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Cross Cultural Communication Theory and Practice PDFDrive (1)
Participation styles Agenda Gaining agreement Timing Socializing Choice of language Follow-up Figure 8.2 Multicultural meetings – critical areas Preparation Good preparation is important for all meetings and for all cultures, but for some it assumes a greater degree of importance. This, for example, is the case with the Japanese, who call it ‘nemawashi’: preparing the ground. Germans put much emphasis on ‘gute Vorbereitung’ (good preparation), whereas the French often see a meeting as an intellectual exercise to test a hypothesis. The British, the Italians and the Spanish tend to do less preparation, in the worst- case scenario reading the brief on the aircraft. They will expect what is actually discussed at the meeting to be the most important aspect. With such a variety of approaches, it depends on the chairperson and the secretariat to issue the meeting papers well in advance, with requests for comments before the date of the meeting. In any case, it is most likely that at least twice as much time will be required for an international meeting as for a purely domestic meeting. At the beginning of the meeting, the reinforcement of the ‘getting to know you’ time is very important to help build relationships within the team. Clear objectives It is essential that the aims and objectives of any type of meeting, and particularly for multicultural meetings, are clear from the outset to avoid any confusion. There is a need to have a common sense of purpose. The main principle is to avoid any surprises on the actual day of the meeting. The Chinese and the Arabs, for example, in particular do not welcome any International Team Building and Teamworking 151 surprises regarding the finalized agenda. These cultures do their homework in advance of the meeting particularly carefully. Expectations In multinational meetings, expectations of outcomes can cause difficulty. It is important to understand the type of meeting and its anticipated out- come in order to ensure the right level of expectation and intervention. In British and American meetings, the aim is to obtain agreement on a range of actions, distributed after the meeting in minutes or a meeting report which lists action points, who is responsible and the dates when action has to be taken. In many Latin countries, on the other hand, the function of meetings is very often simply to gauge the mood of the group. Decisions may not be taken at the meeting, but the meeting’s atmosphere may well be taken into account in the decision making undertaken elsewhere. The French will differentiate clearly between meetings held to discuss policy, those to decide on a specific course of action and meetings to allo- cate functions and responsibilities. It is important for foreign participants to recognize these differences. In the first, the free discussion of ideas is welcomed, while in the second, it is the department directors who will decide how to proceed, and in the third they will allocate responsibilities and give instructions. Meeting layout The layout of the meeting should be as non- confrontational as possible, avoiding a strictly formal and hierarchical structure. A round- table layout is often the most suitable. There is a need for easy access to telephones, light refreshments and the entrance as some participants will come and go during proceedings. It should also be borne in mind that most Westerners require more personal space than other cultures, for example, Arabs and Africans, who will be happy to stand or sit closer together. Agenda The agenda is the most important organizing principle of the meeting, but attitudes to it can differ a great deal. For some cultures, an agenda is simply a list of things to discuss in no particular order and may even be created when the meeting actually convenes. In other countries, for example, the UK, the USA and Germany, the agenda is strictly followed as it is considered that a pre- agreed agenda circulated before the actual meeting should be adhered to in the meeting. The resulting action points which are circulated afterwards and followed up are considered the most efficient way of running a meeting. Such an approach may cause frustration among participants who need to have a more wide- ranging discussion at greater length and depth. The agenda should be sent out in draft form well before the meeting and, once agreed, should contain no surprises on the day of the meeting. 152 Cross-Cultural Communication The agenda must have a structure which includes the key points, but it must be flexible enough to allow time for discussion and summarizing. The agenda must be logical, with individual items as specific as possible. This is very important as some cultures (for example, Arabs) have a circular attitude towards an agenda with a tendency to jump from one item to another. Sufficient time should be left for summarizing and discussion of ‘any other business’, although care is needed if such discussion includes points which cause concern or surprise as they have not been included in the main agenda. Timing Apart from taking into account different time zones and travel time, multi- cultural meetings should avoid religious days. Misunderstandings about time can cause major problems, with participants having to leave early because of other commitments or arriving late. Other important considerations include different cultural views regarding punctuality and those cultures who con- sider it generally acceptable to leave a meeting to make telephone calls or to attend to other matters if the discussion is considered not immediately relevant to them. A possible solution is to have breaks at regular intervals for refreshments, informal discussion and telephone calls. Another area to be considered is that of internal timing, particularly if it is decided on a ‘timed agenda’. According to this area, a limited time is allotted to each topic. If this time is exceeded, the discussion is halted by the chair and the meeting moves on to the next point. This can be extremely frustrating for participants who feel the need for lengthier discussion. The scheduled end time can be equally controversial as, for example, the French believe that a meeting should continue until all items have been satisfacto- rily dealt with, whereas other cultures such as the Swiss and the Germans make a point of keeping to exact times. Download 1.51 Mb. Do'stlaringiz bilan baham: |
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