CROSS-CULTURAL TRAINING AND RELOCATION COACHING

I LEARNT HOW TO COOPERATE BETTER WITH MY COLLEAGUES FROM DIFFERENT NATIONALITIES AND HOW TO ADJUST COMMUNICATIONAL STYLES ACCORDING TO CULTURAL DIMENSIONS. GREAT WORKSHOPS, INTERESTING IDEAS!

ZOETIS EMPLOYEE

TOGETHER WITH MY WIFE, WE WERE VERY PLEASED WITH THE CROSS-CULTURAL TRAINING AND INTRODUCTION TO POLAND. OUR TRAINERS SPENT MANY YEARS AS EXPATS IN THE MIDDLE EAST AND ASIA, AND THEY WERE ABLE TO UNDERSTAND OUR NEEDS RELATED TO RELOCATION TO ANOTHER COUNTRY AND PROVIDE WITH SKILFUL SUPPORT.

SANTANDER EMPLOYEE

Since 2007, we have been comprehensively supporting multicultural teams and their leaders. We offer cross-cultural coaching, cultural awareness workshops, communication trainings, crosscultural train the trainer for internal trainers,  sessions aimed at developing of communication and cooperation guidelines for teams. We work with GlobeSmart and Erin Meyer tools for mapping cultures.

Our programs are created based on a thorough diagnosis of the needs of your company and the know-how of our expert team.

FOR WHOM

  • For intercultural teams with multi-level communication
  • For managers supervising multicultural teams in need of support in developing standards of co-operation
  • For organizations that want to develop communication standards across cultures.

BENEFITS FOR HR AND YOUR TEAM

CULTURAL AWARENESS

A key part of this process is shaping the attitudes and cultural awareness of employees. As a result, your employees develop soft skills allowing the resolution of conflicts arising from cultural differences, and shape their creative potential thanks to the experience of diversity in the group.

SUSTAINABLE AND EFFICIENT SOLUTIONS ADJUSTED TO THE LOCAL CONTEXT

We engage employees in creating common communication standards for effective work in a cross-cultural team. That is why our solutions are lasting and sustainable. We also offer content creation and our elearning as a one-off license for large organisations.

COMMUNICATION SKILLS

We teach employees and team leaders how to communicate effectively with foreigners in the company’s lingua franca: how to discuss, negotiate and provide feedback.

FEELINGS OF BELONGING AND TRUST IN THE TEAM

The effectiveness of an international team depends on the development of a common communication platform. The framework and standards developed by employees, as well as the trust that arises when creating such standards, brings the team together and supports the sense of belonging – and thus also results in more effective communication and greater job satisfaction.

WHAT YOU BUY

Training programs are designed for our clients individually. Contact us to see what we can offer for you. Below you can also find some examples of our intercultural trainings.

BREAKING BARRIERS – A BLENDED LEARNING COURSE ON OUR PLATFORM

We have been successfully conducting cross-cultural training for companies for over 10 years. We teach how to communicate effectively, negotiate, make decisions and give feedback. We prepare managers to lead remote and local cross-cultural teams, train customers service representatives and call center teams at SSC. Our blended learning course is a combination of our experience and possibilities  of blended learning platform. Employees can access the course content when they need it the most – before important meeting or when they start managing a cross-cultural team or project.  Blended learning offers flexibility and all the benefits of in-person training thanks to our live sessions with trainers and Q&A functionality. It is also much more cost effective than in-person traIning.

For 80 PLN NET/ month you get access to:

  • 5h of video lectures, quizes & case studies
  • Live online sessions with trainers (1 session/ month)
  • GlobeSmart® tool, which allows you to diagnose your communication style and map cultural differences
  • Culture guides to 95+ countries (focus: business communication)

WOULD YOU LIKE TO LEARN MORE?

