Standard Bank overcomes culture sho

Standard Bank overcomes culture shock
It is increasingly common for multinational businesses to send employees on international assignments but without the right cross-cultural skills staff will often struggle. Wayne Mullen, head of learning and development at Standard Bank discusses the impact that cultural challenges can have on employees relocating to another country. In order to be successful transferred employees must understand the host-country culture, he argues.
Colleagues from different countries might share similar professional knowledge and skills within a single international organization, but their ways of working, social skills, body language and ways of doing business are likely to be completely different. They may have different patterns of behavior which need to be understood and appreciated in order for everyone to work together successfully. For example, while it may be acceptable for Chinese office workers in Hong Kong to use the door-close button on a lift no matter how many people are also getting in, doing such a thing in London would make people extremely angry. It is common for South Africans to ask personal questions of their counterparts shortly after being introduced, while a British colleague may perceive this as impolite and inappropriate. Latin American’s need for personal space is much less than of their British colleagues.
Global companies should never underestimate the effect that culture can have on international assignments. Cultural awareness is much more than simply knowing about a country’s history and geography. It is about understanding how and why cultures work differently. It is also important to understand your own cultural make-up in order to work more effectively, maximize teamwork and strengthen global competence.
"The bank recognised that in order to harmonise working practices within its culturally diverse office, it needed to provide foreign workers with a meaningful understanding of British business culture and communication styles."
The Standard Bank Group operates in 38 different countries and its London office alone has 56 nationalities. This wide range of nationalities needs to communicate effectively in order to work as one team. The bank recognized that in order to harmonize working practices within its culturally diverse office, it needed to provide foreign workers with a meaningful understanding of British business culture and communication styles. It also needed to offer practical support which allowed employees to cope with the challenges of living and working in an unfamiliar environment; their reactions to day-to-day issues such as the weather, public transport and social etiquette are often the most visible manifestations of culture shock.
Standard Bank has engaged Communicaid,a Europeans culture and communication skills consultancy, to design a tailored training solution which introduces delegates to some of the key cultural differences that they are likely to face in the UK.

Resultados (español) 1:

Standard Bank supera choque culturalEs cada vez más común para las empresas multinacionales enviar empleados en las asignaciones internacionales pero sin el personal habilidades derecho intercultural tendrá que luchar a menudo. Wayne Mullen, jefe de aprendizaje y desarrollo en el Standard Bank analiza el impacto que pueden tener desafíos culturales en empleados trasladarse a otro país. Con el fin de ser exitosa empleados transferidos deben comprender la cultura del país anfitrión, argumenta.Colegas de diferentes países podrían compartir similares conocimientos profesionales y aptitudes dentro de una organización internacional única, pero sus formas de trabajo, habilidades sociales, lenguaje corporal y formas de hacer negocios están probable que sean completamente diferentes. Pueden tener diferentes patrones de comportamiento que necesitan ser comprendidos y apreciados en orden para que todos puedan trabajar juntos con éxito. Por ejemplo, aunque puede ser aceptable para trabajadores en Hong Kong para utilizar el botón cerrar de la puerta en un ascensor sin importar cuántas personas también están recibiendo en la oficina de China, haciendo tal cosa en Londres haría personas muy enojado. Es común que los sudafricanos a preguntas personales de sus colegas poco después de ser introducido, mientras que un colega británico puede percibir esto como inadecuado y mala educación. De América Latina es necesidad de espacio personal mucho menos de sus colegas británicos.Global companies should never underestimate the effect that culture can have on international assignments. Cultural awareness is much more than simply knowing about a country’s history and geography. It is about understanding how and why cultures work differently. It is also important to understand your own cultural make-up in order to work more effectively, maximize teamwork and strengthen global competence."The bank recognised that in order to harmonise working practices within its culturally diverse office, it needed to provide foreign workers with a meaningful understanding of British business culture and communication styles."The Standard Bank Group operates in 38 different countries and its London office alone has 56 nationalities. This wide range of nationalities needs to communicate effectively in order to work as one team. The bank recognized that in order to harmonize working practices within its culturally diverse office, it needed to provide foreign workers with a meaningful understanding of British business culture and communication styles. It also needed to offer practical support which allowed employees to cope with the challenges of living and working in an unfamiliar environment; their reactions to day-to-day issues such as the weather, public transport and social etiquette are often the most visible manifestations of culture shock.Standard Bank has engaged Communicaid,a Europeans culture and communication skills consultancy, to design a tailored training solution which introduces delegates to some of the key cultural differences that they are likely to face in the UK.