So you think you can do business internationally just because you send your employees overseas? You’ve sent your employees to the HR cross cultural class. They learned how to kiss, bow, and shake hands, and now you’re ready to do business internationally, right?

But … wait. Something’s wrong. Why isn’t your international business thriving? Why are you still running into problems with your international counterparts telling you “yes” one day and then not following through?

After working with clients in South East Asia since the 1990’s and living in Malaysia with my family for almost a year conducting research and coaching senior leaders of some of the largest organizations in the region, I’ve gained insight into this pesky long-lasting conundrum that so many international teams have faced: cross-cultural communication problems. Not only have I explored the communication psyche of the senior level executive, but I’ve also studied the perspectives of the multiple levels throughout the ranks. So my insight into this problem is well rounded. I’ll share the problem, and most importantly, how to help minimize it.

The Problem.

The cross-cultural communications problem is a breakdown in the meaning of verbal language and body language. Here are some examples:

• A manager from India speaking to a colleague from the United States comes across as condescending and arrogant without knowing he is conveying that attitude. The Indian feels he is simply showing confidence. To the American, he is being offensive. The American doesn’t respect the manager. How likely is it that the two can form a productive working relationship?

• A man from Singapore meets with a woman from the United States. To him, research means that, if three friends agree on something, it’s a fact. To her, research means paying a firm $50,000 to call and poll people for a month. The man and the woman leave the meeting in agreement that they will research a new product and then go to market with it, but they never discuss the meaning of the term “research.” What do you think will happen when they meet again at the end of the month to do a progress check?

• A manager from Germany delegates a critical job to an Asian subordinate. The subordinate says “yes” after the delegation is complete. Upon the due date, the work is not done. The manager asks “Where is the work?” The subordinate replies, “It’s on my desk.” The manager continues, “Is it done?” Subordinate: “Yes.” Manager: “Can I have it?” Subordinate: “Yes.” Manager: “so where is it?” Subordinate: “On my desk.” Manager: “So why is it on your desk?” Subordinate: “Because I’m still working on it.” Manager: “But you said it was done.” Subordinate: “Yes.”… Sound familiar? The manager becomes frustrated and associates the “yes” comment with deception or incompetence. In reality, it’s a fear of sharing bad news with a source of authority. How can the German manager foster an environment where the Asian subordinate is comfortable enough to transcend her upbringing about disappointing authority to be honest?

• A woman from Malaysia meets with a man from England. They are designing an event for the company. The man from England is discussing the take-aways from the event, and he is referring to lessons that people take away and retain. The woman from Malaysia believes that “take-aways” refer to hand-outs and gifts that people will take away from the event. Do you think the meeting is a productive one or simply causes confusion?

The Fix.

Fortunately, there’s a fix for cross-cultural communication problems. It involves these three actions:

1. Paraphrase. Repeat what others say in your own words to confirm your understanding.

2. Define terms. When it’s your turn to speak, invest time in creating common definitions of terms. It’s okay to stop the flow of the meeting to do so. Taking time now to define your terms – even if it’s only by asking a simple question such as “what do we mean by take-away,” and then answering it – can save time and energy later on. Be patient, and plan for extra time for this.

3. Never assume. Don’t take it for granted that everyone is using terms in the same way. Tone of voice may suggest understanding, but that doesn’t prove that you’re on the same page, so always double-check.

It’s true that communication problems can crop up in non-multicultural environments. But in multicultural environments, communication problems are significantly worse. If you’re prepared for them, you’ll avoid costly communication breakdowns and strengthen productivity in meetings.

Pay attention to the fix, and you’ll thrive. Don’t, and you’re wasting valuable time.

Ethan F. Becker is the author of “Mastering Communication at Work” (McGraw-Hill) and President of The Speech Improvement Company. Visit him online at www.speechimprovement.com/.

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Between September and December 2011, CEOs, presidents, and chairmen from the world’s leading companies were asked to identify the most pressing challenges they face in today’s business environment. Nearly 800 survey respondents then named their top strategies for addressing each problem, creating a dynamic picture of executive thinking across continents and industries.

Leaders in each of the three regions surveyed named a different top challenge for 2012:

– In the U.S., CEOs say government regulation is the most critical challenge they face, followed by global political and economic risk, innovation, and human capital. CEOs are viewing the growing uncertainty of the overall regulatory environment as a hindrance to long-term planning.
– European CEOs cite global political and economic risk as their primary challenge, followed by innovation and government regulation, with cost optimization and global expansion tied for fourth. Europe was the only region not to rank human capital concerns in its top five.
– Among Asian CEOs, the most critical challenge is innovation, followed closely by human capital. Global expansion and sustainability tied for third place. In a time of rapid economic development and change for the continent, Asia was the only region to rank sustainability as a top-five challenge for 2012.

Despite these differences at the top, CEO Challenge 2012 nevertheless revealed a number of broad global trends. Overall, CEOs cited innovation, human capital, global and economic risk, government regulation, and global expansion as the top five most critical challenges they face.

