What do we have in common? New impulses from the science of Energology® for intercultural management The number of intercultural contacts in everyday business is on the increase - even for accountants! In an increasingly competitive global marketplace, the ability to manage cultural differences to competitive advantage should be a corporate imperative, 'not a

nice to have’ option. We, and our businesses, can benefit from our intercultural knowledge, but how?
		Intercultural : to study communication and relations between people from different cultural and behavioural backgrounds.

When working together across cultures, theoretical questions and practical tasks can be easily resolved. These are the important solid issues. The imperative X factor toward greater business success is the intelligent use of the knowledge we glean from our everyday experiences with international business contacts.

So, how do we use our, often intrinsic, intercultural knowledge without making life more complicated? Simply, by viewing it ‘Energologically’!

But what is Energology®? Energology® is the science of energy. It analyses diverse forms and types of energy, looks for energy patterns and transforms its research results for the everyday use.
In our case looking at our intercultural knowledge in an energological way means that in doing so we save our energy resources: by first analysing the common factors in intercultural interactions we can prove the fundaments on which to build our international business contacts. Then we can arrive to the cultural and other differences. But first, the common factors.

Intercultural scientific management research tells us that there are common factors in all human interactions: cross-cultural and domestic. These are:
		Energology® is the science of energy. It analyses diverse forms and types of energy, looks for energy patterns and transforms its research results for everyday use.

• The human being is an “energy-composition”.
• Each human being is individual.
• Human communication, especially in intercultural context, is based on 3 fundamental forms of communication: Emotional Communication©, the Communication of Values© and the Communication of Information© by Kapur®.
• Human feelings are the basis for all communications, independent from any kind of culture. Feelings are “spoken” worldwide.
• Everyone knows that the knowledge of the values of others by itself is not enough; it is only the ability to manage those values that bring cross cultural communication success in business and in life.

So the understanding and application of the above common factors, will benefit our skills at intercultural interactions, and ultimately make our intercultural businesses more successful and ergonomic.

• Intercultural interactions are to be respected; not merely assessed.
• The conscious use of the Common Factors brings people together and contributes to successful communication and business success.
• International project management will be enhanced by applying intercultural management knowledge.
• Time and cost efficiency will increase and the company’s performance broaden itself to an international and intercultural level.

Now let’s have a look at the Common Factors in detail:

The human being is an “energy-composition”.

An important common factor that humans share is to be human. It doesn’t matter which culture one is faced with, because ultimately we always encounter people from many different walks of life. According to the general principle of the science of Energology® “Everything that is, is energy and energy is everything that is”, humans – with their individual strengths and weaknesses, talents, preferences and characteristics - are an “energy-composition” out of diverse forms and types of energy.

By using Energy as a common denominator, many everyday situations can be approached in a more relaxed, goal-oriented way. Indeed, this perspective is not the norm, but it gives us the opportunity to approach people in an open minded way, not only with our intercultural everyday-management contacts, but also with our social circle: family; friends; acquaintances.

You will find more about the other Common Factors in the next issue of the MGI News.For further information about the Science of Energology® and Intercultural Management just visit our website www.energology.com .

Authors:

		Sonja Maria Herzog-Lang, Energologist, Pedagogue in Business, Chief Executive Officer of SHL Vital Organisations, Hanover, Germany
		Mag.phil. Nicola Spiegl (African Studies, Ethnology), TM Thinker Manager© out of the 3dManagement© by Kapur®
			First published in english by MGI News The Magazine for MGI Members www.mgiworld.com December 2005