First Impressions in Business

A World of Differences

By Terri Morrison
© Copyright 2004, All Rights Reserved

Looking out at the illustrious gathering he quells a few butterflies, takes a deep breath and steps up to the microphone. What could go wrong?

It depends upon what part of the world he's in.

Dealing with the special circumstances of different cultural backgrounds is no easy task in situations like this. Start with John Dough's appreciative opening line to the host. Did he use the host's correct title, get his or her name in the right order, and pronounce it smoothly? Or was it more like: "First I would like to thank Ernst for that wonderful introduction, and for the opportunity to address such a distinguished gathering..." Some of the eyes in the front row may have rolled with that one. Bringing out Director X's first name in front of everyone may be acceptable in the United States, but it is usually not good form in the rest of the world.

As part of an extended international business trip, our speaker is scheduled to speak before several groups of investors in Eastern Europe. The first stop is Russia. Well prepared for his appearance, he begins his speech by addressing his hostess, Mrs. Anna Nikolevich Mendeleva. He refers to her as Mrs. Mendeleva from the podium, even though she has invited him to use the more familiar "Anna Nikolevich" otherwise.

Although he knows Russians have a fine and ironic sense of humor, he refrains from starting with a joke. He is in banking, and too many banks have failed for his audience to find anything funny about this subject. And since he wants to win their trust, he makes every attempt to establish direct eye contact with his listeners. Even though the stage lights blind him and he can't see them, he wants to at least give them the impression that he is looking them in their collective eye. Knowing that Russian negotiations are often stormy, he allows emotion to creep into his voice, something he will avoid in most other parts of the world.

Another stop on this international tour takes our speaker to Latin America. He knows that titles are very important here and that people should generally be addressed by their title alone, such as "Professor" or "Doctor."

However, when a surname is called for, he occasionally finds himself confused. Most Hispanics have two surnames, one from their father, which comes first, followed by one from their mother. Sometimes the two surnames are separated by a "y" (which means "and" in Spanish). Only the father's surname is commonly used when addressing someone verbally. for example, Señor Sixto Ortiz Martinez would be called Señor Ortiz, and Señorita Ana Maria Gutierrez y Ramos would be Señorita Gutierrez.

In Latin America, our speaker does open with an amusing, well- chosen anecdote. "My brother works for the government of the United States of America. He was involved in getting approval of the North American Free Trade Agreement, better known by its acronym NAFTA. Last year there were discussions about Chile joining NAFTA. Of course, once NAFTA expands outside North America, the name has to be changed. They considered dropping the initial, 'N,' and just calling it the American Free Trade Agreement, or AFTA. This seemed like a good compromise until someone pointed out that the word afta means cold sore in Brazil! There are a lot of things we'd like to increase intra-hemispheric trade in, but herpes is certainly not one of them!"

This was a good anecdote for several reasons. While it's funny, it does not denigrate anyone or anything in Latin America. The speaker also increased his importance by revealing that his brother works in government - a noteworthy connection. Finally, he uses the full and proper name of his country, the United States of America. Just saying "the United States" is not sufficient in Latin America, since other countries also use that name, including the United States of Mexico.

A week later, John Dough heads for Central and Northern Europe, where he will appear before groups of executives from large companies. In Germany, following his very proper thank-you to the host - even using a few words of German ("Danke schön, Herr Doktor Weiss...") - our speaker attempts to "loosen things up" with a joke. Unfortunately, this does not have the desired effect.

In this part of the world, business is serious business. Humor is not usually part of presentations, negotiations or business in general. German executives, as well as those from Sweden, Switzerland and other Central and Northern European countries, may appear downright stuffy to someone from the U.S. Germans smile to indicate affection, and do not normally bestow "winning" grins upon customers, coworkers or guest speakers.

What they do respond well to are preparation, planning, knowledge, experience and competence. A presentation must be smooth and well- rehearsed, from the very beginning. Every assertion must be backed up by data, but note that comparison advertising - which attacks a competitor - is not acceptable. Punctuality is important - luckily, John Dough's speech begins right on time. And since its content is heavily supported by numbers and hardcore facts, his initial ill- advised attempt at humor may be overlooked. He is also wise to refer to the long history of his financial institution. Established institutions are respected in Germany, where business cards often include the year a firm was founded.

