Webinar: Intercultural Competence for Working in an International Environment

The ongoing internationalization process at the Vienna University of Economics and Business and at universities across Europe means that more and more faculty and staff members have to work in an international environment, with a large number of international students and staff. The cultural diversity that comes with this is enriching, but can also lead to astonishment and misunderstandings, and even conflicts.

In this workshop, participants will deal with cultural differences without ignoring commonalities or falling into stereotypes - because even if two people have grown up in the same culture, they can have a very different understanding of "their culture". 

Target Group

The webinar is intended for all faculty and staff members at the Vienna University of Economics and Business and partner universities across Europe (Engage.EU) who want to improve their intercultural skills. We especially recommend this webinar for those who have contact with international students or work with international colleagues.

Goals

At the end of the webinar, you will have become familiar with models of intercultural communication and practiced applying them in practice using concrete examples. You will have expanded your intercultural competences and gained more confidence in dealing with people from different cultural backgrounds.

Content

Introduction: Interculturality and Cultural Awareness

• Cultural diversity in the academic field

Communication:

• Culturally different communication patterns and their meanings
• Politeness expectations in email correspondence and in interactions in cultural comparison
• Perception of subtle verbal communication signals in speech, pauses in speech, interrupting, intonation and their cultural meaning

Non-verbal Communication:

• Dealing with cultural differences in temperament, expression of emotions
• Perception of subtle non-verbal signals such as head movements, smiles, silence

Working and studying across cultures:

• Cultural differences in approach to tasks
• Students' expectations of lecturers or professors

Cultural differences in hierarchical and egalitarian thinking:

• Expression of authority or equality

Time management:

• Dealing with punctuality, adherence to time frames

Handling Regulations:

• Rule orientation and particularistic behavior across cultures

Methods

• Theoretical input, examples from Europe, Asia, America 
• Selected examples and case studies
• Photographs and videos for illustration
• Moderated discussion and exchange of experiences

In cooperation with
 

This course is part of the ENGAGE.EU Staff Academy, an initiative to enable academic and administrative staff to take part in workshops across the partner universities of ENGAGE.EU (an alliance of leading European universities in business, economics, and the social sciences). Enhancing the professional skills of our staff is at the core of the ENGAGE.EU staff academy - an opportunity for you to access intercultural courses and new and rich experiences.

Registration process for WU staff:

Please register as usual via the "Register" button in the menu on the left and follow the instructions.

Registration process for staff members of ENGAGE.EU partner universities:

This course is already fully booked. However, you are still welcome to share your interest which we take into account when planning future semesters -->

Please send us an e-mail to personneldevelopment@wu.ac.at with the following information:

• Course title
• Full name
• Gender
• Name of your university
• Organizational unit
• Personnel category: administrative or academic staff member, with or without leadership responsibility

Participation is free of charge for staff members of ENGAGE.EU partner universities. Nevertheless, please inform us before the registration deadline if you are unable to attend by email to personneldevelopment@wu.ac.at. There are often waiting lists and this will give another person the chance to attend.

The course is partly organized via the my.km platform. By registering, you agree to the processing of your data in accordance with our Data Protection Statement.

• become familiar with models of intercultural communication and practiced applying them in practice using concrete examples
• expanded your intercultural competences and gained more confidence in dealing with people from different cultural backgrounds