Global Visions 23_en.indd

GLOBAL VISIONS
The ICUnet.AG Magazine
We learn something
new every day
Dear Reader,
Once again we have reason
to thank you, our customer.
Many of you gave our company
such a great reference that we
are amongst the top 5 in the competition
“Germany’s most customer-oriented service
provider” for the second year in a row. You
can be sure that this praise motivates us to
work even harder to fulfil your intercultural
and international needs!
We have also won an award for our diversity
management. You may be thinking: “So
what? Who, if not ICUnet.AG, knows
how to deal with cultural differences?” In
fact, we experience interculture on a daily
basis. A quarter of our employees are from
different cultural environments. Every day
we face fresh challenges and learn something
new. We acquire knowledge which we use
for your benefit.
We hope you enjoy reading the latest issue
of Global Visions.
Best regards
Dr. Fritz Audebert
In this issue
Cutting-edge in diversity
ICUnet.AG profits from huge
cultural diversity of employees
Above the clouds
Intercultural analysis during
a flight to India
Coaching at Vattenfall
Executives discover their
international strengths
www.icunet.ag
Issue 23 - Spring 2011
For the second time In the top 5
Once again amongst Germany’s most customer-oriented service providers
Tailor-made concepts, price
transparency and the power
of innovation. “This is what
makes ICUnet.AG and its
business model very unique”
said Prof. Peter Maas from
the University of St. Gallen in
his speech. The reward was
a place in the top 5 in the
category “Germany’s most
customer-oriented service
provider”.
It is the second time in a row that ICUnet.AG
has found itself in the top five in this
benchmarking competition. This year
ICUnet.AG also won the special award
“Fairness B2B” for its exceptional service
features.
At the award ceremony in Munich Elisabeth Strohmeier thanked the customers
for the faith they have in ICUnet.AG.
“After all they were the ones who voted
us into the top 5 through the customer
surveys.” The special award “Fairness
B2B” encourages ICUnet.AG to maintain the direction they have taken and
continue to develop integrated services.
Head of Communications Daniel Auwermann views the competition as a
special stimulus. “ICUnet.AG constantly
puts itself forward for comparison with
its market competitors. We want to constantly question our performance in order
to develop our customer-orientation.” Once again
n
ICUnet.AG has held its
own in industry-related
and cross-sector benchmarks, establishing it-
Prof. Peter Maas presents the awards to Elisabeth Strohmeier and Daniel Auwermann (from left).
self as one of the best companies. ICUnet.AG was the only
consulting firm for international HR solutions amongst the
top 10 in the competition.
Customer surveys as the basis for evaluation
The competition category “Germany’s most customer-oriented
service provider” comprehensively compares service enterprises
with regard to their customer-orientation. The evaluation is
based on a model for customer-value research from the Institute of Insurance Economics at the prestigious University
of St. Gallen. The competition was organised by the business
newspaper “Handelsblatt”. The most important criterion is
what the customers think. In order to evaluate each candidate, 100 customers are surveyed by
da
dat
telephone. Each company must name
te
11,000 of their customers from which
the institute selects one hundred at
th
random. This year was the sixth time
ra
the competition has been held.
th
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Pioneering role in diversity management
ICUnet.AG profits from huge cultural diversity of employees / 30 percent of employees are male
ICUnet.AG has been presented with an award for the
company’s multicultural environment. Together with Henkel
ICUnet.AG received an award for its “Multicultural Working
Environment” in March.
The award “European Diversity Leadership Honours” was presented for the
first time in 2011. It took place at the
“World Diversity Leadership Summit
Europe” (WDLS-EU) where around 250
experts from 100 companies got together in Vienna. Awards were presented in
four categories.
“I view this award as a great honour
and also as recognition of our achievements”, said Peter Majerčík, Head of
the Vienna office of ICUnet.AG. “The
working environment in our company
is unique and is open to all cultures.”
The native Slovak has been working for
Explanation of the
term “diversity”
Diversity stands for variety and describes, in a positive sense, all of the
differences which are becoming more
important for companies.
Diversity Management means utilising and taking advantage of variety
among personnel in order to achieve the
aims of the company at all levels.
Source: Chamber of Commerce Vienna
the company for five years. He was especially delighted to receive the European Diversity Leadership Honours on
behalf of ICUnet.AG.
On the right track
Gurdatar Singh Bal also acknowledged
the exceptional role of the company in
promoting diversity and cultural variety.
“Intercultural understanding is an essential prerequisite in order to achieve
diversity”, he said. The native Indian
works as an intercultural advisor at
ICUnet.AG. At the WDLS-EU he took
part in an open discussion on the topic of “Leveraging diverse cross-cultural
competences”.
Dr. Fritz Audebert, Chief Executive Officer of ICUnet.AG, views the award as
an acknowledgement of the path taken
by his company. “We are proud of our
above-average quota of women which is
currently 70 percent – while a quarter of
our employees are from other cultural
environments. We want to improve on
this in the future.”