The Middle East, John Dough's next destination, presents him with quite another set of cultural rules to observe. He has chosen his subject matter carefully, to avoid making an inappropriate comment that could be interpreted as an insult to religious sensibilities, women or local cultural traditions.

Speaking to a group of prospective clients in Saudi Arabia, he does not begin his speech with ebullient, sweeping claims to his own or his company's expertise and success. That all-American, can-do attitude does not play well here. A sense of modesty is appreciated, and it extends to all aspects of life, including one's abilities. To the Muslim Saudis, success comes from God more than from man's will. This is why statements or promises from them will often be qualified with the Arabic word inshallah ("God willing").

Modesty aside, John Dough also remembers to repeat all significant information. Arabic is a language of hyperbole. A single "yes" is rarely sufficient; one must say the equivalent of "Yes, yes, indubitably yes!" to be taken seriously.

Every good presenter knows that in addition to verbal language, there is the language of symbols. But there are also cultural guidelines to be heeded here. What works at home may not work abroad.

The graphics in John Dough's multimedia presentation include triangles and bold swaths of yellow. They have been successful elsewhere, but he finds them unsuitable for many Asian clients. In South Korea, the triangles may completely turn off the audience. Triangles carry negative connotations for Koreans. In general, red is the best color for graphics used in Asia. Red is considered lucky, especially among Chinese.

To make a good first impression anywhere with a graphic presentation, all of the materials used must take into consideration whether the audience reads left-to-right, right-to- left or vertically. This could have a direct bearing on their understanding of what is pictured.

This all seems like a rather complicated set of variables to consider in the space of a few opening moments, but John Dough and his company have invested a lot of time and money already, just to get to this point. Understanding how to make a memorable first impression upon his audience gives him an edge - and in today's competitive world, don't we all need every business advantage we can get?

Comment attaquer en beauté

Face à face, un parterre d'investisseurs et le conférencier invité, le banquier John Dough. Notre homme s'avance, confiant. Tout devrait marcher comme sur des roulette. A moins que...

Un investisseur ressemble à un autre. Soit. Faut-il encore connaître les règles de bienséance en usage dans le pays qui vous accueille. S'il est naturel de s'adresser à un PDG en l'interpellant par son prénom aux Etats-Unis, c'est du plus mauvais effet ailleurs. Même chose pour la petite plaisanterie que John Dough a coutume de lancer au début de chaque séance. En Russie, les affaires bancaires sont considérées avec le plus grand sérieux, tout comme en Allemagne, en Suisse ou dans les pays nordiques. Pas question de se moquer du client or de la concurrence. En guise d'introduction, il se contentera de retracer l'histoire de sa banque, et dans sa conférence, il évitera les grandes envolées lyriques. Où qu'il aille, Dough doit se souvenir d'une chose: c'est la première impression qui compte. Et un investisseur coréen n'a rien à voir avec un investisseur suédois...

Auf den richtigen Einstieg kommt's an

Der Saal ist gefüllt mit finanziell potenten Zuhörern, der Redner - nennen wir ihn John Dough -, ein kultivierter, weitgereister Investment Banker aus den USA, schreitet zuversichtlich zum Podium. Er will zu Beginn seiner Rede dem Gastgeber danken, um dann über den Umweg eines kleinen Scherzes in medias res zu gehen. Doch Vorsicht: Der erste Eindruck entscheidet, und in jedem Land herrschen diesbezüglich andere Gesetze!

Während es in Doughs Heimat üblich ist, Personen mit Vornamen anzureden, ist dies ausserhalb der USA fast überall verpönt. In Mexiko sollte Dough trotz endlos langer Familiennamen wissen, welchen Teil des Namens er als Anrede gebraucht. Deutschen schmeichelt er, wenn er sie mit ein paar Worten in ihrer Muttersprache begrüsst, und in allen mittel- und nordeuropäischen Ländern wird erwartet, dass Doughs Vortrag pünktlich beginnt.

Ziemlich kompliziert, nicht wahr? Aber der erst gute Eindruck bringt, wo immer man spricht, nur Vorteile.