Example saudi cultural awareness training_ Simon Derbyshire

2
COMPANY CONFIDENTIAL
Objectives
The objectives of this training session are as follows:
• To provide a high level overview of the differences in national culture
between Saudi Arabia, the UK and India.
• To provide an overview of Saudi culture and behaviour
• To give some guidance on business and meeting etiquette
• Provide some considerations for the CLIENT pursuit team

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Saudis have a very different culture and world view. Tapping into this
can help in a sales context
Hofstede’s Six
dimensions of National
Culture

4
From the outset, there are a number of rumours and myths that need
to be addressed in setting the context for understanding Saudi
Will I be safe? Yes. Saudi in general, and Riyadh in particular is a save place to work and live. Data
is provided later in this session in providing a comparison with other countries.
If I have a Saudi visa in my passport will I be able to travel to Europe or the USA?: Yes.
Literally millions of people travel between Saudi, Europe and North American, including many of our
own colleagues, who are happy to share their experiences if required.
Can Woman travel to Saudi? Yes. Whilst there are restrictions, Western woman can and do travel
and work in Saudi in ever increasing numbers.
I have heard that Indian nationals are treated badly in Saudi, is this correct? No. There is a lot
of press coverage regarding the treatment of construction workers. This effects many nationalities,
including many Indians, and is often the result of the cancellation of construction projects. This has
no relevance to us or any of our colleagues.
Do I have to comply with Muslim religious activities? No. There is no compunction for anybody to
comply and certainly not if you are non-Muslim.
There are many rumours and urban myths about Saudi – the vast
majority of which are nonsense. If you have a concern please ask!

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Agenda
Differences in National Culture1
Saudi Culture and Behaviour2
Business and meeting etiquette3
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2
4
Considerations for the CLIENT pursuit4
3
Personal safety and security5
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Agenda
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5

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Using Hofstede’s Six dimensions of National Culture – there are
significant differences in three and an important low score in one
https://geert-hofstede.com/saudi-arabia.html
*
Hofstede’s Six Dimensions of National Culture
Comments
There are significant
differences in national culture
in 3 of Hofstede’s dimensions:
• Power Distance
• Individualism
• Uncertainly Avoidance
The low score in Long Term
Orientation, is not
significantly different to that of
the UK or India, but it is
important to understand the
implications of this.

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Power Distance dimension
‘Power Distance’ is defined as the extent to which the less powerful members of institutions
and organisations within a country expect and accept that power is distributed unequally.
In the Saudi context:
• Saudi scores high on the Power Distance dimension – significantly higher than the UK and
higher than India.
• In a business context the practical implication of this is that hierarchy and seniority of
company representatives matters significantly to Saudis.
• There is a strong belief that dealing with only the most senior of people is the way that
decisions can be made and progress achieved.
• This is referred to locally as the ‘Top-man syndrome’, and it often won’t matter what the
subject matter is – and it can often be trivial, but they will still want to deal with senior
representatives.
• Sending what can be perceived by Saudis as junior colleagues to a meeting, at best will be
counter productive and at worst considered insulting.

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Individualism dimension
The fundamental issue addressed by this dimension is the degree of interdependence a society
maintains among its members.
• Saudi scores very low on the Individualism dimension – significantly lower than the UK or
India.
• Saudi is a collectivist society where there is a very strong interdependence between
members of Saudi society and the loyalty owned to family, friends and members of the
wider family and social grouping.
• The downside of this characteristic is that ‘outsiders’ tend not to be trusted easily.
• It also has implications for the way in which decisions are made by Saudis – as this often
requires dialogue and a broad consensus to be achieved amongst the senior stakeholders
in making a decision.

