Intercultural Differences POLAND RUSSIA POLAND POLAND General Information

Intercultural Differences POLAND & RUSSIA

POLAND

POLAND General Information Population: 38, 635, 000 Capital: Warsaw 1. 6 million Main cities: Krakow 0. 8 million, Wrolaw 0. 6 million Currency: Zloty, Groszy Fertility rate: 1. 39 Life expectancy at birth: 74 years Main religous group: Roman Catholic (98, 8%)

POLAND • lost independence in World War II • became a communist country under the control of the former Soviet Union • freed itself in 1989 by the democratic party “Solidarnosc” • accepted in the EU in 2004

POLAND Culture: Greeting • usually handshake • flatter women by a kiss on the hand • personal title use, Mr (Pan), Mrs (Pani) followed by the first name or surname • hugs (also men)

POLAND Culture: Cuisine • while eating no conversations • large vodka consumption, toast to the guest • vodka bottle has to be emptied

POLAND Culture: Business • punctuality is vital for establishing your reliability • begin and end business with a small gift • building individual business relationships • particular attention and respect must be paid to older people • negotiations are reserved and thoughtful

POLAND Do’s and Don’ts Do use personal titles Personal titles use, Mr. (Pan), Mrs. (Pani) followed by first name or surname title: director , doctor (in business) Do try to learn some basic Polish words greeting phrases: Dzień dobry (hello), Dobry wieczór (good evening), Do widsenja (Good-bye)

POLAND Do’s and Don’ts Do smile and maintain direct eye contact during your conversation Don't be surprised if after the first meeting your partner engages more friendly conversation once initial relationship has been established Don't over compliment Don't try to hide your feelings and emotions

POLAND Kroków

POLAND Kroków stare miasto old town

POLAND Kroków stare miasto old town

POLAND Szczawnica

POLAND Dunajec

POLAND Dunajec

POLAND Dunajec

POLAND Szczawnica

POLAND Polish Culture Quiz – true or false? When entering the meeting room in Poland, if there are people you do not know, you should wait for a third person to initiate introductions ?

POLAND Polish Culture Quiz – true or false? Polish offices operate an open door policy where you are free to enter and discuss business at any time

POLAND Polish Culture Quiz – true or false? If you are invited to a Polish home, a small gift such as a bottle of wine or flowers for your host is generally expected

POLAND Polish Culture Quiz – true or false? Meetings are often scheduled for a Sunday when people have more time do discuss business matters.

POLAND Polish Culture Quiz – true or false? It is quit acceptable to greet your Polish business colleagues with three “ air kisses”

RUSSIA

RUSSIA General Information Population: 142, 754, 000 Capital: Moscow 10, 5 million Main cities: St. Petersburg 4, 7 million, Novosibirsk 1, 4 million Currency: Rubel, kopek Fertility rate: 1. 34 Life expectancy at birth: 65. 87 years Main religous group: Russian-orthodox (66%)

RUSSIA • Boris Yeltsin established the Russian Federation in 1992 after the decay of the Soviet Union • in 2000 Vladimir Putin became President • Russian economy increases by 5 % to 10 %

RUSSIA Culture: Greeting • when welcoming people, consider the ranking order and say the name with the titel of the person • give a strong handshake as it shows character • polite to name people by first name + “owitsch” (men) / ”ovna” (women)

RUSSIA Culture: Cuisine • Russian cuisine with high fat content impolite not to try • large vodka consumption always after a toast • drinking vodka always goes in hand with eating • more people drink tea than coffee • it is allowed to smoke during the whole meal

RUSSIA Culture: Other • important to make gifts (but no vodka!) • Russians show great hospitality • Russians are rather conservative better to wear conservative clothing with ordinary colours you should not wear shorts, short skirts, clothings

RUSSIA Culture: Business • punctuality very important • negotiations take longer than in Germany with more restaurant attendance • timetables aren’t binding more flexible • Russians are rather neutral • confidence and personal relationship are very important

RUSSIA Don’ts • never drink alcohol alone • never give away yellow flowers symbol of misfortune

RUSSIA St. Basil's Cathedral and the Spasskaya Tower of the Kremlin

RUSSIA Rostov-na-Donu

RUSSIA Kamchatka

RUSSIA Moscow State University

RUSSIA Russian Culture Quiz – true or false? Russians like to get gifts in form of vodka!

RUSSIA Russian Culture Quiz – true or false? When greeting people it is always “ladies first”!

RUSSIA Russian Culture Quiz – true or false? Russian negotiations take longer than in Germany!

RUSSIA Russian Culture Quiz – true or false? Russians like to critic often and directly during a negotiation!

POLAND & RUSSIA Lukas and Vicky say “Dzienkuje” and “Спасибо!“ for your attention