Across industries and geographies, innovation—of products, processes, organization designs, and business models—was never far from executives’ minds. Moreover, CEOs perceive innovation to be intimately linked to other challenges. Intriguingly, even as they continue to identify technology as the number-one driver of innovation, many leaders are exploring ways to leverage human capital to gain an innovation edge on competitors. From marketing and communications to working conditions and training, nourishing the human element of innovation appears to be gaining steam as a long-term strategy.

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The Alternative Federal Budget shows that a number of services that work towards reducing inequality among Canadians are possible given the current federal government’s budget framework. For post-secondary education, students are recommending four concrete budget steps to ensure students and their families are not being left out:

– Create a new dedicated cash transfer aimed at reducing tuition fees
– Increase the value and number of up-front grants to improve access to post-secondary education
– Remove the funding cap on the Post-Secondary Student Support Program to meet the needs of all First Nations students
– Increase federal granting agencies’ base budgets and increase the number of Canada Graduate Scholarships to maintain independent, public research

The Alternative Federal Budget’s chapter on post-secondary education and costing details can be found here. In addition, the many other chapters of the CCPA’s Alternative Federal Budget, including health, housing, immigration, security and the environment can be found here.

The Canadian Federation of Students is Canada’s largest student organisation, uniting more that one-half million students in all ten provinces. The Federation and its predecessor organisations have represented students in Canada since 1927.

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Under the terms of the settlement, SAIC will pay $500.4 million in restitution and penalties, and an independent monitor will be appointed by the United States Attorney’s Office for three years to review certain Company policies and practices. The United States Attorney’s Office has charged the Company with a single criminal count related to CityTime, but will defer prosecution based upon, among other things, the Company’s cooperation with the investigation, remediation efforts and acceptance of responsibility.

The Government has agreed to dismiss the charge without prosecution in three years if SAIC complies with the terms of the deferred prosecution agreement.

CityTime is an automated workforce management system that covers some 163,000 New York City employees in 65 agencies and that saves the City time and money every day.

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On Tuesday, March 13 at 11 a.m. eastern time, Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels will conduct a town hall teleconference with No Labels members across America to discuss the dire state of America’s finances and ways to fix the current budget crisis.

“Everyone in Washington knows America’s fiscal situation is completely unsustainable, and that it is indeed ‘the most predictable crisis.’ But there aren’t enough leaders willing to do something about it,” said Gov. Daniels. “The problem isn’t only how much money we spend. It’s also how we spend it.”

“It’s clear that gridlock is preventing us from finding common sense solutions to our long-term fiscal problems,” said No Labels Co-Founder Mark McKinnon. “This telephone town hall event is a valuable opportunity for the No Labels community to hear directly from a budget expert with practical experience at both the state and federal levels.”

“Governor Daniels knows that balancing a budget requires tough decisions and working across the aisle,” said No Labels Co-Founder Rep. Tom Davis. “This is the type of leadership that No Labels expects from our politicians and I know that our members are eager to speak with Governor Daniels.”

No Labels is a group of Republicans, Democrats and Independents dedicated to making American government work again.

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The National Coalition for Safer Roads (NCSR) supports speed enforcement and the GHSA’s recommendations.

“We have become very complacent in the U.S. about speeding and the GHSA report is right on target,” said David Kelly, president and executive director of NCSR, and former acting administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). “Automated enforcement like red light and speed safety cameras help local law enforcement agencies aggressively catch those that break the law and recklessly endanger others on the road. It would be careless not to consider the positive impact of these technologies. It is time for everyone to say ‘Enough is enough, we must start slowing down.’”

NCSR was organized as an industry trade association with the express purpose of advocating on behalf of the traffic safety technology industry. NCSR is proud to advocate for the use of red light safety cameras in more than 600 communities across the country to change reckless driver behavior, stop red-light running and save lives. NCSR is supported by American Traffic Solutions, with coalition partners including the National Safety Council; Safe Kids USA; Child Safety Network; National Organizations for Youth Safety; America Walks; and Red Means Stop, as well as numerous police departments, medical professionals, safety advocates, industry leaders, community leaders and concerned citizens. View NCSR Partners . For more information, visit http://www.NCSRsafety.org/ , follow @SaferRoadsUSA on Twitter and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/SaferRoadsUSA .

SOURCE National Coalition for Safer Roads

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“This peaceful protest exposes the fact that the DSM-5 pushes the mental health industry to medicalize problems that aren’t medical, inevitably leading to over-prescription of psychiatric drugs – including for people experiencing natural human emotions, such as grief and shyness,” said David Oaks, founder and director of MindFreedom International (MFI), which has worked for 26 years as an independent voice of survivors of psychiatric human rights violations. “We call for better ways to help individuals in extreme emotional distress.”

