For Sanjay Saxena, it was his first assignment abroad when the multi-national firm that he worked for sent him to Europe. Given a tight deadline to complete his first project, he briskly called for a day-long team meeting on Saturday, to kick off the project.

Half an hour after he had sent out the communication, he got a call from his Western boss. Five minutes later, a chastened Saxena was back in his workplace recalling his email, after being soundly rebuked for being insensitive to other people.

It took a while for Saxena to internalise that working on Saturday (an off day), which was a sign of commitment to the job in India , was perceived as intruding into others’ personal space in the European office of the same company.

As India integrates into a more seamless world, the ability to work in a cross-cultural environment is a valuable asset for any ambitious executive.

Managing to understand, appreciate and perhaps even exploit the nuances of these cultural differences, could spell all the difference between success and failure in some business situations.

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