real stories. To subscribe directly using iTunes or Stitcher, Click here, or here (or click any of the images below). How To Get In Touch With Culture Matters I'd love for you to get in touch. There are a couple of ways you can do this: Via this website: Just use the “Ask Your Question” tab on the right of the screen and leave a voicemail Email me at chris.smit@culturematters.com Send me a Tweet: @chrissmit Finally Thank you so much for taking the time to read this far, and to listen to my Podcast. I hope you will be back for the next episode of the Culture Matters Podcast! Third Culture Kid on Culture Matters

About This Week's Guest: Sundae Bean Sundae Bean is an executive coach, intercultural specialist, and trainer. She supports organizations by helping their employees and the accompanying families live well and work successfully across cultures – without losing their sense of adventure. She is American by birth, Swiss by marriage, and an expat in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso by choice. Her three tips to become more culturally competent are: Understand what your own cultural values are. You need to understand them first to make sense of what the "other" is doing. Get curious about the other culture(s). Ask yourself if it is really true what you think, feel, see, and/or experience. Make sure you are well-balanced. What I mean by this is that you need to be physically healthy and well rested, because experiencing intense cultural differences can take not only a mental toll but also a physical toll. Interview Links Links that are mentioned in this episode: Website: http://sundaebean.com/ Build Your Cultural Competence In the Culture Matters podcast, we interview real people with real stories. Every other week there is a guest with broad international experience and lots of cultural insights. I interview real people with real stories. To subscribe directly using iTunes or Stitcher, Click here, or here (or click any of the images below). How To Get In Touch With Culture Matters I'd love for you to get in touch. There are a couple of ways you can do this: Via this website: Just use the “Ask Your Question” tab on the right of the screen and leave a voicemail Email me at chris.smit@culturematters.com Send me a Tweet: @chrissmit Finally Thank you so much for taking the time to read this far, and to listen to my Podcast. I hope you will be back for the next episode of the Culture Matters Podcast!

Anna Maria Darmanin About This Week's Guest Anna Maria Darmanin Anna Maria is an entrepreneur, a policy adviser, a sailor, and a University lecturer where she teaches Intercultural Communication. A Maltese, who lives in different places at different times of the year: Belgium, Canary Islands, Sicily, and Malta. Her three tips to become more culturally competent are: Listen, listen, listen; and this is more than hearing. What is the other saying? Do you truly understand what the other actually means? If not, ask. Be more aware of your own culture. Your own culture colors how you see the others. As the Chinese saying goes: "When you and I look at the same river, we both see a different one". Respect the differences you face when communicating interculturally. Interview Links Links that are mentioned in this episode: LinkedIn Twitter Facebook Build Your Cultural Competence In the Culture Matters podcast, we interview real people with real stories. Every other week there is a guest with broad international experience and lots of cultural insights. I interview real people with real stories. To subscribe directly using iTunes or Stitcher, Click here, or here (or click any of the images below). How To Get In Touch With Culture Matters I'd love for you to get in touch. There are a couple of ways you can do this: Via this website: Just use the “Ask Your Question” tab on the right of the screen and leave a voicemail Email me at chris.smit@culturematters.com Send me a Tweet: @chrissmit Finally Thank you so much for taking the time to read this far, and to listen to my Podcast. I hope you will be back for the next episode of the Culture Matters Podcast!

Pricing and Cultural Differences Why Doing Business is Never About the Price Possibly a bold statement, but I still believe it is true: doing business is hardly ever about the price. It is much more about emotions and... about people or the perception that we have of other people. Here we talk about Pricing and Cultural Differences. Many business decisions made are not about the price. They are much more about emotions. And emotions... are culturally motivated. Listen to the podcast and let me know what you think. An article about how to "behave" in an international environment can be found here. Build Your Cultural Competence In the Culture Matters podcast, we interview real people with real stories. Every other week there is a guest with broad international experience and lots of cultural insights. I interview real people with real stories. To subscribe directly using iTunes or Stitcher, Click here, or here (or click any of the images below). How To Get In Touch With Culture Matters I'd love for you to get in touch. There are a couple of ways you can do this: Via this website: Just use the “Ask Your Question” tab on the right of the screen and leave a voicemail Email me at chris.smit@culturematters.com Send me a Tweet: @chrissmit Finally Thank you so much for taking the time to read this far, and to listen to my Podcast. I hope you will be back for the next episode of the Culture Matters Podcast!

Why Culture Plays a Role in Sports About This Week's Guest Susan Salzbrenner Susan Salzbrenner supports multicultural teams, professional athletes, and leaders of today and tomorrow to navigate diverse cultural contexts. In this podcast, she explains the role that culture plays a role in sports. She is an organizational psychologist, consultant, and trainer, focusing on diversity & inclusion, cultural intelligence, and international talent development. She's lived in 6 countries on four continents, has learned (and failed at) many languages, and played a bit of basketball along the way. Her three tips for becoming more culturally competent follow the acronym FIT F: Find new perspectives. Observe stuff that is new to you; actively look for new and unfamiliar things I: Integrate what you have found into your own life and personality T: Trust the process; don't be impatient. It will happen but might need time. Interview Links Links that are mentioned in this episode: Twitter: @fitaxcultures Website: http://fitacrosscultures.com The book Play Abroad 1-0-1 Build Your Cultural Competence In the Culture Matters podcast, we interview real people with real stories. Every other week there is a guest with broad international experience and lots of cultural insights. I interview real people with real stories. To subscribe directly using iTunes or Stitcher, Click here, or here (or click any of the images below). How To Get In Touch With Culture Matters I'd love for you to get in touch. There are a couple of ways you can do this: Via this website: Just use the “Ask Your Question” tab on the right of the screen and leave a voicemail Email me at chris.smit@culturematters.com Send me a Tweet: @chrissmit Finally Thank you so much for taking the time to read this far, and to listen to my Podcast. I hope you will be back for the next episode of the Culture Matters Podcast! Culture plays a role in sports on Culture Matters.