Major cultural differences between Ukrainian and US or European clients may impact every aspect of a project cycle, from marketing, to sales, to fulfilment, to ongoing customer support — especially in the field of IT services.
A workshop on “Intercultural Sales Cycles” covering all aspects of selling, fulfilling projects and customer service based on real examples of interactions across cultures will be delivered by Jennifer Roberts of Ekipa, a global marketplace for software teams.
The event will be held in Kyiv (Kiev) and Lviv (Lvov) on January 22-23 and January 29-30 respectively.
The following topics will be covered:
- The US-Ukraine outsourcing market: cultural background of business in the US and Ukraine — similarities and differences; what US companies expect of teams they partner with; difference between startups, medium and large corporations; worries and concerns of outsourcing; steps in sales process to improve and key traits to work on;
- Lead generation: how to target the right leads and approach them; how to impress USA clients with promotional material; real life critique of participants’ material; what to do, what to say: selling in writing and in person; how to identify a warm vs. cold lead; answering objections: real life practice; when to reach out, when to back off;
- Converting a lead to a client: what a USA client expects in the sales process: assertive vs. stubborn, accommodating vs. pushover: avoid misunderstanding; real life practice of sales mannerisms; what not to do when negotiating a contract;
- Fulfillment: when do timelines matter, and when can they be changed; how often to check in with your clients and how; how to make sure they’ll be happy with the final product; how to make sure you’ll get paid for your hard work;
- Customer satisfaction: how to turn complainers into repeat customers; situation management: what to do when something goes wrong; get awesome client reviews, every time.
Also featured in the agenda will be in-person exercises designed to give more insight into what clients need.
The event is being organised in partnership with Cossacks Information Technologies, a Ukrainian outsourcing consultancy.
Jennifer Roberts was one of three top speakers of Outsource People Conference 2015, held in October in Kyiv.
She also contributed to the recently published international report “High-Tech Ukraine: From A to Z” by Ukraine Digital News and AVentures Capital with her article “How USA clients and Ukrainian providers can accommodate their cultural differences”.
Jennifer Roberts’ speech at Outsource People 2015