DOWNLOAD THE COURSE BROCHURE

CLICK HERE TO SCHEDULE A MEETING WITH ONE OF OUR EXPERTS 

COURSE OVERVIEW:

CASE I - IT INDUSTRY

A large company in the IT industry in Poland where 50% of employees are Polih nationality and 50% are foreigners. Prior to our involvement, the company only provided the employees with hard relocation support, but with an increase in the number of relocated employees, the company started to need support with soft skills, and training focused on increasing the efficiency of intercultural teams. The company was looking for a comprehensive cross-cultural training programme that could eventually be implemented in other countries.

The programme we developed looked like this:

# 1 CULTURAL AWARENESS WORKSHOPS (series of workshops – 8 hours in groups of 15-20 people)

Objectives and Results: Employees are aware of intercultural differences and the consequences of these differences for team communication. They know how to respond to situations of conflict and recognise the differences that underlie these conflicts.

# 2 COMMON GROUND MEETING (8-12 hours, 100-200 employees)

Objectives and Results: The company has developed communication standards for international teams. These standards have been created by employees who now feel responsible for their implementation in their teams and for communicating them to new employees.

# 3 EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION TRAININGS AND WORKSHOPS

Objectives and Results: Employees know how to effectively communicate with people of other cultures in English in situations such as negotiations, presentations, or providing feedback. Team leaders know how to manage an international team.

# 4 CHECK-IN meetings (2 meetings for each group, 3 hours each)

Objectives and Results: Employees have the opportunity to discuss their experiences in the field of intercultural communication and applied solutions, and to develop new solutions in the event of new challenges.

CASE II - FINANCIAL INDUSTRY

A global company from the financial industry based in Poland where more and more middle and senior employees are relocated from other, often culturally-distant countries. Prior to our involvement they had not received any cross cultural support, which resulted in a high percentage of unsuccessful relocations and conflicts in teams.

# 1 CROSS-CULTURAL COACHING for relocated managers (10 hours: 2–3 hours pre-departure; 7–8 hours in-country)

Objectives and Results: Managers can discuss their expectations regarding Poland and their potential clash with reality, and develop an appropriate, flexible approach. After arriving and meeting the local team, they are able to manage employees with more awareness of cultural differences. They understand, anticipate and respond appropriately to potential conflicts arising from these differences.

# 2 RELOCATION TRAINING COACHING for partners of relocated managers (6 hours: 2–3 hours pre-departure; 3–4 hours in-country)

Objectives and Results: Partners of relocated employees acquire basic knowledge about the country of relocation, and they are comfortable in everyday situations.

# 3 POLISH YOUR BUSINESS WORKSHOPS for foreigners who start working in Poland (4 hours each)

Objectives and Results: New employees acquire basic knowledge in the field of business communication in Poland and Polish culture. Being aware of cultural differences, they can anticipate problems and respond appropriately to potential conflicts.

# 4 “COMMUNICATION FOR BREAKFAST” WORKSHOPS (2 hours each: 5 workshops per month, each for around 15 people)

Objectives and Results: Employees know how to communicate effectively in situations such as presentations, negotiations and teleconferences in the context created by Polish culture. Both foreigners and Poles take part in the workshops, which are held in English.

CASE III - BSS

A large global company with a shared services centre in Poland. They cooperate with a customer service hub in Malaysia, with whom they share projects, joint clients and cooperation at the strategic level. Before our involvement, HR managers in the Polish branch received complaints from both sides: the team from Malaysia complained about the aggressiveness, rudeness and lack of flexibility of Polish colleagues, while the other side accused the Malaysians of a lack of feedback when they disagreed or failed to understand something, of failing to meet deadlines and of frequent breaks at work. The Polish team perceived the situation in terms of low efficiency and laziness. Frustration and dissatisfaction were growing on both sides.

# 1 WORKSHOP: INTERCULTURAL DIFFERENCES (8 hours)

The workshop was focused on building awareness, communication and cross-cultural competences as well as specific solutions for the Polish team to apply in cooperation with their Malaysian counterparts. This part of the programme consisted of five modules:

1. Cultural awareness—discussing key cultural areas that were important from the perspective of the team leader and consultant, identifying blind spots

2. Communication and politeness principles—practice

3. Managing conflict

4. Summary—who is my Malaysian Partner? Who are they and what is important to them?

5. Solution-building—developing specific solutions and tools for implementation after the workshop with teams of consultants, and in co-operation with the Malaysian side in three areas: 1) building awareness; 2) quick fixes; 3) long term solutions.

