Communicating Across Cultures

1. COMMUNICATING
ACROSS CULTURES
Trainer: Sam Lubis, S. Pd.
08569088189|sam.loebis6@gmail.com
Special Design for
Tiar Akhmad Ginanjar

2. Managing
International
Meetings

3. Aims
• To understand different approaches to
decision making
• To manage the decision-making
process effectively in meetings

4. Read what 4 people said about the decision-making process
in their organisations and answer the questions!
PERSON 1
PERSON 2
PERSON 3
PERSON 4

5. What do you see as the main advantages and
disadvantages of each decision-making style?

6. Which of the decision-making styles is most
similar to the one in your meetings at work?
PERSON 1
PERSON 2
PERSON 3
PERSON 4

7. What kind of decision-making style do you
personally prefer? Why?
PERSON 1
PERSON 2
PERSON 3
PERSON 4

8. Listen up!
1. How does Kaneko describe the decision-making style in the
meetings in his company?
2. He says the style has to change. In what way and why?
3. What target does the company have for its speed of
decision making?
4. Which two factors make it difficult to change the decision-
making style in the company?
5. Why does Kaneko believe it’s harder to get to a decision in
telephone meetings than in face-to-face meetings?
6. How does Kaneko describe his own personal decision-
making style?
Kaneko Takuya works in Japan for a global electronics company. Listen
to him talking about his experiences of international meetings and
answer the questions.

9. Answering the question
Answer:
Slow and relatively careful.
1. How does Kaneko describe the decision-making
style in the meetings in his company?

10. Answering the question
Answer:
He says the company has to accelerate its decision making
because it’s a competitive advantage.
2. He says the style has to change. In what way and
why?

11. Answering the question
Answer:
To reduce product development time to six months from
twelve.
3. What target does the company have for its speed
of decision making?

12. Answering the question
Answer:
The fact that many levels of management have to approve
decisions, which is time-consuming, and the project team
culture of working together means it takes more time to get a
collective decision.
4. Which two factors make it difficult to change the
decision-making style in the company?

13. Answering the question
Answer:
Because speakers can’t see each other and gauge how people
are feeling.
5. Why does Kaneko believe it’s harder to get to a decision in
telephone meetings than in face-to-face meetings?

14. Answering the question
Answer:
Fast / Likes to get things done and move on.
6. How does Kaneko describe his own personal
decision-making style?

15. Discussion Questions
Kaneko says, “I think frequent communication before meetings
is very helpful to get to a decision in a meeting faster.”
1. How effective do you think it is to communicate a lot
before meetings in order to help decision making in
meetings?
2. What other ways can you think of to improve decision
making in international meetings?

16. Cultural Tip
The ways in which decisions
are taken in meetings can
differ significantly across
different organisational and
national cultures. It is
important when starting an
international meeting to
clarify and agree with
participants what is to be
decided and how it will be
decided.

17. My Contact Details :
 sam.loebis6@gmail.com
 08777 2400 679 or 0856 90 88 189