Why is proficiency in Cross-cultural Awareness important? Having cross-cultural teams creates new opportunities and brings a diversity of skills to global organisations. However, interactions between individuals with different cultural backgrounds also comes with the potential for many challenges and risks which need to be addressed.

Our perception of time, concept of hierarchy, and tendency to work either alone or in a group are just a few things that are influenced by our culture. Cross-cultural team members need to be able to analyse and understand the impact of their own values on those who may have different cultural backgrounds. They must be able to work across cultures and adapt accordingly to the cross-cultural values and attitudes of their international team members. This adaptation process takes time and requires a high level of cultural awareness and competence. A lack of cross-cultural awareness may result in cultural incidents and misunderstandings which will ultimately hinder the team’s output and performances.

Tailored to your individual and organisations unique requirements, an IBAGlobal Cross-Cultural Awareness training course will fully equip your employees. They will walk away with enhanced cross-cultural skills and a raised awareness of possible cultural issues they may face when working with those from different backgrounds. These new cross-cultural competences will help members of your international teams to work, communicate, and interact more effectively. This will give them a better chance to reach their targets and achieve success.

Benefits

IBA Global’s Cross-Cultural Awareness training course will provide you with:

• An enhanced cross-cultural awareness
• Relevant cross-cultural tools to help you work more effectively across cultures
• A complete overviewof the potential challenges threatening cross-cultural teams
• Strategies to improve communication on cross-cultural teams
• A cross-cultural mindset that will facilitate interactions across cultures

Who should attend?

IBA Global’s Cross-cultural Awareness training course will be of benefit to you if:

• You are working on a cross-cultural team
• You and your staff are increasingly working with colleagues in other countries
• Your staff is becoming more culturally diverse
• You are involved in multinational projects and programmes

Course content

All our Cross-cultural Awareness training courses are designed to meet the specific needs of our clients depending on their specific requirements and existing skill set. A Cross-cultural Awareness training course typically includes:

• What is cultural awareness and what are the key cross-cultural skills required for effective international working?
• Cultural values and attitudes and their impact on cross-cultural working
• Communication: cross-cultural styles and expectations on multicultural teams
• Virtual communication: practical challenges and strategies
• How to enable trust within a cross-cultural team
• Best practices to handle cross-cultural clashes and conflicts
• Guidelines to create a “third culture” to improve team cohesion
• Action planning and skills development: Developing cross-cultural awareness skills
• Is it culture or language? Identifying the issue and dealing with it

Approach

Cross-cultural Awareness training courses are available seven days a week, 365 days a year, either at one of our training centres or at your offices in any location worldwide. We usually recommend a one or two day course but can also offer a more flexible format to suit your schedule.

Suitably tailored Cross-cultural Awareness training course materials will be used throughout your Cross-cultural Awareness training course and your trainer will provide a balance of structured input and discussion of case studies and scenarios relevant to your own particular context. The most appropriate training format, content and approach for your Cross-cultural Awareness training course will be discussed during your diagnostic consultancy.

Cross-cultural Awareness Training course trainer

Your Cross-cultural Awareness training course trainer will be assigned to you following the results of your diagnostic consultancy according to your objectives and areas of focus.