Occupy the APA will begin at 10 a.m. at Friends Center (1515 Cherry Street, Philadelphia), where the speakers will also include Dr. Paula Caplan, a psychologist, playwright and activist from California; Dr. Al Galves, director of the International Society for Ethical Psychology & Psychiatry (ISEPP); Joseph Rogers, chief advocacy officer of the Mental Health Association of Southeastern Pennsylvania (MHASP); and Dr. Stefan P. Kruszewski, a whistleblower who was fired by the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare after he reported the abuse and deaths of Pennsylvania children as a result of systemic physical and psychiatric malfeasance. His subsequent federal lawsuit was successfully settled in 2007.

The rally will be followed by a march to the Pennsylvania Convention Center at 12th and Arch Streets, where participants will hold a protest at 1:30 p.m.

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Earlier this month, Governor Sandoval released “Moving Nevada Forward: A Plan for Excellence in Economic Development 2012-2014,” and Nevadans throughout the state have begun strategic discussions to create new partnerships, jobs, and investments.

“The conversations will undoubtedly lead to the expansion of the many economic ties that link Nevada and Israel,” Governor Sandoval said. “I want Nevada to hit the ground running when we visit Israel or any of the nations with whom we are considering trade missions.”

As a result, the Trade Mission organized with Consul General David Siegel of Israel in Los Angeles will be rescheduled for a future date.

The Nevada Governor’s Office of Economic Development is dedicated to the diversification of the Nevada economy. More information on the NGOED can be obtained at www.diversifynevada.com.

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Estes, 37, a resident of Modesto has been charged with six counts of dealing firearms without a license, six counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm, two counts of possessing a machine gun and silencer, and conspiracy to commit a federal crime. Webber, 35, resident of Lathrop has been charged with one count of aiding and abetting the dealing of firearms without a license and conspiracy to commit a federal crime.

Beginning in November 2011 to February 2012, ATF conducted a proactive firearms trafficking investigation and made undercover purchases of numerous firearms from Estes including two suspected Machine Guns, AR 15 Type Weapons, AK-74 Rifle, silencer, as well as other long guns and hand guns, and approximately 450 rounds of .223 ammunition. Webber aided and abetted the dealing of firearms without a license. Estes attempted to purchase an M-60 Machine Gun on Friday during the pre-arranged undercover meet with ATF undercover agents just prior to his arrest. After Estes was taken into custody ATF seized eight additional firearms, and alleged controlled substances. Subsequent to the service of a search warrant at Estes’ residence, ATF located and seized several more firearms.

The two appeared Monday in U.S. District Court in Sacramento, CA. on a criminal complaint alleging the above mentioned violations. Estes is prohibited by federal law from possessing firearms because of prior felony convictions.

A criminal complaint is merely an allegation and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. This investigation was conducted by the ATF, and Task Force Officers from Stockton Police Departments, and the Stanislaus District Attorney’s Office. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jason Hitt.

ATF is the federal agency with jurisdiction for investigating firearms violations. More information on ATF can be found at www.atf.gov.

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In the column (“Will Regulated Corporations Earn the Right to Throw a Red Challenge Flag?”), the veteran environmental attorney outlines how provisions of key regulations—including the Clean Water and Clean Air acts—have been interpreted to mean that regulated parties have no right to go to court and challenge expensive and difficult directions handed to them by the EPA or other agencies.

Kosch, a Newark-based shareholder in LeClairRyan’s Tort Defense Practice and a director of the New Jersey State Bar Association’s environmental law section, likens the situation to the National Football League back when coaches had no ability to throw a red flag and challenge close calls on the field. Today, regulated citizens and companies “must often undertake extremely expensive response actions that may make little or no economic, scientific or technical sense,” he writes. “The regulated party is further constrained into unwilling compliance because the same statutes provide for draconian civil penalties of $25,000 or more for each day [the regulated party] remains out of compliance.”

However, the U.S. Supreme Court recently heard oral arguments in the case of Sackett v. EPA, No. 10-1062, in which an Idaho couple decided that enough was enough and took their case all the way to the top. As Kosch explains, the Sacketts had planned to build a home on a half-acre parcel they owned. Prior to construction, they filled in what the EPA later claimed was a wetland. The EPA issued an administrative compliance order asserting that the Sacketts had violated the Clean Water Act. The couple was ordered to remove the fill material, restore the supposed wetland to its original condition and take other action or face penalties of nearly $40,000 a day.

While it will be months before the Court’s decision is reported, the case might well indicate a growing concern in the judiciary that the due process rights of the regulated community are under threat, even in matters as ordinary as the Sacketts’ project, Kosch writes. It might also signal a growing willingness of property owners and companies to assert their right to throw the red challenge flag at perceived regulatory excesses.

In football, the refs repeat a timeworn phrase each time they announce the results of a challenge: “Based on further review, the ruling on the field …” If the Sackett family does win, agencies will have more incentive to act reasonably and regulated entities might just gain the ability to mount a challenge. “After that scarlet challenge flag flies through the air,” Kosch writes in the conclusion to the piece, “a court might find that, ‘upon further review,’ regulators have been arbitrary and capricious.”

Read the full column at http://www.corporatecomplianceinsights.com/will-regulated-corporations-earn-the-right-to-throw-a-red-challenge-flag/

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