50 Activities for Achieving Cultural Competence

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26

Managing Time across Cultures

JohnBing,President,ITAPInternational,Inc.

Princeton,NewJersey,USA

Purposeandlearningobjectives

By providing the participant with specific information about how time is perceived and

organized in the country of interest and by facilitating discussion about the implication of

differences and development of coping strategies, the participant will be better prepared to

avoid time-related misunderstandings and to successfully accomplish his or her business

objectives in the designated country.

• To make the participant aware of how culture can impact attitudes about time

• To provide the participant with specific information about what typical daily, weekly, and

holiday or vacation schedules are like in a designated country, and how these compare to

corresponding schedules in his or her home country

• To facilitate discussion about the strategies that the participant may need to employ to

adjust to differences in how time is perceived and managed (in a business environment) in

the country of interest

Targetaudience

This activity is geared to relocating international assignees or business professionals who will

be spending substantial periods of time conducting business in another country. It is gener-

ally best co-facilitated by a trainer and in-country specialist, but can be facilitated solo by a

trainer with the requisite expertise in the country of interest. It is ideally suited for use with a

single individual, but can be modified for use in a small group.

Time

10 to 20 minutes for presentation of information and discussion, depending on the partici-

pant’s interest and focus

Materials

• Handout 1, “The Business Day,” Handout 2, “The Business Week,” and Handout 3, “The

Business Year—Vacation Holidays” prepared in advance by the trainer or by a country

specialist, if available

• (Optional) Flipchart and markers

50ActivitiesforAchievingCulturalCompetency

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Procedure

The procedure is the same for all three sections: 1. Daily schedule; 2. Weekly schedule;

3. Holiday or vacation schedule.

1. Have the participant jot down what each of these schedules typically looks like for him or

her in his or her home country.

2. Provide the participant with the country-specific information relating to a typical schedule

in his or her country of interest, either verbally or in a handout.

3. Discuss with the participant the implications of time-use differences between his or her

home country and his or her country of interest. Examples of discussion questions include,

but are not limited to, the following:

How and when are meetings with colleagues and clients scheduled?

When are reports due?

How are deadlines and priorities handled?

What are the expectations of superiors and subordinates?

How important is punctuality?

If the differences between the participant’s home country and their country of interest

are great, what adjustments or strategies might they have to employ?

What might the participant need to know or clarify about their particular assignment

or project regarding time-use issues?

Debrief

(Optional) Discuss with the participants what were the most surprising or significant learn-

ings and discoveries from doing the activity.

ManagingTimeacrossCultures



Reproducedfrom50ActivitiesforAchievingCulturalCompetence,byJonamayLambert,

SelmaMyers,andGeorgeSimons,editors.Amherst,MA:HRDPress,2000,2008

[Handout1–page1]

The Business Day

National (or even corporate) cultures vary in the way in which time is managed during the busi-

ness day. Please sketch out below one of your typical days. Use the capital letters below to indi-

cate the timing of the following features of your day:

A. When you rise

B. Any work you do before you get to your office (including use of your cell phone)

C. When you get to work

D. Morning meetings

E. When you have lunch and for how long

F. Afternoon meetings

G. When you leave work

H. Whether or not you work at home and, if so, for how long

I. Bedtime

Visualize a typical day with your current workload; lunch is a business lunch with a client or

supplier you have met once. Plan two morning meetings and one afternoon meeting.

Example:Atypicalday



ABCDDEFFGHI

6:30 8:30 9:00 9:45 11:00 12:00 -

1:00

1:30 3:00 5:00 6:30 10:30





50ActivitiesforAchievingCulturalCompetency



Reproducedfrom50ActivitiesforAchievingCulturalCompetence,byJonamayLambert,

SelmaMyers,andGeorgeSimons,editors.Amherst,MA:HRDPress,2000,2008

[Handout1–page2]

Typicaldayofamanagerinyournewculture

(To be filled in by the trainer or by the in-country specialist)

A B C D E F G H I

Yourtypicalday:

A B C D E F G H I

Notes:

ManagingTimeacrossCultures



Reproducedfrom50ActivitiesforAchievingCulturalCompetence,byJonamayLambert,

SelmaMyers,andGeorgeSimons,editors.Amherst,MA:HRDPress,2000,2008

[Handout2]

The Business Week

National (or even corporate) cultures vary in the way in which time is managed during the busi-

ness week. Use the chart below to compare typical weeks in your country of origin and your

destination country. Place the days in the blocks to show how you picture a typical week.

Yourtypicalweek:

Typicalweekofamanagerinyournewculture:

(To be filled in by the trainer or by the in-country specialist)