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Uncertainty Avoidance dimension
The dimension Uncertainty Avoidance has to do with the way that a society deals with the fact
that the future can never be known.
The extent to which the members of a culture feel threatened by ambiguous or unknown
situations and have created beliefs and institutions that try to avoid these is reflected in the
score on Uncertainty Avoidance.
• Saudi scores high on the Uncertainty Avoidance dimension – much higher than the UK or
India.
• In essence Saudis don’t like and indeed really struggle with, uncertainty, ambiguity and
intangibility. They also are not good at conceptualising ideas or solutions.
• In a sales process, this can be very frustrating as Saudis will often want significant amounts
of detail that cannot be easily provided without having done the work.
• One way of addressing this is to provide real examples of deliverables, videos, demos, site
visits etc in making what we are offering as tangible and as comprehensible as possible.

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Long Term Orientation dimension
This dimension describes how every society has to maintain some links with its own past
while dealing with the challenges of the present and future and societies prioritise these two
existential goals differently.
• Saudi scores low on the Long Term Orientation dimension – the UK and India score slightly
higher.
• Whilst the difference between Saudi and UK/India is not great, the fact that Saudis score
low on Long Term Orientation is important to understand.
• In essence Saudis are not good at, or comfortable with forward planning and the longer
the time horizon the worse it becomes. They are good, however, at short term tactical
considerations and activity.
• Time, timescales, milestones are viewed very differently and with much flexibility than in
the West. This can be a source of misunderstanding and confusion.
• This often coincides with the uncertainty avoidance dimension – as uncertainty grows with
long time horizons and the general inability to understand what the future holds.
• This is also partly fuelled by their fatalistic belief system

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The differences in national culture are significant and have implications in how we
sell and deliver to Saudi customers
Summary of National Cultural Differences
• The need to deal with senior people is important
to Saudis.
• The collectivist culture, loyalty to family and friends,
the impact on decision making and the distrust of
outsiders.
• The avoidance of uncertainty, ambiguity and
intangibility. The striving for detail, certainty and
clarity, often unreasonably and this can feed through
in to harsh contract terms and acceptance criteria.
• Inability to take a long term perspective. This often
coincides with uncertainty avoidance.
Implications and considerations
• Careful consideration needs to be given to who
engages with the customer. As we get towards the
end of a sales process they will expect to be dealing
with people who can make decisions.
• The decision making processes can be long winded
and less than clear/transparent.
• Engage locally and with Saudis if possible, to build
trust and commitment
• In presenting solutions strive for clarity, detail and
specifics as much as possible supported by tangible
assets such as video clips, site visits, visual
depictions.
• Consider how to break long timescales into bite sized
pieces so that Saudis can digest it without concern.

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Agenda
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Consistent with their collectivist culture, Saudis have a strong verbal tradition, are
emotional and have a strong tendency towards subjectivity
• Saudis have a very strong collectivist culture where concern for people, reputation, loyalty
and relationships are of paramount importance. They will usually put concern for a person
above concern for the task.
• A strong verbal tradition exists where eloquent oratory, poetry and story telling is held in
high esteem.
• Consistent with the collectivist culture and relationship orientation, Saudis are emotional
by character and will often use emotion in discussions as a means of giving emphasis and
conveying importance of the point being made.
• Saudis also have a very strong tendency towards subjectivity, especially in decision making.
They will follow their feelings and emotions and the guidance of people close to them –
even if the ‘facts’ suggest a different course of action.

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Also consistent with their uncertainty avoidance and short term orientation,
Saudis, by nature, are very cautious and risk averse
• Uncertainty avoidance, short term orientation and the fairly closed collectivist society
combines in creating a very cautious and risk averse culture in Saudi.
• Whist many of the Saudis we deal with are very sophisticated, urbane, well travelled and
very well educated, they can revert to type when faced with a big and complex decision to
make.
• This can be compounded when uncertainty, long time scales and outsiders and/or
foreigners are also in the mix.
• When faced with a high risk decision, Saudis will either engage in an extensive dialogue with
a wide range of stakeholders which can last for a protracted period of time until a decision is
made, or, the need to make the decision just gets parked indefinitely.

