Who Should Attend ?

Employees preparing for an assignment in Guinea 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 Guinea.

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

• Be aware of their own cultural baggage
• Understand Guinean 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 Guinean mindset, work practices, decision-making processes and negotiating styles
• Strike the right balance between personal et professional lives

Programme Outline

Module 1 : Successful personnal integration in Guinea

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 Guinean culture

• West African nation long known for its resources
• A multiethnic society
• The Muslim traditions of this secular state
• The impact of French colonisation
• The stigma left by years of repression and political instability

3. Guinean values and behaviour patterns

• Family values
• The changing status of Guinean women
• A sense of friendship and personal relationships
• A rather haphazard view of time
• A respect for age and status
• A community-based tradition: the significant role of tribes and ethnic groups

4. Practical day to day information

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

Module 2 : Successful professionnal integration in Guinea

1. The Guinean corporate world

• A hierarchical and paternalistic company structure
• Formality and etiquette: an integral part of business life
• Differences in working methods and the notion of quality
• The role of politics and influential friends

2. Effective communication with the Guineans

• An oral tradition
• The importance of non-verbal communication
• The deceptive advantage offered by the use of the French language

3. Working with Guinean teams

• Effective management: a businesslike attitude, leadership and temperance
• Building trust and confidence: perseverance and humanity
• Supervising: dealing with touchy or sensitive people
• Encouraging feedback
• Striking the right balance between firmness and flexibility

4. Successful meetings and negotiations with the Guineans

• Forging relationships: the importance of small-talk and socialising
• Meeting the right people
• Establishing your credibility
• The importance of keeping your word

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