When collaborating with less direct cultures, we’ve learned at headquarters to be more vigilant and to try to calibrate our communication so that it feels helpful to the receiver and is not rejected simply because of form. Chris’s advice was simple and anyone who needs to give feedback to a colleague in a less direct culture should take heed. Be friendlier. Work harder to remove the blame. Be careful to frame the feedback as a suggestion, not an order. Add a relationship-based touch like a smiling emoji.
