Czech Business Meeting Etiquette

Czechs like to plan meetings well in advance and it can be quite difficult to set up a meeting at short notice.

This need to plan ahead stems from the fact that Czechs do not like to arrive at a meeting unprepared. Czechs are detail oriented and prefer to arrive at a meeting feeling that they have all the facts and figures at their disposal. (Friday afternoon is not a good time to try to organise a meeting in the Czech Republic.)

It is important that you arrive at the meeting on time as lack of punctuality can imply a lack of professionalism as well undermining the seriousness of your intentions. In a country where everybody is seemingly mistrusted in the early stages, it would be foolish to put yourself further on the back foot for over such a simple matter as punctuality.

Cards are usually exchanged at the start of a meeting, although there is no particular ritual which goes along with the exchange. As a great deal of importance is placed on titles and educational background, it is quite a good idea to ensure that this information is printed on your business card.

Czechs tend not to show too much emotion within a business meeting and this, coupled with limited body language and facial expressions, can make your counterparts quite difficult to read. Do not mistake lack of emotion or physical feedback as a sign of lack of interest.

There will often be some small talk at the start of a meeting but this is limited in scope and duration.

Author

This country-specific business culture profile was written by Keith Warburton who is the founder of the cultural awareness training consultancy Global Business Culture.  Global Business culture is a leading training provider in the fields of cross-cultural communication and global virtual team working.  We provide training to global corporations in live classroom-based formats, through webinars and also through our cultural awareness digital learning hub, Global Business Compass.

This World Business Culture profile is designed as an introduction to business culture in Australia only and a more detailed understanding needs a more in-depth exploration which we can provide through our training and consultancy services.

Author

This country-specific business culture profile was written by Keith Warburton who is the founder of the cultural awareness training consultancy Global Business Culture. 

Global Business culture is a leading training provider in the fields of cross-cultural communication and global virtual team working.  We provide training to global corporations in live classroom-based formats, through webinars and also through our cultural awareness digital learning hub, Global Business Compass.

This World Business Culture profile is designed as an introduction to business culture in Czech Republic only and a more detailed understanding needs a more in-depth exploration which we can provide through our training and consultancy services.