Division

Home

10.09.2010

A A+ A++

Photo of the moment

Down town Gabrovo

Visits

Today: 1
Total: 91517

Use navigation panel

Country Specific profiling

COUNTRY SPECIFIC PROFILING

The rationale of this module lies in the frequent necessity in the business world to find essential information about a potential business partner from a country with which there has been no earlier contact. When establishing contacts with partners from a new country businessmen need to be able to find out socio-historical facts, to learn about religion, gender situation, daily living, business culture and, importantly, potential pitfalls for a national of their own country. Details of the recommended areas of research are strongly based on the results of the surveys conducted for the CEReS project.

Aims and objectives

to provide students with research skills of learning about the essentials of foreign countries as potential business partners;
to provide trainees with methodology of country profiling and research practice;
to identify important areas of knowledge about a foreign country in the business context.

Class contact time: 3 hrs

Study time: 7 hrs

Methodology

The initial lecture refers to the importance of the ability to find significant socio-cultural facts about another culture, to reflect upon them and compare with one’s own culture. This aspect of intercultural competence focuses on learning about the Other and developing understanding of one’s own identity in a dialogic perspective.

The illustrative material is provided by the video/dvd collection based on the CEReS interviews which contains a selection of presentations of business people from five countries, their dress code and body language, a small sample of various accents in English and the physical environment in which they work. The video contains also fragments of the interviews in which the respondents talk about what, in their opinion, it is essential to know about a foreign country.

During their own study time students prepare presentations of two countries following the areas listed in the Contents section of the syllabus. Research is done individually or in small teams (depending on the number of students in the group). Students use resources such as the internet, libraries (books as well as feature films and documentaries) and, if possible, interviews with the people who lived and/or worked in the studied country. The countries to be studied should be suggested by the teacher.

During the second series of class time students present their findings to their classmates.

Content

Basic information about history, geography, political system. The aim is to perceive historical and geographical background of the country in its impact on the present, especially on business practice.
Economic standards and business culture: size of companies, level of internationalization of companies, issues of status and formality, knowledge of foreign languages and use of translators, payment styles, decision-making process, ways of closing deals (formal documents or handshake style), ways of entertaining business partners etc.
Religion and holidays: it is essential to learn basic facts about main denominations and particularly about the attitude to religion, while preparing a list of national holidays and other free days is extremely useful (many respondents in the CEReS research indicated this as an absolute necessity).
Taboos (e.g. in the realm of religion, morality, clothes, conversation topics etc.)
Personal communication in the areas of dress code, punctuality and gifts.
Glossary of key polite phrases; learning a few words in the language spoken in the studied country: “hello”, “good morning / evening”, “goodbye”, “thank you”.
How is one’s own country perceived by the studied nationals of another culture; how much can they be expected to know about us and what stereotypes they might have.
Respected persons: each country cherishes individuals who are particularly respected. Knowing about them helps to make a good impression on partners and break the ice in initial contacts.

Learning outcomes

Knowledge:

critical reading, differentiating fact from opinion, understanding cultural norms;
learning about other cultures from the perspective of establishing business contacts.

Skills:

developing affective attitude of empathy;
“learning to learn” skill;
presentation skills (in the form of oral presentation and preparing a portfolio of materials serving as a culture pack);
ability to analyze qualitative and quantitative data and document sources of information and to build profiles.

Assessment

Students are assessed on the basis of an oral presentation and a portfolio (culture pack).

Essential reading

J. Mole Mind Your Manners: Managing Business Culture in the New Global Europe (Intercultural Press, 2003): selected chapters (according to the needs of the learners)