The other winners of the European Diversity Leadership Honours were IKEA
Committed to culture and science
ICUnet.AG has joined the “Austrian
business council for sustainable development” (respACT).
The association is the leading business
platform for Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and sustained development
in Austria.
“For a prospering company it is important
2
to be able to give back something of the
success you have achieved”, explained
CEO Dr. Fritz Audebert. ICUnet.AG
supports the principles of the CSR-philosophy “Success with responsibility”.
“We encourage international cooperation.
Interculturally-oriented values such as
respect are a crucial factor in the success
of a company”, emphasised Dr. Audebert.
Peter Majerčík (left) accepts the award for the “Multicultural Working
Environment”.
and Ecker & Partner (both from Austria) for “Work-Life-Flexibility”, Universum (Sweden) and Mercer/ORC Networks
(USA) for “Innovative Research Findings”. In the category
“Creative Leadership” the London Organising Committee
of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (Great Britain) and the Center for Creative Leadership (Belgium) both
won awards.
Diversity on the labour market
The citizens of the so-called new EU countries (Estonia,
Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia and Slovenia) will not require a work permit for
their employment in Germany after the 1st May 2011.
What are the impacts of this new freedom of movement
on the international personnel exchange?
Read more at http://x.icunet.ag/?eu2011e
Understanding social commitment as part of the company
philosophy is of strategic importance for sustainable development within the company.
ICUnet.AG aims to be a shining example of success with responsibility and the company is committed to art and culture
as well as education and science. As a spin-off of the University
of Passau it actively supports the KuWi network, the alumni
association of Cultural and Business Studies graduates from
Passau. Furthermore, the company promotes the European
Weeks Festival and the Museum of Modern Art, while setting new standards with projects such as the intercultural
“Leuchtbox” pavilion on the banks of the Danube in Passau.
www.icunet.ag
GLOBAL VISIONS
Interculture above the clouds
How Lufthansa’s flight personnel deals with intercultural challenges
Lufthansa has always declared its commitment to providing a high level of
quality and service: A safe flight has just as much priority as a satisfied passenger. Intercultural competence is now more important than ever. Sonja ErnstZiroff accompanied a Lufthansa flight to India in order to support the flight
personnel.
tions, which is why Lufthansa provide
a special catering service for flights to
India and offer chai, spiced Indian tea.
Furthermore, many Indians have special requests which the service personnel must be aware of: whisky is always
served with water, tea and coffee must
be served “extra hot”.
The main challenge:
Communication
Sonja Ernst-Ziroff (left) accompanied Purser Maria Archonti and her
crew on the flight to India interculturally
In the world of the flight attendant it is no secret that there are
some easier and more difficult destinations as far as the mentality of the passengers is concerned. Within India there is a
rule of thumb that flights to Northern India – such as Delhi
and Mumbai – are very challenging, while flights to the South
– Bangalore, Chennai or Hyderabad – are less complicated.
Sonja Ernst-Ziroff, Senior Consultant at ICUnet.AG, accompanied a flight from Frankfurt to Bangalore. The passengers
were, as is the case on most flights from Frankfurt to India,
about 70 percent Indian. Many of them were young men
travelling on their own, the majority coming from the USA
on the way home. “As frequent travellers they already know
the flight processes inside out”, said Sonja Ernst-Ziroff. Older
Indian passengers, on the other hand, rarely require more
intensive care: “They are usually the parents of Indians living abroad. They don’t speak much English, if any at all, and
they let the service personnel know what they want when they
are asked.” The language barrier and a fundamental shyness
towards non-Indians is one of the biggest challenges – extra
Indian service personnel has been the standard for Lufthansa
on these flights for some time now.
The range of food on board also plays an important role.
It is essential to respect Indian taste and religious restric-
One of the main challenges on flights to
India is communication, as Sonja ErnstZiroff knows only too well: “Although
most young Indians understand English,
all announcements are also made in the
language of the target destination. Hindi
is not always sufficient, although it is the
official language.” Non-verbal communication is also essential, as many Germans are often confused by Indian body
language. For example, many Indians
react with the typical Indian “shaking of
the head” when flight attendants asks if
they may clear up or a dismissive movement (which is seen as depreciatory from
a German point of view). This is not always meant negatively. “Although culturally it is the case that many Indians
view the flight attendants as service staff
and therefore, from a German point of
view, do not demonstrate a great deal of
politeness”, said Sonja Ernst-Ziroff. It is
difficult to maintain the right mix of politeness and firmness and this is something which has to be learned. Lufthansa
is aware of this and trains its employees correspondingly. Only then can the
standard of quality “Made in Germany”
– which is why Indians book a Lufthansa
flight – be taken into account.
