Some business leaders learn about global cultures from books. Christophe Derdeyn learned it in the trenches, spending 25 years building and selling tech companies across continents. His specialty? Helping large organizations work smarter through technology – from shared services to global system rollouts. After multiple successful exits and years of running international teams, he’s picked up more than just business strategies. He’s mastered the art of bridging cultural gaps.
Working across borders isn’t just about different time zones and languages. Through years of running global operations, Christophe noticed something deeper: success often hinges on understanding unspoken cultural rules. “Different people behave different but everyone is good by nature,” he points out. This insight led him to develop three key approaches to navigating cultural differences in global business.
Tip 1: Navigating Deeper Cultural Awareness
Most business leaders know they need cultural awareness. But Christophe takes it further. “We need to make sure that we understand how other people behave,” he explains. “Not necessarily think, but interpret and how we can meet their expectations to reach a similar understanding.”
The trick isn’t just learning about other cultures – it’s meeting them halfway. “You need to delve into the cultures you’re engaging with,” Christophe notes. “Respect is a very important aspect in this.” He emphasizes finding middle ground: “You need to make sure that you meet people halfway and you give them what they need while achieving what you want.” This doesn’t mean agreeing with everything. As Christophe puts it, “It doesn’t necessarily mean that you need to agree with everything that they say or think or whatever, but you meet them halfway.”
Tip 2: Adapting Communication Styles
Communication across cultures gets tricky fast. “All cultures have their own way of dealing with communication,” Christophe explains. “Often there is a lot of detail in things that are unsaid, so you need to interpret a lot.” His solution? Something he calls “radical candor.” It’s about being crystal clear with expectations and communications. “Radical candor is being very explicit about what you say and very clear about the way you describe things and the things that you expect from people,” he explains.
This approach proves especially valuable in certain regions. “It’s not something that comes natural most of the time to many cultures, especially in Asia for instance,” Christophe notes. “Where you have a lot of high distance cultures, the power distance is very big, so people are very respectful, but they don’t necessarily say what they really want.”
Tip 3: Flexibility as a Core Skill
The final piece of Christophe’s approach focuses on staying flexible. “Being cultural different means that we all look at the world in our own particular fashion,” he explains. This means people might be saying the same thing, just differently: “We may mean the same thing but it may not necessarily come across as such.”
His advice? Take your time and stay open. “We need to be patient, we need to be flexible in the way that we understand the things that people say,” Christophe emphasizes. “From there we can assume that the basis is good and the intent is there.”
These three elements – cultural awareness, adapted communication and flexibility – work together to create better outcomes. As Christophe notes, “If we do that and both of us are positive in the discussions that we have, then we will achieve better collaboration and we will be able to have better outcomes.”
Through decades of international business experience, Christophe’s approach shows that success across cultures isn’t about following a rigid playbook. It’s about staying aware, communicating clearly, and keeping an open mind. As businesses become increasingly global, these skills become more crucial than ever.
To learn more about Christophe Derdeyn and his approach, check out his LinkedIn profile or visit his website.
