IATEFL BESIG Annual Conference the most important global conference for Business English

18 – 20 November 2011

Plenary by Jeremy Comfort

What’s culture got to do with business? Supporting our learners in a complex world

In this talk, I will explore what we mean by intercultural competence and how we make it relevant for our Business English learners.

Starting with knowledge, it is important to distinguish between briefing on a particular culture and understanding/preparedness for working with and in any culture. For business people understanding and developing organisational cultures is often much more relevant than focusing on national cultures.

Secondly, what are the skills that our learners need to add? Above all they need to become better at observing, reflecting and learning. Busy people rarely find time for this distancing, decentering or what I call mindfulness. However it is fundamental to getting the right balance between adapting to a new culture and having confidence in what you bring from your culture. Companies choose people for international assignments and roles for both reasons. They need to be confident that they have the pull skills that allow them to adapt (listening, observing, perceiving) as well as the push skills to operate successfully in tough and ambiguous environments (autonomy, influencing skills).

Thirdly, and most importantly our attitude towards difference is fundamental. It may not fit with the target-driven agenda of our participants but we need to convince them of the value of diversity. Companies pride themselves on having inclusive and vibrant cultures but they also need to make them open – curious about other cultures – seeing cultural diversity as an opportunity rather than an obstacle.

Jeremy Comfort helped to found York Associates more than 30 years ago. He has developed approaches and materials for language, communication, intercultural and international leadership training. He has published widely in these four areas, most recently The Mindful International Manager (Kogan Page 2010). He works closely with major multinationals and also businesses which have just started the process of internationalising. He created and now facilitates the DPI accreditation seminars which are available online as well as face-to-face.

http://www.besig.org

http://www.iatefl.org

Venue:

Sponsor: