Gain trust across cultures

- Here's a question for you, which is more important for building professional trust? Forming a great relationship or demonstrating that you're the technical expert? They're both important for building trust but which one do you want to lead with? Well the answer depends on your culture. In relationship-oriented cultures like many in Asia, Southern Europe, Africa, and South America, who you know and the strength of those relationships will foster professional trust. In transactional cultures like the Nordic, Germanic, and Anglo cultures, what you know and your technical expertise are more important. So let's start by identifying your preferences for gaining trust and professional relationships. First, would you rather work on a team with colleagues you know well and like or those who are less familiar, but who you respect professionally. Do you think starting a business with family and friends is a good idea or a bad idea? Would you rather have your coworker think of you as a true friend or a true expert? And last one, in your career, do you expect your professional relationships to endure or come and go? So how did you do? Did you tend to prefer the one set over the other? If you have more check marks on the left side, you have a stronger relationship orientation. If you have more on the right, you have more of a transactional orientation. Knowing your own cultural preference for building trust and also knowing the preference and the culture you're working with will help guide which behavioral lever to pull. When it comes to building trust, it's generally better to behave in a way that's expected by the culture you're in. When you're managing in a relationship-oriented culture like many in South America, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Southern Europe, you'll need to invest a significant amount of time to get to know somebody at a personal level. You'll need to build deep social relationships with them before you can be trusted. In these cultures, if you can be introduced by someone who's already trusted, do that, it's the quickest way to be trusted through personal recommendations. So dedicate more time for social conversations, like at the start of a meeting or at the beginning of the day. When you ask how are you, actually wait for the answer. If someone shares a personal story, be fully present and respond with a follow-up question. You should also expect longer meals and breaks. During that time, try to avoid talking about work. Use that time to find out about common interests, hobbies, or activities. You can also do something together socially. In sub-cultures, this might mean an after work activity like a trip to the pub, in others, it might mean taking time during the work day to do some team-building exercise or maybe share a meal. Remember, if you have a more transactional lens, these suggestions might sound like a waste of time and money but that investment you're making in deepening the relationship will allow you to move faster and accomplish more in the long run. Now, in Anglo, Nordic, and Germanic countries, they tend to be more transactional, but even in those cultures, what you do to establish credibility will be important. In some cultures, such as many of the Germanic countries, your title and academic qualifications are important. In others, such as the United States, your professional experience and tangible accomplishments matter more. In almost all transactional cultures, it's important to demonstrate that you really know your stuff. If you want to socialize, come in early or save it for after work. If you have a relationship orientation, these suggestions might sound cold, but once you've established your credibility, you can work on forming deeper relationships.