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‘Yes’ doesn’t always mean ‘Yes’ – especially when it means
‘Insha’Allah’ (God Willing)
• For Saudis, giving a good impression, being polite and considerate are very important, as the
converse can lead to a loss of face and bring shame to their family.
• This means that Saudis can use a different concept of good manners where being negative,
blunt, refusing to help or saying no is avoided.
• Saudis will also tend to avoid conflict or the giving of bad or difficult news.
• In this context a ‘Yes’ doesn’t always mean ‘Yes’. It could have a range of meanings ranging
from ‘maybe’; ‘we will see’; ‘it depends’; ‘no’ – and sometimes even yes!
• If there are long periods of silence and avoidance of the topic, it will often infer bad news, but
it can also mean that the decision is stuck in a convoluted decision making process.

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Saudis are very proud of their country, religion and culture but do suffer from an
inferiority complex when being compared to the West
• Saudis have a complex, contradictory and confused love-hate relationship with the West
• Their admiration of the much of Western culture can also be a source of frustration at the
short comings within Saudi society and the lack of real progress made
• Where these issues can come to ahead is when Saudis feel that they are being judged or
criticised without any recognition of their achievements
• Unfavourable comparisons with the West, and Dubai! – should be avoided.
• Selling / pitching to Saudi organisations has, therefore, to tread a fine line between giving
recognition for their accomplishments whilst being clear about how we can help transform
their organisation etc.

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Saudis have a mixed perspective on Westerners and Western culture
Whilst they have respect and admiration for many aspects of Western culture, we are still an
anathema to many Saudi’s:
• We are viewed as inscrutable, emotionally cold and uncompromising
• We are considered as being obsessed with facts, logic, timescales and deadlines
• Saudis regard us as pushy and impatient – often to the point of being rude
• If we don’t get what we want, we can become aggressive and resort to making accusations
and threats
• We are considered as being ruthless and lacking in compassion for people, putting
business objectives first and ultimately we cannot always be relied upon
• The nature of relationships and friendship, and the obligations that arise in a Saudi
relationship are different from what we understand and this can be a source of confusion

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The differences in national culture are significant and have implications in how we
sell and deliver to Saudi customers
Summary of National Cultural Differences
• Saudis are emotional, with a very strong
relationship orientation and tend towards
subjectivity in decision making.
• They are very cautious and risk averse by
nature which combines with a short term
orientation.
• Saudis are not always good at giving difficult
or straight messages. Early in a relationship
they will have a tendency to be polite and this
can be misinterpreted as agreement or a Yes.
• Saudis can be sensitive to criticism and
unfavourable comparisons with the West and
Dubai!
• Westerners are perceived as cold, calculating,
pushy, driven by timescales and deadlines and
only care about the deal / money.
Implications and considerations
• The main way to influence a decision is
through relationships. Saudis will take
guidance and advice form people they trust –
which can be good and bad.
• Pushing aggressively for a decision or
timescales etc will tend to increase a Saudis
caution and risk aversion and ultimately
reinforce their view of Westerners.
• As frustrating and painful as it is for us,
patience is often needed combined with
regular engagement with the client.
• When pitching to Saudis it is often helpful to
offer to help with addressing their concerns
and pains as opposed to demonstrating they
are performing badly compared to Western or
other ME businesses.

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Agenda
1
2
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3
5

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Life in Saudi can feel overwhelming. Try not to get frustrated – it is just how things
are. Everything will be fine if God wills it (‘Insha’Allah’ )
• Many adjectives have been applied to Saudi Arabia in the press and elsewhere. Don’t let
them put you off!
• Yes, you are coming to a volatile region and a conservative country, but...
• Riyadh is a very westernised, comfortable and (surprisingly) safe city.
• Much of it is also familiar. You will see Mc Donald’s, GAP, Next, M&S, Debenhams, Harvey
Nichols, Accessorise, Starbucks, Paul’s, Holiday Inn etc etc etc.
• Many of the Saudis, are sophisticated, very well educated and very Westernised. They
understand us a lot better than we understand them and are therefore often very tolerant
of cultural faux pas.
• That said, do not be desensitised to the fact you are in a conservative Islamic country. Treat
it with respect!
........and to remain safe whilst in Riyadh – wear your seatbelt

