Who Should Attend ?

Employees preparing for an assignment in Ecuador 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 Ecuador.

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

• Be aware of their own cultural baggage
• Understand Ecuadorian 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 Ecuadorian  mindset, different 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 personal integration in Ecuador

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 Ecuadorian culture

• An Amerindian state comprising three distinctive regions
• Native, Hispanic and mixed race inhabitants: a multiethnic population
• An ancient and prestigious civilisation
• The impact of colonisation and slavery
• Impressive but insufficiently developed economic resources
• A complex democratic system

3. Ecuadorian values and behaviour patterns

• The importance of family life and marriage
• Costeños and Serranos: identification with one's region of origin
• A patriarchal social structure
• A clearly defined class structure: respect for age and titles
• Religious fervour
• A restricted view of space coupled with a flexible view of time
• Pride and a sense of honour

4. Practical day-to-day information

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

Module 2: Successful professional integration in Ecuador

1. The Ecuadorian corporate world

• An extremely hierarchical organisational structure
• A clear focus on productivity and on the end result
• National and international companies: managerial differences

2. Effective communication with the Ecuadorians

• Frank and direct communication
• Smalltalk, greetings and displays of warmth and emotion
• The widespread use of non-verbal communication
• English for business and Ecuadorian Spanish  

3. Working with Ecuadorian teams

• Effective management: sincerity, leadership and fairness
• Building trust and confidence: listening, supervising and leading by example
• Involving and praising others: encouraging adaptability and personal commitment
• Conflict resolution: understanding and interpreting respect and silence
• Discreet management. Dealing with touchy and sensitive people

4. Successful meetings and negotiations with the Ecuadorians

• Giving relationships that personal touch: the vital role of the human factor
• Appearances are as important as content
• Patience, prudence, tact and perseverance
• 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