Importance of Business Etiquette – Why is it necessary ?

A major aspect to building successful business relationships is as appreciation for the business etiquette appropriate to the culture and context. Proper business etiquette can help you maximise your results from business interactions whether you are in New Delhi, Tokyo or Seoul. If someone is comfortable around you and vice versa, this means that better relationship and mutual trust will develop. This can create the comfort zone for your clients and customers that is required for a business relationship to thrive.

Indian Business Etiquette Course, Delhi

When communicating with others, especially if they happen to belong to a culture different than yours, it is important to remember to do two things:

• ·         Ensure consideration of the feelings and cultural background of others
• ·         Minimize misunderstanding and miscommunication

People from different cultures have different rules for acceptable social behaviour. It is therefore important to have an understanding of the business etiquette of a country especially when your business revolves around meeting with people of that country. For example, while being forthright with criticism can be considered acceptable in one country, it may be considered anathema in others. So what are the aspects of a foreign culture’s business etiquette that need to be learned in order to avoid mistakes and build a strong business relationship? Some of them are given below:

Greetings

Not every country in the world uses handshakes as the preferred means of greeting. For example, in Japan, the bow is considered more appropriate. In some traditional Indian businesses, a Namaste with folded hands may go a long way in showing your appreciation for local culture. Even the tone of greeting can vary by culture. A loud “Hello” with a back slap may be appropriate in open cultures, but perhaps a more toned down and respectful approach could be called for in some others. In some countries, like South Korea, it may actually be more appropriate to wait for a 3^rd party to introduce you rather than to walk up to someone and introduce yourself. Knowing the local preferences with respect to greetings can help overcome the first barrier to building a relationship.

Behaviour

Imagine a potential client not shaking your hand or refusing the offer of having a meal together. Perhaps in your culture, this may be considered rude and you may feel disrespected. Or, someone not saying ‘Thank You’ for a gift or ‘Sorry’ for being late to a meeting may be construed as lacking in manners. And yet, perhaps the response of the client may be completely justified from their own cultural perspective. Indian or international business etiquette courses help appreciate the in-and-outs of such behavioural expectations.

Words

Words which might not be so wrong in your book but may be offensive to a foreign client. And this is not just swear words or “bad” words said inadvertently, this is also relevant for the tone, context and tone of the words. For example, while in Dutch society, it may be ok for a lower-ranking employee to contradict someone higher up in the hierarchy, this is not so acceptable in India. Taking it a step further, in Japan, it may not even be appropriate for you to contradict your business partner in front of his team, even if he or she is wrong! This may cause your Japanese counterpart to lose “face” and damage your relationship with them.

Appearance

Just like different industries, different cultures can also require different dressing codes. Part of understanding international business etiquette is to know how to dress appropriately for a meeting with international stakeholders.

Apart from these, there are several other nuances of doing business internationally that can be learned through Indian and international business etiquette courses, such as dining, gift giving, following up, negotiating and so on.  Indian / International business etiquette courses can give you an appreciation for doing business around the world, whether in New Delhi or London or Amsterdam. 

iRikai is India’s leading Business Etiquette trainers located in New Delhi. Following customary decorum for the smallest detail in business matters pave way to success. 

For more please visit  : http://irikai.com/Indian-Business-Etiquette-course-Delhi