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Presentations
• Even though Saudis often speak and read fluently in English, presentations that are very
wordy with dense technical English text are not helpful in getting our message across.
• Presentations that are visually very appealing, light on text, should be our target and if we
can include video clips, pictures and high quality graphics, that will help significantly.
• Saudis have a very strong verbal tradition and will listen intently to what is being said – so
having our key messages well rehearsed in simple and clear terms will be helpful.
• We have some customers that don’t allow us to give presentations – we have to describe our
proposition, solution and approach verbally as part of a discussion. It might be useful to
rehearse the key aspects of our proposition as elevator pitches.
• Having good quality handouts is also appreciated.
........also, remember that Arabic is read from Right to Left!

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Meeting behaviour
• Consistent with their emotional orientation, Saudis will often speak loudly and emotionally, gesticulating widely, with
significant repetition of key words or phrases.
• Westerners will often misinterpret this as anger and dissatisfaction, whereas it is just part of their normal communication
in emphasising what is important to them – the greater the emotion and repetition, the greater the importance.
• Whilst we don’t need to demonstrate emotion etc, repeating areas of importance and checking for understanding is
useful. A simple cool yes, would give the impression we either don’t mean it or care very much.
• Eye contact is essential – and is important in building rapport and personal engagement.
• Time can be a variable commodity – meetings can start late, finish late with lots of disruption in between, for prayers etc.
Just go with the flow and don’t show impatience or irritation.
• If Women are present, shake hands if they offer first, otherwise a polite greeting is sufficient.
• In Saudi, negotiating is a national sport – they enjoy it and are good at it – and often cannot help themselves in
negotiating over everything and anything (Saudi joke: what is 2 + 2?, answer: am I buying or selling?)
• Saudis will often expect the senior person in the room to be able to make a decision, on the spot, to secure a deal. This is
often problematic for us as we have to comply with our internal Governance processes – being clear what authority the
team has – and finding a way to delay a decision to get clarity internally is important.

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Agenda
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5

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Understanding the dynamics within CLIENT
• In Saudi organisations, the Board often plays a more intervention role than we would expect in
the West.
• Also Chairmen tend to operate as Executive Chairman and are hands-on.
• There are a number of implications that arise from this:
• Decision making can be more complex, time consuming and lacking in transparency
• The Senior Management team may have to convince a typically cautious, risk averse Saudi Board
about something that is long term in duration and a fairly new and radical proposition for a Saudi
organisation – there are lots of red lines here in terms of Saudi culture.
• Part of our response could include:
• Being fully aligned to the Senior Management team in making the case to the Board
• Be prepared to bring senior colleagues to present to the Board
• Providing options, or a hybrid solution, or a more modest start – with a focus on reducing perceptions
of risk etc

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Agenda
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Homicide rate per 100,000 people per year Commentary
Homicide Rate
Saudi has 1 homicide per 100,000 people per year,
Source: Homicide Statistics in International Statistics on Crime and Justice, United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, 2011.
22.7
3.4
1.4 1.2 1.1 1.0
0
5
10
15
20
25
Brazil India France UK China Saudi
Arabia
▪ Saudi Arabia has a lower homicide rate than both the UK and
France; its rate is less than a third of India’s rate.
• Brazil has the highest homicide rate in the world at 22.7 people
per 100,000.
• India is almost three times more dangerous than the UK, in
terms of homicides.
▪ Homicide is one of the most reliably comparable sources of
crime statistics, as it is not subject to many the usual issues
in comparing crime statistics between countries:
• Lack of internationally consistent definitions
• Government data collection issues
• Under reporting by citizens
▪ The overall global homicide rate was estimated at 7.6 per
100,000 population in 2009.
Homicide is one of the most reliable comparable sources of crime data

