Who Should Attend ?

Employees preparing for an assignment in Togo 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 Togo.

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

• Be aware of their own cultural baggage
• Understand Togolese 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 Togolese 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 Togo

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 Togolese culture

• A west African nation with six geographical regions
•  The legacy of French colonisation and of the German protectorate
• A racially-mixed multiethnic population
• The scars left by Togo’s violent political history
• An economic situation of significant international interest

3. Togolese values and behaviour patterns

• The importance of family life
• Hospitality and a sense of honour
• A highly patriarchal society
• Animism and voodoo: spirituality as part of daily life
• The importance of local and tribal values
• Respect for elders and for status
• An adaptable approach to time

4. Practical day-to-day information in Togolese

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

Module 2 : Successful professionnal integration in Togolese

1. The Togolese corporate world

• An employer-focused, paternalistic corporate environment
• Nepotism, privileges and favouritism
• A precarious labour market

2. Effective communication with Togolese counterparts

•  The importance of networking
• Understanding hidden messages and non-verbal communication
• A prudent and reserved communication style
• The French language and local dialects

3. Working with Togolese colleagues

• Effective management: perspective, expertise and leadership
• Building trust and confidence: a willingness to listen, moderation and fairness
• Supervising, explaining and adapting
• Successfully penetrating vertical decision-making processes

4. Successful meetings and negotiations with the Togolese

• Trading skills
• Approaching the right people, the right way
• Building and maintaining long-term partnerships
• 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