Working with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Understand the Saudi society, communication and management style, the importance of the role of religion, hierarchy and business and social customs.
The largest country with the largest economy in the middle east Saudi Arabia is a strategic country in the region and the world. Over the past decade the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia with the world’s largest sovereign investment fund has invested heavily in the modernization of its infrastructure and moving its economy away from the dominance of oil production. Saudi Arabia future ambitions is to become a leader in technology “Neom” project, and a leader in the production of hydrogen by 2030.
The Kingdom has an extremely young population. Its total population of 34 million of which two-thirds of Saudi Arabia’s population is under the age of 35. All these factors and many more, makes Saudi Arabia a land of opportunity for the future, especially in areas of sustainable energy real estate-construction, internet and tourism.
Aim
Understand Saudi culture and adapt your behaviour to develop lasting relationships and succeed in your professional projects.
Duration
1 day – 7 hours, face to face or by video conferencing.
Group
2 – 14 participants
Prerequisites
Any professional that is doing or going to do business or live in Saudi Arabia. Proficiency level required (TOEIC 750) for the course in English.
Course language
English or French
Course certificate
Certificate of course completion
Participant Profile
This “Working with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia” program is designed for any manager in charge of projects with Saudi customers, suppliers and /or colleagues.
Benefits
• To become aware of one’s cultural identity and the similarity and difference with the Saudi culture and professional values.
• Understand the characteristics of Saudi culture and its dynamics and avoid misunderstandings due to cultural differences.
• Develop communication strategies to work more effectively with Saudi partners.
• Be able to conduct meetings, pitches and negotiations with Saudi partners.
Content
Before the seminar “Working with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia”:
Each participant will carry out a personal cultural assessment with the online tool Meyer Personal Culture Profile™. This tool will enable each participant to understand her/his personal values and cultural preferences and compare them to a standardized Saudi professional profile.
During the seminar:
Our trainings are highly participatory and experiential. Our approach includes alternating theory and practice, simulations and group activities. A variety of case studies and group interactions are scheduled in the “working with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia” training course.
Our goal is to engage participants mentally, emotionally and behaviorally, aligning them with the complexities and richness of cross-cultural exchanges with Saudi professionals.
Some possible key topics:
• Historical, geopolitical, and societal characteristics and their impact on the The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia business mentality.
• “The cradle of Islam”: religion intertwined into the social system and its influence on civic values, business culture, the pace of work and everyday life.
• Women and their slowly changing role in the social and business world.
• Multicultural backgrounds of your potential business partners or employees (e.g. Lebanon, Egypt, Pakistan, India, Philippines etc..).
• The importance of respect of hierarchy and age.
• Understanding Saudi management culture i.e. motivating, delegating and respecting hierarchical structures in the Arab business environment.
• Particularities of Saudi communication styles and feedback process.
• Building and maintaining trust with Saudi clients and partners through strong personal relationships.
• How to convince partners and get things done.
• Knowing the particularities of negotiations in Saudi business environment.
• Top down decision making process and identifying and valuing decision-makers.
• The concept of the contract – implication and application.