Category Archives: Business
A country dotted with castles amid forests, Germany is picturesque and saturated with history. While Germany is known for its precision, organization and orderly diligence, German literature and music are also filled with deeply romantic yearnings. Beethoven’s triumphant “Ode to Joy” from his 9th Symphony, written after he became deaf, communicates a dawning and resilient…
Russia is a huge, wildly vast and ambitious country that has impacted world history continuously with its magnificent literature, political intensity, and continuing economic transformation. Torn between an unrepentant and authoritarian oligarchy and vital yet volatile market forces inspiring an emerging generation of entrepreneurs, Russia is struggling to strut upon the world stage as an…
Slightly larger than the continental United States, Brazil is a vast country with epic beauty and immense natural resources. It is also the birthplace of the Girl from Ipanema, the archetypal beauty whose winsome walk has charmed many as she saunters along that shimmering beach so memorialized in song. Certainly she is symbolic of Brazil’s…
The deal making of the near future will very often be done in Chinese – Mandarin Chinese. While English will continue to be the preeminent language of business globally, at least for the immediate future, without question Mandarin Chinese is on the rise around the world as China continues to gain traction as an emerging…
With so many languages in the world to learn, and the accelerating rise of China as a global economic superpower, why are French and Spanish still so very important in the world of business? Certainly, French has been overtaken by Chinese, Arabic, or Russian? Hasn’t Spanish gone the way of the Spanish Armada? While…
Working Abroad While we still reference the “nine-to-five” work week, few Americans are lucky enough to work an eight-hour day. When you include the commute, vacation and sick days that aren’t offered or able to be taken, and a typical full-time schedule, most of us are working far more than we would choose to. If…
Being an international business interpreter can be an exciting profession, especially when your duties require you to travel around the world, meeting and interacting with others, in order to enhance business negotiations for your company and/or clients. That being said, there is a tremendous amount of responsibility involved. In addition to language fluency, business interpreters…
Having an interpreter at a business meeting can prove to be a huge asset when you are doing business with international clients and business prospects. So, when is it appropriate to provide an interpreter to help you conduct international business more easily? When you’re dealing with clients that do not speak your language comfortably or…
Asian cultures are said to be more collectivistic whereas American culture is said to be more individualistic. The very idea that you should be deferential to superiors doesn’t always jibe with the American sense of rugged individualism, perhaps best personified by the brash Gordon Gecko in the movie Wall Street. Although Gordon Gecko is clearly a…
Businesses generally go to a lot of trouble to set up international business meetings. That’s why they’re often reserved for important deals and transactions where face-to-face interaction can make or break a deal. Consider how much time and effort you spend traveling out of the country for what could be a short meeting, it’s no…