The client
The client, a professional services firm, believes that work can be both joyful and productive. They work side by side with optimistic, forward-thinking leaders to unlock the capacity of their organizations through improved collaboration.
Whether it’s through developing the skills of individuals, designing new operating models, enhancing the health and effectiveness of teams, or coaching leaders, they help companies create new ways of working that produce better business outcomes and enhance the human experience of work. Based in Chicago, but they work with clients all over the globe.
The challenge
The client ran a two-day training program for one of their clients and requested Global Business Culture to design and conduct a cultural awareness session focused on US and Indian cultures. The program’s main objective was to equip the participants with knowledge and understanding of US and Indian business cultures, helping them work and integrate more effectively with each other.
India has a unique business culture; on the surface, there are more visible Western processes and strategies on paper, but a very different approach to conducting business in real life can often be observed. Most US-based companies find some of these business practices different, such as:
- Leadership styles
- Effective communication
- Setting up and integrating Teams
- Effective team-working
- Decision making
- Handling Conflicts
- Feedback styles
- Initiatives taking
Why Global Business Culture?
Global Business Culture has over 30 years of experience in delivering cultural integration
projects between Western countries and India. We have consultants with first-hand experience in setting up and executing cultural integration projects. Trainer Navkaran Singh is a UK-based intercultural management consultant with over 12 years of experience. He is certified in both national culture and company culture management.
Navkaran Singh has worked with many global organizations across the USA, Europe, and Asia, and he is highly regarded by organizations for his knowledge and experience in setting up multicultural teams involving India.
What we did
The Global Business Culture team conducted interviews with staff to understand the business context, requirements, and expectations. Having analysed the feedback, we designed a two-hour awareness session. This virtual session was facilitated over Zoom, with most participants seated in the same physical room and some joining virtually.
The results
Through the workshop, participants:
- Learned how cultural programming is acquired and its impact on our actions, what culture is, the visible and invisible parts of culture, and its impact on working in a new country.
- Learned and gained greater about the impact of national cultural differences on daily business activities
- Learned about the synergies and differences between the US and Indian business cultures
- Learned how to assess cultural differences and create a culturally sensitive business practices
