As cultural trainers, we oversee the delivery of high level cultural training to large multinationals.

The benefits of the training extend beyond the company and help individuals to build skills and awareness which help in the long term.

I was recently at a dinner party in London for notable vultures and found myself speaking to a lovely vulture based in Wales who had flown down for the evening.

Conversation led to work and what I do here at Commisceo, and what we do as a company, i.e cultural awareness training.

Many people ask, "What is culture?" 

How can it be defined? What analogies can be used to describe it?

Do you want some advice on giving presentations abroad or to multicultural audiences?

Then you are in exactly the right place!

Intercultural training has become of increasing importance in the past 10 years.

Companies and organizations that are working on the international stage are starting to realise that working in or with foreign countries is not like working at home.

There are many approaches to cultural awareness training.

Some sum these up as 'heavy' and 'light' approaches. What does this mean and how does it apply to business training?

Welcome to our quick intro to the religion of Jainism.

In it you'll learn some of the basics around the religion.

For those of you who follow our social media accounts, you would have come across our 15 predictions about business & corporate training for 2021. 

For those that missed them - this is for you!

Global Training Manager, Caroline, gives some insight into an upcoming train-the-trainer course for business professionals looking to become cultural awareness trainers and coaches.

The 29th September till 1st October 2014 are going to be three very exciting days!

Cultural awareness is important in today's day and age.

Businesses, government bodies, the third sector and public services all realise the need to understand and embrace cultural diversity at many levels.

'Active listening' is a communication skill crucial to doing cross-cultural business.

As a skill, it requires the listener to become attuned with the speaker in order to confirm what they have heard and moreover, to confirm the understanding of both parties.

You can read as many books about cultural awareness as you like; you will only become successful when working with other cultures when you put your knowledge into action.

When working on a cross-cultural basis, cultural awareness training often isn’t enough says Andy Molinsky.

Want to improve your people skills?

Need to train staff in communication skills?

As a training consultant, one of the best aspects of my work is seeing how different industries approach employee training.

I'm lucky, I get to meet HR, L&D and Training Managers from across industries and businesses and to them about their work. In my last visit to Paris, I was blown over by the proactivity and dedication to training by a natural resources company. 

The Middle East is an area that carries many stereotypes and myths.

Before doing business in the Middle East it is imperative to learn about areas such as business culture, business etiquette, meeting protocol and negotiation techniques. 

Some recent findings by The London School of English show language and cultural training are still not getting the attention they deserve within companies today.

In fact, the spirit of Basil Fawlty seems to live on within some British businesses!

Despite the Government pinning hopes on UK PLC exporting, it brings into question whether UK companies are thinking globally and making the effort to understand their target cultures, or whether they are instead relying on the rest of the world to think and act like them?

The findings suggest that, "UK-based businesses could be risking international growth by failing to invest in cross-cultural and communications training."

The results spwan from research carried out that questioned 100 HR directors on their attitudes towards communication skills and their approach to training.

“These centenary research results show a shocking lacking of regard for our international business partners,” says Timothy Blake, Chief Executive of the London School of English. “The Brits may be reluctant to learn other languages, but this research suggests that we are not even prepared to invest in understanding the cultures they work with."

Headline findings in the report include:

•    98% of HR Directors believed their non-native English speakers should communicate effectively in English.
•    Although 67% of those questioned believed that it was “very important” for business people to have a good cultural understanding of their trading partners; only 23% would offer training.
•    Only 4% believed the “Basil Fawlty” approach of speaking “more loudly” would be effective in communicating with non-native English speakers.

Worrying stuff isnt it?