TNT: Tri-National Training—multicultural team workshop at Eurocopter

Eurocopter is a division of Airbus Group with production plants in Germany, France and Spain, as well as several subsidiaries worldwide. The enterprise originally developed out of its European head offices in Germany and France. In recent years, Eurocopter established a third pillar in Spain, which includes a new plant in Albacete (in Castile – La Mancha).

A tri-national training program

Right from the beginning, the company has worked with intercultural teams and promoted cross-border exchange as well as long-term foreign assignments of its employees, including in Albacete. The employees work on site, but also online, in international teams. Especially in Albacete, a few of the teams exhibit a strong “tri-national” structure (consisting of Spanish, German and French team members).

Against this backdrop, a “Tri-National Training Program” was created, which consisted of multicultural team workshops. Its goal was to optimize cooperation within the teams through the integration of individual work practices into a common strategy and thus to facilitate the exchange of expertise and competences. The workshops enabled the employees to become aware of the influence of their culture on general collaboration. In addition, opportunities were created to reflect on and exchange information on different values, working methods, problem-solving and communication styles. Furthermore, participants looked for common strategies to increase the efficiency of their teams.  

Training focused on communication and team development

In coordination with the instructor, the Spanish liaison manager and the Spanish Human Resources department, the focus of the training was placed on team development and communication. These aspects were ensured through team building measures and active interaction with participants—in the form of personal conversations, a kick-off workshop and questionnaires and telephone interviews prior to the training.  

The program in Albacete was started on the first afternoon with a mutual kick-off workshop. For this, the members of the board of directors were invited to once again illuminate the common goals and strategies of the enterprise. Subsequently, an introduction to the training program took place. Representatives of all three cultures—Spain, Germany and France—were present and exchanged ideas. Finally, the fundamental significance of cultural differences in multinational enterprises was worked out in a group activity. The need to find common rules and forms of communication was also addressed.     

The training ended with concrete action plans for the implementation of the results.

Two weeks after the start of the program, participants took part in a two-day intercultural workshop in which they had the opportunity to discuss cultural differences at the workplace and in building relationships. The workshops also included a team building event on the first evening, followed by a group dinner in the hotel hosting the training.

Two important aspects of collaboration were addressed in the workshop. They included improved communication (verbal as well as via email), an understanding for the values of the respectively other culture and what they could mean for mutual working relationships. They also included valuing other ways of thinking and different solution approaches, as well as more effective conflict solving.

During the workshop, participants exhibited a great deal of motivation and enthusiasm. The training was well received by the participants of all three nations, with concrete action plans being implemented to further expand on the results of the program.

Our trainer Gaëlle Piernikarch was born in France and has Spanish roots. Her international career led her from Finland and Great Britain to the USA, France and, finally, in the year 2000, to Germany. She is a business economist with an M.A. in social sciences and has several years of experience in the areas of international marketing, communication and business development. Since 2003, Piernikarch has served as a senior consultant and intercultural trainer, developing learning programs for a number of international enterprises. She offers her training in German and English, as well as in French and Spanish.