40 percent
registered on
Facebook
According to Tomorrow Focus, 40
percent of all German internet users
are registered on Facebook. Around
half of them log on daily. The network
is therefore becoming more interesting for companies, who are usually
expected to present up-to-date news
on their page. However, we believe it
is just as important to surprise your
followers with other interesting topics. What do you expect from a Facebook page? What do you think about
the seemingly unstoppable growth
of social networks? We are looking
forward to hearing your opinions!
twitter.com/global_visions
or
facebook.de/global.visions
Win telephone
coaching
Take part in a discussion with us on
Twitter or Facebook! Tell us what
intercultural competence means to
you. Win intercultural telephone
coaching with Kerstin Grönlund or
Katrin Micklitz.
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GLOBAL VISIONS
New perspectives ...
On the world wide web the flow of information is almost
limitless. But some interesting details can be lost in the
process. We have found some sites for you which are worth
a closer look.
Show commitment abroad
“The success of Made in Germany can not only be
explained by the fact that German companies combine
economic performance with social commitment,” according to CSR WeltWeit. The online platform aims to
support companies by organising their CSR activities
even more towards the social needs of the target country.
http://x.icunet.ag/?sg1 – Source: CSR WeltWeit
In Turkey you should not show people the sole of your foot
Since the shoe is the dwelling-place of the foot, the lowest
and dirtiest part of the body it is not surprising that in
some cultures such an ignoble object can be the source
of insults, for example, in Turkey and India. The online
travel guide “Fasten Seat Belts” has put together these
and other entertaining and helpful tips and presented
them in a very visually appealing way.
http://x.icunet.ag/?sg2 – Source: Fasten Seat Belts
Further updates from the fields of interculture and
relocation can be found at: twitter.com/global_visions
Win a Ticket!
New Horizons will once again open the Intercultural
Congress in Passau from the 6th to the 8th of October.
Some top quality experts from all over the world have already been confirmed as speakers. They include Rhoda
Schnitzer, Human Resources and Communications Manager at SCA Asia Pacific, Ursula Schwarzenbart, Director
Global Diversity Office & Performance and Potential Management at Daimler AG, Ambassador Wolfgang Ischinger,
Chairman of the Munich Security Conference and Jutta
Falke-Ischinger, Journalist and Author. We would be delighted to welcome you in the city of three rivers in October. We are giving away one ticket for the congress to one
of our followers on Twitter or Retweets with the hashtag
#ikk11 until 8 July. You can find more information at:
www.intercultural-conference.com
Discovering strengths
Intercultural coaching at the energy company Vattenfall
“How to achieve my aims in an international context and a new
position, how to develop intercultural competence? How can I
change my behaviour in a way that allows me to be more flexible and more efficient in an intercultural environment, especially
when under pressure?”
The employees of the Swedish energy
company Vattenfall asked themselves
these particular questions. Together
with Helene Iwarsson, Head of International Mobility at Vattenfall, Kerstin
Grönlund, coach at ICUnet.AG, developed the programme “Effective Across
Boundaries”. It accompanies executives
during their international tasks as part
of a foreign assignment or in a new international position at the company. Effective Across Boundaries aims to develop the competences which mean the
difference between success and failure
in an international environment. The focus moves away from cultural differences
and considers how individual strengths
can be employed in order to achieve personal aims at international level. A selfassessment process forms the basis of the
programme. It reflects the competences
a participant already has at their disposal
and which would be helpful in their new
position.
Focussing on strengths
In an international context the aim is to
bring together push and pull competences: an executive must be open and flexible, but at the same time be led by clear
values and be goal-oriented. They are not
only required to recognise and appreciate
differences, but also know how to create
synergies. Together with the coach the
programme participant creates a development plan, which is oriented towards
their individual aims. Various competences can be trained on-the-job. The coaching
process usually covers several one hour
sessions, which can also be held by telephone.
During expatriate coaching it is important
to support the employee in all decisive
phases of the foreign assignment: Before
leaving, immediately after arrival, in the
initial phase and then once again just before and just after returning home. Before
returning home an important aspect is
how the newly gained competences can
be successfully integrated into the organ-
It is important to create
a space, which
enables creativity to flourish
and where synergies can evolve.
Helene Iwarsson
Head of International Mobility,
Vattenfall, Sweden
isation providing a benefit for all sides.
Kerstin Grönlund has already successfully coached more than 30 employees
at Vattenfall. But this does not mean that
country-specific training is superfluous.
Culture-specific know-how is still one of
the crucial international competences.
The coaches can draw on the knowledge
of ICUnet.AG’s country experts.
Selectively acquired knowledge alone is
not enough to overcome the complexity
of international management. It is only
through continuous, individual reflection
and the development of competences that
the readiness for change is created and
with it the ability to deal successfully with
complexity. It is precisely here that intercultural coaching at ICUnet.AG pays off.
IMPRINT
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Publisher:
Editorial staff:
ICUnet.AG • Fritz-Schäffer-Promenade 1 • 94032 Passau • Tel. +49 851 988666-0 • Fax +49 851 988666-70 • [email protected] • www.icunet.ag
Daniel Auwermann, Stefan Daller, Christian Omonsky, Susanne Schäfer | All competitions in this issue are excluding legal recourse.