Jordan - Working and dealing with the Jordanians
Objectives
The aim of this seminar is to significantly improve the participants’ effectiveness in their professional relationships with the Jordanians, enabling them to be operational right from the start.
At the end of this training, participants will have acquired insights and techniques to to:
- Be aware of their own cultural baggage
- Fully understand Jordanian context and culture
- Analyse possible situations in which misunderstandings may arise and identify ways of communicating
- Reduce stress and misunderstandings
- Decipher and understand Jordanian decision-making and negotiation processes
Programme Outline
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 Jordanian culture
- The Hashemite Kingdom
- A strategic area in a vital region for European imperialism
- Transjordan and the West Bank: understanding the historical context
- Palestinians, Bedouins and migrants, islam and Christianity
- All the richness and diversity of a thousand-year-old civilisation
- Democratisation and development: challenges for the 21st century.
3. The impact of values and behaviour patterns on professional dealings and relationships
- The family, the clan and the tribe, honour and hospitality
- Jordanian women: between emancipation and discrimination
- The importance attached to status
- A flexible view of time
- A direct and measured communication style
4. The Jordanian corporate world
- The public and private sectors: significant differences
- The value attached to experience and seniority
- A clearly observed hierarchy, privilege and favouritism
- The market, employment and turnover
- The role of the state and the authorities
Module 2 : Succeeding in work with the Jordanians
1. Effective communication with the Jordanians
- Conversation and "small talk": creating the right atmosphere
- The importance of networking
- The common use of English and the day-to-day use of Arabic: the keys to easier integration
- Verbal and unspoken communication
- The circulation of information, networks
2. Adapting your working methods
- Effective management: an enterprising spirit, adaptability and a willingness to make a real effort
- Building trust and confidence: an ability to listen
- Deciding and informing
- Generating motivation and loyalty among teams: making the most of comparative advantages
- Conflict avoidance
- Pitfalls to be avoided
3. Successful meetings and negotiations with the Jordanians
- Creating a favourable climate
- Identifying decision-makers
- Qualifying your statements. Showing respect
- Attitudes to contracts and their implications
- Time, priority and deadline management
- Understanding written contracts, their interpretation and implications
- Organising 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
