GUESS WHO'S COMING TO VISIT!
Here are My Top Ten Culture Tips Everyone Hosting Visitors from Abroad Needs to Know.
Spring will soon be here in the northern hemisphere, and the first real season of the year for business conferences will be upon us. If you’re in business, you know you’ll likely be running into associates and colleagues from abroad at these events. And you might even be hosting them. After all, business today, regardless of your location in the world, is instantly global. Every day we are crossing cultures; on the phone, on the screen, in emails, and in person. And often, the “in person” part means you will receive people from other cultures who have traveled in for a meeting, conference, or reception in your hometown. Depending on their culture, you may need to do things a little differently in order for that meeting, conference, or reception to be the success you want it to be. And no matter the reason for the visit, you’ll want to show your guests understanding and sensitivity to differences, right?
So here are my Top Ten Tips for insuring that you are the perfect host when your colleagues, associates and friends from abroad come to visit you on your home turf. In no particular order, each tip addresses a particular culture’s hosting concerns, beginning with a great tip when hosting visitors from China:
Tip #10: Make sure the hotel your Chinese guests are staying at does not book them in a room on the fourth floor. In China, most hotels do not have a fourth floor, as the #4 is very unlucky (similar to #13 in the west). Better yet, make sure there is no #4 in their room number at all. Don’t schedule meetings for 4pm, or on the 4th day of the month. Alternately, #8 is VERY lucky, so ask the hotel to put your guests on the 8th floor, in the 8th room, and schedule your meeting for 8am on the 8th day of the month.
Tip #9: Your Saudi colleagues will definitely NOT appreciate that delicious pulled pork barbecue, or bacon and eggs breakfast (make sure no pork is served at any meal, even if it is in a buffet), nor will they be comfortable with wine or alcohol at the cocktail reception (some Muslim cultures are more flexible with these rules, but Saudis typically are not). Never serve or pass food (or pass important documents) with your left hand to any Muslim, as the left hand is considered unclean (the left hand was traditionally used for personal hygiene). It is important that wait staff in the hotels know this! Do not schedule important meetings for Friday, as Friday is the Muslim Sabbath, and do not schedule visits during the holy month of Ramadan, when most observant Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset (a challenge to getting any serious work done during the day).
Tip #8: Make sure that when your Japanese (or Thai, Malay or Filippino) guests are entering the car or taxi …
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