Countries and Regions
Deciphering cultural codes of 100+ countries or regions to understand behaviors and optimize one' s professional action
Working with Congo
Summary
Target audience
Employees preparing for an assignment in the Republic of the Congo and their partners
Prerequisite
No prerequisite
Objectives
This seminar aims at significantly improving the ability of the participants to meet the challenges of living and working abroad. The objective is to enable them to identify the stumbling blocks that lie ahead and to be able to adapt and integrate in Congo-Brazzaville.
At the end of this training, participants will have acquired the necessary skills to:
- Be aware of their own cultural baggage
- Understand Congolese context and culture
- Analyze situations in which misunderstandings may arise and identify ways of communicating more effectively
- Reduce and manage the symptoms of culture shock
- Understand the Congolese mindset, different work practices, decision-making
- Strike the right balance between personal and professional life
Added value
- Conducted by an intercultural expert consultant
- Decoding the Nomad’ Profiler
- Alternating theory and practical exercises
- Access to Digital Learning for 1 year
- Sharing best practices and personalized action plan
ACCESSIBILITY
All our training courses are accessible to people with disabilities. Each training project will be the subject of a case study by our teams, in order to adapt the training program.
Program
Module 1 : Understanding cultural differences
1. Intercultural awareness, the key to success in international business
- Taking stock of one's own cultural baggage
- The basics of effective intercultural management
- Identifying and going beyond cultural stereotypes
2. Key aspects of Congolese culture
- A Western sub-Saharan state with a distinctive tropical climate
- An ancient civilization. Heirs to an impressive empire
- Colonization, AEF (French Equatorial Africa), coups d'état and civil wars
- A young, urban, multi-ethnic and multilingual population
- Enviable resources, though not fully exploited due to poor management
3. The impact of values and behaviour patterns on professional dealings and relationships
- The importance attached to tribal origins and clan membership
- The importance of family life and identification with the community
- Respect for age and status
- A class-based society
- Religion, superstition and mystical beliefs
- A flexible vision of time, which takes account of hazards and unexpected events
- A strong attachment to the natural environment
4. The Congolese corporate world
- A paternalistic corporate structure
- Major differences in management styles between small businesses and international groups
- Privileges and favoritism: corruption and political influence
Module 2 : Succeeding in work with the Congolese
1. Effective communication with the Congolese
- Greetings, politeness and interpersonal skills
- The importance and meanings of non-verbal communication
- Identifying and understanding implicit communication
- The role of rumors and reputation: the importance of avoiding mistakes
- The French language and dialects used in business
2. Adapting your working methods
- Effective management: experience, education and leadership
- Building trust and confidence: supervising, advising and encouraging
- Encouraging initiatives in order to promote feedback
- Striking the right balance between proximity and distance
- Pitfalls to be avoided
3. Successful meetings and negotiations with the Congolese
- Giving relationships that personal touch: meeting decision-makers
- Proposing, adapting and persevering
- Forging long-term relationships
- Understanding written contracts, their interpretation and implications
- Organizing the post-negotiation phase
4. Final handy tips
- Caution, patience and humility
- Protocol and etiquette
- Social standards, gifts, business cards, dress code
- Sensitive subjects: politics, history, religion
- Humour: a double-edged sword
Intra-company coursesDuration: to define
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