Many internationally active companies have transnational trainee programs. This is a great idea for developing the potential of the company’s future. It is simply not enough to give preference to national solutions if cooperation is to take place on a global basis. Nevertheless, nationally active “deserving” employees are often also invited to such programmes, which is not a bad idea, because they too are part of a global organization. Everyone benefits from getting to know foreign markets, foreign organizational units and, last but not least, their colleagues from other markets. Sometimes these programs take place within one region, for example the ubiquitous EMEA region (Europe, Middle East, Africa). Others involve employees from all over the world.
The participants get to know each other over a longer period of time and can thus also get to know their cultural differences. In most cases, they do not work together directly, but only meet for the special opportunities offered by such a program. Afterwards, they return to their usual areas and only maintain loose contact – after all, the local job comes first. Nevertheless, everyone benefits, not only by getting to know their company better in all its facets, but also by being confronted with cultural differences. This is the key word. It is obvious, for example, that Indians and Japanese have different cultures. Less obvious are the differences between Germans and Swiss, for example, but these also exist, they are just often underestimated or neglected. However the program plays out, the participants discover cultural differences and learn to deal with them “by doing”. The company rightly relies on their good will, but the actual background to these cultural differences remains hidden.
For this reason, such companies are well advised to include an intercultural seminar in these trainee programs. Here, the participants not only learn that their home cultures differ, but also why this is the case and what the differences are. Such a seminar brings order to the intercultural universe in which the participants move and thus not only helps the participants to understand each other better. It also builds a bridge to their everyday working lives and provides them with valuable insights for their daily work. Ultimately, it should not be forgotten that these are the future elite of the company. Therefore, such a program should not only be considered from the point of view that the immediate efficiency of the work increases, but also that a valuable foundation is laid for future tasks.
One prerequisite for this is to give the necessary weight to such an intercultural part. In order to achieve sustainable results, at least 2 days should be set aside for this, especially as the size of the group (usually over 10 people) already requires this. Otherwise, you run the risk of scratching the surface and raising more questions than you answer. Less is better than nothing, but to reap the full benefits of such a program, a certain amount of time is needed.
More and more companies are taking this approach. They are realizing that it is not enough to know the “dominant culture” of the company, but also to deal with the cultural differences that increasingly influence the daily work of the participants as part of international cooperation. For this reason, all internationally active companies are called upon to at least consider this option or to turn it into an action. We would be happy to advise you on the wide range of options that our company offers in this area.
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General intercultural training
