Last week, Kent Business School welcomed once again a group of MBA students from Ingolstadt University in Bayern, offering a module on intercultural communication in a business context to complement their studies in Germany.
For five days the young executives immersed themselves in lectures ranging from the anthropology of business to managing business in Europe. The group also met with Kent MBA students over lunch, explored Canterbury and paid a company visit to Eurotunnel. An evening dinner in Canterbury gave everyone involved in the programme a chance to meet with the students on a more personal level and swap stories on work, life – and European politics.
The programme highlighted how much intercultural communication has become an every-day aspect of our lives: European academics taught German students at a UK business school, the visit to Eurotunnel gave a fascinating insight into a joint Anglo/Francophone-run company and during the evening out in Canterbury we discussed how our respective countries are made up of numerous sub-cultures as well.
Shaun Powell, UK Training manager of CIFFCO, which forms part of the Eurotunnel Group, gave a fascinating tour around the Tunnel premises, explaining in detail the complicated logistics that come with operating an undersea tunnel of 31.4 miles through which up to 400 trains pass each day, carrying an average of 50,000 passengers, 6,000 cars, 180 coaches and 54,000 tonnes of freight.
The group was unanimously positive about their week at KBS, praising the interactive nature of the lectures and expertise of the academic staff. As Michael Beck, an MBA student and participant shared:
‘It was a very interesting week. I realised once again that we are all characterised by our culture. A good example was our visit to Eurotunnel and to hear how our English guides spoke openly about the cultural differences between English and French colleagues, and how Eurotunnel invests on team building, education and building a common language between all employees.’
Kent Business School works with companies to facilitate visits with groups of exchange students. If you would like to give business management students an insider’s view of your business, please do get in touch with our External Services Team directly at kbsbusiness@kent.ac.uk.