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Reported Assault and Burglary per 100,000 people Commentary
Reporting of Crime
Saudi Arabia has a relatively low rate or reported assaults
and burglaries compared to major European nations
Source: Assault and Burglary Statistics in International Statistics on Crime and Justice, United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, 2011.
1365.3
1157.7
180.1
622.4
36.9 0.123.1 8.09.5
90.7
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
1400
1600
Assault Burglary
England and
Wales
France
Saudi
Arabia
India
China
▪ France and England/Wales have the highest assault and burglary
rates with recorded levels of both assault and burglary over 6
times as high as in China, Saudi Arabia and India.
▪ Saudi Arabia has a higher reported rate of assault than China and
India at 36.9 per 100,000 people relative to 9.5 and 23.1
respectively.
▪ Saudi Arabia has a very low number of reported burglaries with
0.1 per 100,000 people relative to 90.7 and 8.0 for China and
India.
▪ Generally speaking countries with well developed judicial systems
have more success in encouraging citizens to report crime.
Reported crime rates are not considered a reliable indicator of the real
incidence of theses crimes

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Consular Assistance Commentary
Foreign Office assistance provided
Saudi Arabia has relatively fewer incidents requiring
consular assistance than China, India and Germany
Source:: http://tsdb.mas.gov.sa/
▪ Saudi Arabia has only 196 incidents requiring Foreign Office
consular assistance for every 1 million UK nationals visiting or
living in the country.
▪ Saudi Arabia has less than half as many incidents as India.
▪ UK national are more likely to be arrested in Germany
than Saudi Arabia.
▪ The FCO noted that most cases reported in Saudi Arabia involved
UK nationals travelling for the Hajj pilgrimage.
▪ If an incident involves a British citizen it is very likely the British
Consul will get involved making it a relatively good indicator of a
country’s safety.
▪ Consular assistance covers support for arrests, death,
hospitalisation, assault and other requests.
Incidents involving the British Consulate in Saudi Arabia are largely related to
the Hajj.
33 51
107
36 8
152
227
41
73
34
61
15
40
29
12
165
22
65
58
12
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
450
India Germany China Saudi Arabia France
CasesperMillionBritons
Arrests/Detentions Death Hospitalisation Other Assistance
Total consular assistance cases per 1,000,000 UK nationals
(visiting and residents)

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Traffic Fatalities per 100,000 people Commentary
Risk of injury
Saudi has a very high fatality rate from traffic incidents
Note: France, India and the UK record a traffic fatality if death occurs within 30 days of the accident whilst in China a traffic fatality is only recorded if the individual dies within 7 days of the accident whilst
Brazil defines the fatalities as “any time after the crash”.
Source: Global Status Report on Road Safety, World Health Organisation, 2009.
▪ In Saudi Arabia 25.7 people per 100,000 die every year from
traffic fatalities, more than double the level in India, France, China
and the UK.
▪ Brazil too has a high rate of traffic fatalities at 18.3 deaths
per 100,000 people
▪ Saudi Arabia also has the highest number of fatalities per
1,000km of road at 34 deaths yearly per 1,000km of road.
▪ Brazil and France have the second and third highest death
rate per 1,000km of road at 32 and 26 deaths per 1,000km
of road respectively.
▪ China has a very low death rate per 1,000km of road at 4
deaths per 1,000km of road
25.7
18.3
9.0
7.5 6.7
5.4
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
Saudi
Arabia
Brazil India France China UK
FatalityRate
Traffic Fatalities Fatalities per 1000km road
........and to remain safe whilst in Riyadh – wear your seatbelt

Example saudi cultural awareness training_ Simon Derbyshire

Example saudi cultural awareness training_ Simon Derbyshire

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