5 things non Israelis must know when dealing with their Israeli colleagues

1) “No” means let’s talk about it and negotiate. Most discussions are negotiations.

2)  Don’t try and “buy” compliance from Israelis with bonuses or promises of financial reward. Israelis see buying compliance  as whoring. Either convince them or give orders.

3 ) Israelis, like Singaporeans and  Hong Kong Chinese, live in two worlds.They all use western terms but they have another reality in which they live in simutaneous. Israelis live in a very tough neighbourhood. So remember, Israelis at times may pay lip service to win-win. You need to be tough because “expediancy” and “compromise” are often seen as weakness. Weak people may get the screws turned on them.

4) Israelis are hard working, but Israelis mix family and work. They work hard at home as well as yak about family at work. Yet, you can almost always trust your Israeli colleague to do everything s/he can to get the job done.

5) Israelis view planning as an almost meaningless ritual; Israelis don’t value planning. Israelis value ingenuity and more ingenuity. Don’t expect an Israeli to do anything more than “going through the motions” of planning. They are also proud of this.

 

 

 

 

 

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