Maximizing Intercultural Development by Personal Assessment and Feedback: The Intercultural Readiness Check (© IBI 2002)

Internationally operating companies increasingly experience the impact of cultural differences on their business. Numerous people are now engaged in cross border negotiations, multicultural teams, foreign assignments and the management of staff from cultures other than their own. All these people, and the organisations they work for, need to thoroughly understand the impact of culture on their behaviour, motivation, ways of thinking and decision-making.

There are many roads to effective intercultural interaction - just as cultures differ, so do people. Assessment of individual strengths and preferences is therefore vital for a sustainable development of intercultural competence.

The Intercultural Readiness Check (IRC) supports companies and practitioners in assessing individuals' current level of competence in interacting successfully across cultures. The IRC assesses four vital intercultural competences:

Intercultural Sensitivity Attend to signals Explore perspectives Reflect upon judgments Stay flexible during conflict		Intercultural Communication Involve others Modulate communicative style Manage the need for control in communication
Building Commitment Secure impact Persuade and convinde in diverse settings Integrate different people and personalities		Preference for Certainty Manage the need for certainty Move beyond what is known and familiar

 
The IRC provides valid and reliable information on a person's current strengths and preferences relevant to effective intercultural interaction. The IRC has been developed over a period of three years in collaboration with the University of Groningen. Across a broad spectrum of client companies, IRC licensees have used the IRC successfully for enhancing their clients' intercultural competences. With more than 10,000 respondents from over 14 industries and 120 countries, the IRC database is one of the largest sources of information on intercultural competences available today.

The IRC is accessible online at home or at work from all over the world. Scores can be processed automatically and IRC feedback contains practical suggestions for development.

Invitation to the Annual IRC Get Together
Join us to meet other IRC Licensees! Each summer, we celebrate our first IRC Licensing Course by inviting all IRC Licensees to come to Amsterdam for an interesting presentation and exchange with fellow professionals. After the presentation, there will be a reception.

Date:		Friday, July 3, 2009 (Start at 4.15 pm)
Location:		Centrum de Roos