• +44 0330 027 0207
  • +1 (818) 532-6908

When I'm not hanging out in the beautiful sunshine of Africa, you will find me here sharing content about culture - you'll soon see why I'm called the Culture Vulture.

What are Some Quirky Facts About The Culture of the USA?

What are Some Quirky Facts About The Culture of the USA?

We spend most of our time here working on serious cultural stuff, such as, how to negotiate successfully with the Americans, or, how to give good service to American customers.

Every so often however, we feel that need to go off at a tangent and indulge in some of the quirkier aspects of culture!

Continue reading

What's the Date in Saudi Arabia?

hilal-saudi-moon

Many people doing business with Saudi Arabia are usually surprised to find that the date in Saudi Arabia is over 500 years behind that of dates in the West.

Why is the date different in Saudi Arabia?

Continue reading

What are Some Common Stereotypes of Saudi Arabia?

riyadh-bok-fair

Saudi Arabia has become an almost permanent fixture in Western news.

With the murder of Jamal Khashoggi and the continued carnage in Yemen which threatens to spiral into the worst global famine this generation, the spotlight placed on Saudi Arabia has been almost completely negative.

Continue reading

How Disrespecting the Thai Royal Family Can Land you in Jail

thai_royals_on_balcony

Love for the royal family is deeply ingrained in Thai culture.

You can’t help but see pictures of the recently deceased King and his newly appointed son wherever you go in Thailand.

Continue reading

Cultural Insights for Doing Business & Working in Thailand

phuket-buddha

If you’re off to Thailand for business or moving there as an expat, then we have compiled some essential cultural facts to give you an insight into Thai culture before you go.

By understanding the culture, you are best placed to get the most out of your time in Thailand and to make it a memorable experience for all the right reasons.

Continue reading

The Essential Guide to Blended Learning in Cultural Competence Training

The Essential Guide to Blended Learning in Cultural Competence Training

The training world is evolving at an incredible pace.

Indeed, discussions of blended learning by L&D professionals have quickly moved beyond ‘why do we need it?’ to ‘how do we do it?’

Continue reading

How to Enhance Online Learning with Games

typewriter-elearning

The culture of learning and development within most organisations has changed dramatically.

Although online learning programmes are now recognised by the majority of corporate businesses as a great way to train busy and mobile staff, there has traditionally been more resistance to using stand-alone games.

Continue reading

How Can Online Training Benefit Your Business?

team-watch-course

In a rapidly changing training world, learning trend reviews reference terminology which would have been incomprehensible to learning and development professionals not so long ago.

With terms such as E-Learning, Mobile Learning, Online Learning, Gamification and Virtual Learning, peppering our training conversations, the training culture has changed dramatically.

Continue reading

Is the 70-20-10 Model Still Relevant to Online Cross Cultural Training?

Is the 70-20-10 Model Still Relevant to Online Cross Cultural Training?

If you work in Learning and Development, then it’s likely you know about the 70-20-10 Model.

If not, then it can be simply summarised as the work of three academics in the 80s who used extensive research to establish optimal learning conditions.

Continue reading

Hospitality, Food & Friendship in Arab Business Culture

arab-man-talks-foreigner

Being a good host is a central part of life in the Middle East and it is an underpinning value that everyone in the region shares.

The roots of this can be found in the tribal system whereby treating guests well is traditionally a way of gaining honour.

Continue reading

How do I know if Online Training Programmes are Effective?

learning-professional-at-work

As a member of a Learning and Development team, you have probably invested considerable time developing, or purchasing, online training programmes in line with staff training strategies.

Purchasing online or e-learning programmes can be a minefield; there’s often so much to choose from and no two training programmes are the same.

Continue reading

Japanese Cultural Values and their Influence on Business

japan-smiley-lantersn

To understand Japanese business culture, it's essential that you first appreciate Japanese cultural values.

Why?

Continue reading

Three Key Cultural Differences for Indians Working in the USA

indian-IT-professionals-office

Did you know that Indians form the second largest group of immigrants in America, with Mexicans taking the top spot?

Although Indian expats may enter the US with a typically high level of education under their belts and a strong work ethic, they often find cultural differences between the US and India quite a challenge.

Continue reading

How well do you know your E-Learning from your M-Learning, Online, Digital, Blended or Virtual Learning?

How well do you know your E-Learning from your M-Learning, Online, Digital, Blended or Virtual Learning?

Gone are the days when learning was a simple classroom transaction between trainer and student.

With the learning revolution in full flow, our classroom can be an airport boarding lounge, train, café, sitting room – and, let’s face it – even the toilet.

Continue reading

How Cultural Differences Can Destroy Customer Experience

CX-manager-smiling

We all know that a positive customer experience (CX) drives repeat business, increased turnover and higher profits.

Companies who work hard to ensure their customers have a positive experience certainly reap the rewards of their efforts.

Continue reading

Why Joining The TPP Spells 'Cultural Competence' for British Business

Why Joining The TPP Spells 'Cultural Competence' for British Business

With a ‘no deal’ Brexit looming, the need to trade outside of Europe is becoming a reality for many British businesses.

In fact, just this week, Japanese Prime Minister, Shinzō Abe told Britain we’d be welcome to join the Pacific Free Trade Pact (TPP) following our European exit if we’re unable to leave with a deal intact.

Continue reading

Stereotypes & Bias in Cultural Competence Training

professional-woman-in-course

Essential to any sort of cultural awareness training are the two key concepts of stereotypes and bias.

As we touched on in an earlier blog, a common trap many of us naturally fall into when we are working in a cross-cultural situation is to let our own cultural lens get in the way.

Continue reading

Why E-Learning Works for Cultural Competence Training

Why E-Learning Works for Cultural Competence Training

Online training for cross-cultural skills is in high demand. So why are corporate training stakeholders turning to e-learning?

Traditional face-to-face training has become more of a challenge over the past 15 or so years.

Continue reading

Honour, Face & Shame in Arab Culture

bedouin-face-woman

Doing business in the Middle East?

Then you need to understand the role of honour in the Arab world.

Continue reading

Why is Cultural Competence Important in Training?

two-culturally-competent-people

Why do we focus on culture in corporate training? Is it really all that important?

Understanding the role culture plays in our lives is very important.

Continue reading