When we first started our consulting project with Caras con Causa I was unsure what to expect in regard to cultural differences between our Puerto Rican clients and how business is normally conducted in the United States. I imagined there may be some roadblocks that our group would have to overcome in terms of communication and clarification of important information. On a basic level, Puerto Rico is seen as more of a collectivist culture when compared to the heavily individualistic culture of the United States. An example of collectivist culture is the strong emphasis on building a relationship with the people you are doing business with to form trust and therefore be able to depend on your business partners to get the work done. In the United States, work and schedules come first while emphasis on building relationships sit on the back burner.

In our first client meeting, this clear difference between collectivism and individualism was apparent. Our consulting team went into the meeting with the expectation that our clients from Caras would give us an overview of their operations and their current conditions under Covid-19. We were surprised when our clients seemed somewhat shy and wanted to hear what we had to say first. Although it seemed like we were being put on the spot, looking back on it, I realize that this was a way for our clients to learn about who we were as people and to establish the baseline of our ongoing relationship. Even though it felt a little uncomfortable for us to begin the meeting I think it was what our clients expected and what was normal for them.

Now that we’ve met with our clients two times “face to face”, (over Zoom) I think that the collectivist way of developing a relationship built on trust and getting to know your business partners is actually more of a strength than a challenge. I believe our team has been dynamic in our ability to adapt to this new way of conducting business.

Furthermore, since our client Caras con Causa is located in San Juan, Puerto Rico I expected there to be a significant communication barrier. Puerto Rico’s number one language is Spanish, and I was unsure at the start of the project whether we would have a difficult time understanding our clients. Right away I was surprised at how fluent every one of our client’s was in English. It helps that I have taken up to level four Spanish in college so I’m able to understand a lot of Spanish either way. Now and then I pick up on words such as “pero” and “entonces” which mean “but” and “so/then” which our clients will often use under their breath when they are searching for the right word to say in English. All in all, communication with our client has been crystal clear. I believe that my predetermined expectation of a communication barrier was as far from reality as can be.

Moving on, over the past month I’ve learned a considerable amount about global business and all the different components that go into running a business on an international scale. I think my perspective on global business was a little naïve going into the project. I expected that my team would be the only people working with Caras con Causa in order to help them market their unique research laboratory to other universities around the country. I’ve realized that there are tons of moving parts and partners when it comes to managing and running an international business. I quickly learned that Caras is partnered with another non-profit focused on global service learning named Amizade. Additionally, Caras is running numerous programs and projects within their communities all while dealing with the impacts of Covid-19 and the long-lasting impacts of their most recent earthquakes. What all of these moving pieces made me realize is the number of factors that are out of anyone’s control while working in global business. It’s challenging enough to run a non-profit organization that aims to help solve problems from poverty to climate change while having to be conscientious of their bottom line. When you throw in a global pandemic, uncontrollable natural disasters and a government with their eyes on short term profits rather than sustainability for the long term, operating becomes exceptionally more challenging.

My perspective on global business in not only changing but it is increasing from all angles. One of the most interesting things I’ve learned is how flexible certain deadlines can become based on elements out of one’s control. For example, you may plan on having the information you need by a certain date in order to comply with your deadlines set ahead of time. However, when the information you need must be drawn from different people who are all busy doing their own work on different projects, meetings can be pushed back, and information can take longer to acquire. Equally important is the ability to balance multiple tasks and goals at the same time while waiting for key information. My team has been able to shift our focus to building essential components of the overall project so that we aren’t sitting around waiting. Global business is a very exciting and multifaceted operation that involves being able to change directions at the drop of a dime and continue refining and developing your ongoing goals.