Business Culture
Primary Author
Nina Evason,
Meetings
- Arrive on time or slightly early. It is possible that your Bosnian counterpart may be late; however, your own punctuality will give a good impression.
- Be sure to use people’s appropriate titles when greeting them.
- Allow time for some social discussion to pass before turning the conversation to business. It’s important to allow people the time to familiarise themselves with everyone present.
- Refreshments are usually served at the beginning of the meeting (e.g. coffee or juice). It’s best to use this as an indicator of when it is polite to start speaking about the matter at hand more seriously.
Considerations
- Bosnian businesses generally collaborate throughout the chain of command to generate ideas. However, the decision-making power usually lies with the highest manager.
- Bosnians are exceptionally generous. If your counterpart takes the initiative to surpass what was expected on their end of the deal, take it as a sign that they respect the business relationship. Furthermore, expect that people whom you have a close and personal relationship with may expect favours to be performed on their behalf.
- On the (2017), Bosnia ranks 83rd out of 180 countries, receiving a score of 38 (on a scale from 0 to 100). This perception suggests that the country’s public sector has a moderate amount of corruption.