# 2 FOLLOW-UP SESSION (3 hours, 4–6 weeks after the workshop)

Discussing the experience of implementing the developed solutions and activities as well as sharing good practices. This session was also an opportunity to talk about the resolution of problems or difficulties, and about changing or adjusting solutions.

Feedback from client: “After the first session, we were positively surprised by the results – the first workshop group successfully implemented several initiatives in just four weeks, including a series of mini-trainings for agents, and a video for the Malaysian team about Poles and their work style / values / communication. The participants emphasised how important this training was for them as it opened their eyes to what is important in communication with the Malaysian side and what underlies some behaviours.”

RELOCATION COACHING

Our relocation coaching offers support for your employees and their families in dealing with the challenges of frequent moves, working in different cultures and changing their environment.

The benefits of relocation coaching most often identified by our clients:

  • increasing self-awareness
  • setting priorities becomes easier
  • increasing job satisfaction and satisfaction from the experience of living in a new country

WHAT YOU BUY

Packages of coaching sessions—10 sessions is the most popular. Sessions are conducted in Polish or English. They can take place before taking up a new role or before moving, to prepare for new challenges. Support can also be provided to people who have arrived in a country which is new to them and their partners.

Each process is different. We identify goals together with the client and the sponsor. These are the topics appear most frequently in our sessions:

  • settling into a new culture
  • building your private life in a new place
  • working in a different culture
  • following your partner’s professional destination
  • building your career path in a new place
  • fear of change

FOR WHOM

For employees who relocate for the first time for professional reasons, and for expats who regularly change their place of residence and face the challenge of reorganising their professional and private life every few years.

WHAT YOU BUY

Packages of coaching sessions—10 sessions is the most popular. Sessions are conducted in Polish or English. They can take place before taking up a new role or before moving, to prepare for new challenges. Support can also be provided to people who have arrived in a country which is new to them and their partners.

Each process is different. We identify goals together with the client and the sponsor. These are the topics appear most frequently in our sessions:

  • settling into a new culture
  • building your private life in a new place
  • working in a different culture
  • following your partner’s professional destination
  • building your career path in a new place
  • fear of change

OUR TRAINERS

OUR TEAM ARE EXPERIENCED BUSINESS TRAINERS. SEE THEIR PROFILES BELOW:

Irek Zyzański – consultant, coach, mentor and trainer. Irek has 25 years of experience in managing cross-cultural teams as Head of HR and Sales for Phillip Morris International. He has worked in Poland, Lebanon, Ukraine, Dubai, Russia, Indonesia and Hong Kong, and reported to CEOs of 14 different nationalities. Irek graduated from Jagiellonian University with a degree in Arabic Studies.

Marta Carter – coach and trainer. Marta supports companies in training and coaching change management processes, cross-cultural issues and personal development. She works with transformational coaching tools and NVC (non-violent communication). She is a certified trainer of the FRIS® methodology, a diagnostic and development tool. She has worked in Poland and the UK, cooperating with colleagues of 13 nationalities.

Zofia Barańska – coach, trainer and facilitator of Open Space Technology. She is a specialist in effective communication with over ten years of experience in the design and delivery of business trainings. Zofia has visited more than 25 countries and has worked in Ireland and India. She graduated in Cultural Studies at SWPS in Warsaw.

Vesna Lorenc – certified group and individual coach, personal development trainer, consultant and HR specialist. Vesna has been active in business for over 18 years and specialises in communication. A graduate of TROP Academy, she runs workshops, trainings, team coaching and action learning sessions, and facilitations. Born in Serbia, Vesna has lived in Poland for many years now. She speaks five languages.