Cross cultural communication consultants have come a long way in the short period of time such specialists have been in demand. No longer are they expatriates with a few years overseas experience and the capability to impart their knowledge onto others. Cross cultural consultants now bring expertise that is founded upon a number of key factors.Cross cultural consultants generally have a broad knowledge and experience of two or more different...more
"There can be no knowledge without emotion. We may be aware of a truth, yet until we have felt its force, it is not ours. To the cognition of the brain must be added the experience of the soul." - Arnold Bennett (1867-1931)Ask yourself, "What is the audience feeling?" and "How would I like him/her to feel?" You need to be aware of: How frequently you use positive emotional words. How you moderate the use of negative emotional words.Here are...more
As the practice of public relations in China continues to mature, it seems appropriate to ask whether Chinese business managers - tutored as they have been by European, North American and other PR specialists - continue to apply major public relations emphasis to print and broadcast communications tactics. In other words, do they still see PR through the lens of simple publicity, as many in the West still do? Or, do the best among Chinese managers -- as is also true for many businesses in Western economies -- realize they need true behavior change among their most important outside audiences leading directly to achieving their managerial objectives? And, do they then take steps to persuade those key external stakeholders, who have the greatest impacts on their organizations, to their way of thinking, then move them to take actions that help their departments, divisions or subsidiaries succeed? Let us presume that you are that business manager in China, and that you are well aware of the high-impact fundamental premise of public relations. Namely, "People act on their own perception of the facts before them, which leads to predictable behaviors about which...more
So you got your own website now. Exciting isn't it? You're ready to start putting your website to work for you. What will you do first? So many ideas going through your head...you want to make it the best website on the internet. You want to make it unique and different from anyone else's. So many ideas popping in and out of your...more
Mark and Beth, a young married couple in their twenties, established a goal to buy a home within the first three years of their marriage before starting a family. They budgeted and used their money wisely in order to save for the down payment. Whenever they purchased something they always paid cash - no credit cards for them. Why waste money by...more
International businesses are facing new challenges to their internal communication structures due to major reforms brought about through internationalization, downsizing, mergers, acquisitions and joint ventures. Lack of investment in cross cultural training and language tuition often leads to deficient internal cohesion. The loss of clients/customers, poor staff retention, lack of competitive edge, internal conflicts/power struggles, poor working relations, misunderstandings, stress, poor productivity and lack of co-operation are all by-products of poor cross cultural communication. Cross cultural communications consultants work with international companies to minimise the above consequences of poor cross cultural awareness. Through such cooperation, consultancies like Kwintessential have recognised common hurdles to effective cross cultural communication within companies.Here we outline a few examples of these obstacles to cross cultural co-operation:Lack of CommunicationIt may seem obvious to state that non-communication is probably the biggest contributor to poor communication. Yet it continues to prove itself as the major problem within most companies.Lack of communication...more
Whether you are already running your own business, or still thinking about starting your own business, I suspect that deep down you know you have gifts and talents that can really make a difference to others. In an ideal world, you'd spend the...more
Before becoming a netpreneaur, I was an entrepreneur. First, I owned a successful child care center which grew to capacity in less than two years. When I sold that, I bought a little flower shop that had less than 300 customers and grew it to what...more
"Quality and service are important, if you want to make a sale. If you want to keep a customer for life, keep your promises." - Heidi RichardsThe buzzword these days is "relationship" marketing. Just what is it? And why is it important? Relationship...more
"Cross promoting with other businesses can give you a significant advantage over the competition, with many benefits and cost savings." -Heidi Richards-More and more competition in the marketplace is making it necessary for companies to find creative...more
Welcome to Monday Morning Mindfulness . . . to my Clients, Colleagues and Friends. Join me every other Monday in getting motivated and inspired to act/think/feel something differently. 1. ON SPECIAL OFFERS AND INVITATIONS Would you like to be paid...more
BOOK REVIEW: Performance of Financial Institutions: Efficiency, Innovation, RegulationIt is rare for a financial text to be written by a Cypriot author yet one of the authors (Stavros A. Zenios) is a Professor at the University of Cyprus.The aim of...more