Egyptian Cultural Differences
Egyptian Cultural Differences
Rochanda Robertson
The cultural differences between the United States and Egypt are high in numbers. Before traveling to Egypt and meeting with potential business leaders, many things must be taken into consideration. There are some things that we as Americans do and say that is considered normal in the U.S. but would be considered abnormal or rude in Egypt. The first step that would have to be taken is to establish a good relationship with my potential Egyptian business leaders. This would have to be done because most Egyptians will only do business with people that they know and respect. According to (Reich) Egyptians like to plan their business meetings out well in advance. Here in the U.S. it’s not uncommon for a business meeting to be hastily scheduled ad also rescheduled at the last minute. In Egypt that would be considered rude and the meeting would more than likely be denied.
Meetings should be confirmed one week in advanced and then again in a day or two before the meeting. When meeting with Egyptian business leaders both male and female U.S. representatives should dress very well in order to make a good impression. The female should dress appropriately by making sure that her sleeves cover majority of her arms and that her dress or skirt is covering her knees. Males should dress in a dark colored suit and should not have any facial jewelry or jewelry around his neck. (Kwintessential, 2011) At the meeting most Egyptians will offer a drink suck as coffee or tea. If you do not accept the drink then that is considered to be rude, you don’t have to drink any of the drink but to deny it would be like denying the individual. In the United States if the host offers a drink and its declined then the host may think that the person isn’t thirsty or may not think anything of it at all.
Eye contact is very important to Egyptians when you are greeting one another and also when you are engaging in conversation. During a meeting the
Rochanda Robertson
The cultural differences between the United States and Egypt are high in numbers. Before traveling to Egypt and meeting with potential business leaders, many things must be taken into consideration. There are some things that we as Americans do and say that is considered normal in the U.S. but would be considered abnormal or rude in Egypt. The first step that would have to be taken is to establish a good relationship with my potential Egyptian business leaders. This would have to be done because most Egyptians will only do business with people that they know and respect. According to (Reich) Egyptians like to plan their business meetings out well in advance. Here in the U.S. it’s not uncommon for a business meeting to be hastily scheduled ad also rescheduled at the last minute. In Egypt that would be considered rude and the meeting would more than likely be denied.
Meetings should be confirmed one week in advanced and then again in a day or two before the meeting. When meeting with Egyptian business leaders both male and female U.S. representatives should dress very well in order to make a good impression. The female should dress appropriately by making sure that her sleeves cover majority of her arms and that her dress or skirt is covering her knees. Males should dress in a dark colored suit and should not have any facial jewelry or jewelry around his neck. (Kwintessential, 2011) At the meeting most Egyptians will offer a drink suck as coffee or tea. If you do not accept the drink then that is considered to be rude, you don’t have to drink any of the drink but to deny it would be like denying the individual. In the United States if the host offers a drink and its declined then the host may think that the person isn’t thirsty or may not think anything of it at all.
Eye contact is very important to Egyptians when you are greeting one another and also when you are engaging in conversation. During a meeting the
References: Kwintessential. (2011, 10 26). Kwintessential. Retrieved from http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/global-etiquette/egypt-country-profile.html Reich, F. (n.d.). Doing business in Egypt. Retrieved from http://www.worldbusinessculture.com/Business-in-Egypt.html