I want to congratulate the Passport to Trade 2.0 project team for giving me the chance to have such valuable information for my stay in Portugal. It couldn’t have come at a better time because I will be going there as an Erasmus student next semester at the Polytechnic Institute of Santarém. As a country in the Southern region, I found that the Portuguese have many similarities with the Greeks and I was very happy about that. When reading the sections on punctuality, business communication, business meals, I thought I was reading the Greek guide. I am really looking forward to spending time in Portugal and the Passport to Trade website will be my guide.
As a student studying business administration at the University of Macedonia in Thessaloniki, I think the website www.businessculture.org is an essential tool for everyone who would like to do business in these countries. I liked the videos as well because they give a quick snapshot of the country.
I was happy to see that social media is being used in companies and is expanding in many countries as part of their communication strategy. The website gives small and medium sized companies the opportunity to expand their business relationships with other European countries.
There are some very helpful cultural hints in the Greek business guide that can surely open doors for doing business in Greece. Greek people are friendly and welcome foreigners but, it would be great to also know what to avoid and how you can make your communication easier. I found it not only informing but fun to read as well.
by Dimitra Koukouseli
Student, University of Macedonia Thessaloniki. Department of Business Administration