Who Should Attend ?

Employees preparing for an assignment in the Netherlands and their partners

Benefits of Attendance

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 the Netherlands.

At the end of this training, participants will have acquired insights and techniques to:

• Be aware of their own cultural baggage
• Understand Dutch context and culture
• Analyse situations in which misunderstandings may arise and identify ways of communicating more effectively
• Reduce and manage the symptoms of culture shock
• Understand Dutch mindset, work practices, decision-making processes and negotiating styles
• Strike the right balance between personal et professional lives

Training Approach

• A cross-cultural approach of International Mobility
• Country specific trainers
• Personalized and familiy focused action plan
• Access to the Nomad’ Network, an exclusive online tool for Akteos’ clients and experts:  find resources, exchange experiences, knowledge and insights

Programme Outline

Module 1 : Successful personnal integration in the Netherlands

1. Cross-cultural awareness : the key to a successful expatriation

• Taking stock of one's own cultural baggage
• Culture shock and the integration process
• Identifying and going beyond cultural stereotypes

2. Key aspects of the Dutch culture

• From the United Northern Provinces to the Kingdom of the Netherlands
• The nation's trading heritage
• From a seafaring nation to an international economy
• The challenges facing Dutch society in the 21st century

3. Dutch values and behaviour patterns

• The impact of Protestantism
• "Verdraagzaamheid": the philosophy of tolerance
• The family unit as a protective sphere
• Egalitarianism and sociability
• A highly organised view of time
• An ability to focus on the essentials and to see the bigger picture

4. Practical day-to-day information

• Focus on the host town or city
• Transport, administration, housing, security, hygiene and healthcare
• Social life, leisure activities
• Learning the language
• Schools, extracurricular activities, sport

Module 2 : Successful professionnal integration in the Netherlands

1. The Dutch corporate world

• An informal but nevertheless decisive hierarchical structure
• Consensus-based decision-making
• Professional ethics
• The role of the state and the authorities

2. Effective communication with the Dutch

• Distance and formality
• Frankness and lucidity
• English used for business.  Learning Dutch is an added advantage

3. Working with Dutch teams

• Promoting a friendly atmosphere
• Effective management: professionalism and personal commitment
• Conflict resolution: personal respect and a willingness to involve mediators
• Encouraging creative autonomy and cooperation
• Motivating, delegating, providing feedback, boosting self-esteem

4. Successful meetings and negotiations with the Dutch

• Getting the most from dialogue and contact. Demonstrating your expertise
• Proposing, acting and reacting
• Paying careful attention to deadlines and presentation
• Written contracts, their interpretation and implications

5. Final handy tips

• Caution, patience and humility
• Social standards, gifts, business cards, dress code
• Sensitive subjects: politics, history, religion
• Humour: a double-edged sword