Interview Schedule for Cross-Cultural Communication Issues

This interview schedule is about understanding the issues faced by cross-cultural communication and coping strategies. It includes an interview with Prof. Atara Dendle, Managing Director of World Leisure Organization, who shares his experience and insights. The interview covers topics such as communication, coping strategies, initial problems faced, and how these endeavors affect job roles. The interview also provides information about the business, the initial days, and the relationship with co-workers. The interview concludes with advice for those on foreign assignments.

Running head: Interview Schedule
Interview schedule
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Authors Note

Interview Schedule
Background Information
The world leisure organization was founded and approved as a Society by the Hong
Kong SAR government in 2008. The main objectives of this organization is to promote
leisure practice and education in Hong Kong, SAR and China. They also aims to foster
enquiry through research and scholarship by discovering the personal and social potentialities
of leisure experiences. I am planning to interview Prof. Atara Dendle, who is one of the
managing director in this company, he also has gained lot of experiences in travelling
different countries.
Interview schedule:
Opening
Hello sir (smile and a firm handshake). Thank you so much for giving me time for
this interview. Your cabin is very beautiful.
As I have already told you over phone, I am doing this interview for understanding the issues
that are faced by the cross-cultural communication. More than the problems I want to
understand the coping up strategies, I feel obliged that you are giving the needed time and
opportunity for the same.
There will be four topic that I have planned to incorporate in this interview schedule;
they will deal with communication, your coping strategies that you have developed and the
problem that you faced initially and how these endeavours affect your job role.
Body
Facts about the business.
1) Why did you choose to do this business ?

Interview Schedule
From my experience, I have come across several problems that people in their
everyday life tend to overlook. Since everyone gets busy in their humdrums of life (smiles),
they feel reluctant to plan any recreational activities. basically they lack the energy to plan
any such activity, and our work states from here. Again not to miss the help of the digital
platform has made communication very greasy! Therefore, I thought this to be a very
attractive venture, and I am finally here.
2) How did you get started in this profession? In addition, how much money did it take
to get started?
Actually, I was appointed in this profession as a field executive, and I was young at
that time. I had work hard to get the title of Manger in marketing. I was just a salesperson, I
used to sit long hour tried to talk to people convince them about the travel package and it was
in that phase I learned about the needs and requirement of the customers. I earned quite less
but it was sufficient for me grow myself. It took a lot of hard work but I am satiated right
now with my profession.
3) Would be recommending people to do started theory careers in this business? What
were the initial problems, that you faced while doing your job?
Yes, of course I would like more and more people to come and try their luck in this
business. This is because this business is just not meant for recreational activity it also have
an educative advantage. You can explore their indigenous cuisine, plethora of cultures and
their innovative ways of dealing with things and so on. As I said, I have put a hard labour to
climb up the ladder, though things are not always bad, but one needs to adapt to the
challenges quickly. Initially I was not aware of the ritual pattern of languages, therefore I
have also landed in offending my client. (Giggles). But that is how you learn… as one said
the shows must go on.
4) What were your first few days like?

Interview Schedule
My first few days were, as I called it figuring out period. I was trying to come in
terms to things that were going all around. At first, honestly I thought I would not be able to
make up for the job, but slowly understood the basic driving force of the people. Yes
language was a hurdle, even though I was skilled in English and Chinese I had to put a lot of
effort I =n getting the accent right. Since my focus was more on verbal communication, I had
to learn, their idiomatic senses, so that I could convince people for our packages. It is only
with time that you start building the hunch for your customers. Sometimes your hunch is right
and sometimes very might do miracles.
5) How did people view you?
Apparently, they put on a cooperative behaviour, by saying this it did not mean that
they were not agitated when I could not meet requirement. People in my office had a mixed
opinion but I am happy that I grew myself up. As my English was poor, people used to have a
demeaning look towards me, then I left that there were few who used to eye me because of
my facial features. But I do not mind them because I admit I looked different, therefore I
witnessed the stare. With the pace of times, things were even out but after I achieved my
desired goals.
6) What kind of relationship did you share with your co-worker?
My co-worker had a similar situation like me. They were also struggling with the
language barrier. For a while, it seemed to me that language is the key to everything, a person
is in the matrix of structure that is formed with language. Co-worker were quiet helpful in
spite of the competition that was intrinsic to our system. From my experience I have seen that
it is the co-worker who serves as a family and again most of troublesome activities too
hatches. Thus it is very important grow a diplomatic relations with your co-worker.
7) How did you socialize with other people?

Interview Schedule
Socialization was not easy because their perception was pre-convinced with certain
stereotypes. Thus initially I had to understand what exactly was the stereotypes were and I
slowly tried to formulate was and means to deconstruct them. Thus, it happened in one home
conversation, where the client asked me about sushi, I immediately replied about the burger
and the pizzas. She was astounded that I kept knowledge about them and even congratulated
for keeping such wide range of information. It is not as if I learned everything in the
workstation itself, but I also started watching popular movies, learned the about their non-
verbal ritual languages and so on. As I said earlier, it took time to break the stereotype but I
am happy that I achieved that.
8) How many host countries did you travel? What was your feelings like?
I have travelled to many places like in the Europe, Middle East and sometimes South
America too. However, since my business is more centrally located in Hong Kong, we had to
focus on the South-west of Asia. Feelings are quite diverse things, I would like to correct my
stand, and it is not feeling but my experiences that guided my feelings. Travelling
transborders has loads of surprises stored in it. You get the knack of it as soon as you enter
the airport; the welcoming manner in the airport itself shows the cultural heritage and the
historical background of the particular country itself. My feelings were a somewhat mixed
because, when I was travelling west, I found most of them expected my traditional bowing
down ritual but when I was speaking in English, by that time English accent was quite good
and were greeting them. They remained astonished because their expectation was different.
Therefore rather than stereotyping I would prefer it was the archetypical way of
understanding people coming from a different culture.
9) How did you feel when you got used to the skills required in your current job?
It felt great! (Laughs), once I learned about them I still feel there lot more to discover.
This because I feel whatever I have learned is from a perspective to utilize them in the

Interview Schedule
business. I feel that there are lot more than this; I really wanted to know about the way in
which stereotype notions get created. I also wanted to listen to their traditional folktales.
However, I did not get much time to explore them. Hoping in the future to invest sometime in
it. The differences between personal and professional life seems to get blurred.
10) What advice would you give to friend who was on his or her way to a foreign
assignment?
I only advise that I will suggest to any new comer is to have faith in yourself. People
out here do not know you and it is totally on you, how you want to build your identity. And
once you successfully rove everyone wring, everything will fall in place. Again, it is very
important to keep your mind calm and cool, because sometimes trouble may erupt where
things can take course in it unprecedented way. It is at that time, you need to hold yourself
strong and rely on yourself because, if there is will there is always a way. Apart from this it is
also very important to do their homework adeptly, because one cannot ear everything just by
the empirical experience, they should also study and see how the barriers can be broken, it is
in that barrier, the key opportunities lie. Never give hope and have confidence in oneself for
one can achieve anything if one dreams about.
Closing
Thank you sir, it was quiet an inspiring interview, I have to know whatever I wanted too.
Hope you keep on inspiring other by your wok and your business flourishes.
Thank you so much for your precious time. I got to learn so much.
A firm handshake
Good-bye.