TIComKMO : language proficiency and intercultural competent SMEs (R-5469)

This people to people project aims to enforce the linguistic and intercultural competences of KMO's/MKBs within the EMR. It aims to improve communication between KMO's/MKBs among themselves within the EMR, but also between KMO's in the EMR and companies in the Netherlands, Belgium (Flanders and Walloon), Germany and France. After the EMR sub-regions, these bigger entities are the most important trade partners of KMO's/MKBs of the EMR. Nevertheless the borders of these areas are too often seen as true trade barriers. This is illustrated by a study performed by VKW Limburg (press release may 2012) which demonstrates that a majority of companies in Limburg consider the language border (with Walloon) as a trade barrier. It also appears from previous research that the ROI shows an unexpected imbalance caused by failing negotiations or stopping of cooperation caused by miscommunication. With this project we aim to obtain a better understanding in communicative situations which KMO's/MBKs from the entire EMR ( 5 sub-regions) frequently face and the problems they experience in their contacts with trade partners within the EMR itself and the aforementioned countries. To work as efficiently and thoroughly as possible, we will question sector crossing KMO's/MKBs of the 5 sub-regions on the basis of semi-structured interviews. Based in a list of communicative needs resulting from our previous sector crossing study at European framework functions, the KMO's/MKBs can indicate with which communicative situations they are (frequently) confronted, which problems they experience in which situation and which explanation they have given. In addition, the opportunity will exist to add other communicative situations, relevant to them. Based on the results of this study, the inventory of particular communicative needs (sector crossing), coupled to the research results of our project INTERcCOM (INTERREG IVA), we subsequently intent to, provided the acquisition of sufficient funding, with the same project partners as in this application and the collaboration with the region Aachen e.V as well, to develop training modules for e-learning. We wish that the KMO's/MKBs can learn and train in Dutch, German and French how to best handle their trading partners, taking their culture and their way of communicating, negotiating and acting into account. This will without doubt lead to more effective and durable contacts, that will stimulate the economic growth of KMO's/MKBs. The modules will be online available anywhere, anytime and on any device (PC, Mac, Tablet, mobile device.

Keywords:intercultural communication

Disciplines:Languages and literary studies