In his session, Peter Franklin conveyed the intricacies of working abroad. According to Franklin, cultural complexity is one of the things that needs to be considered when we want to work in a place with different rules. Things such as norms, practices, and behavior must be considered so that we can cooperate in working abroad. We also need to pay attention to the foreign language skills we have, so that we can easily be dynamic when working. Responding to the many things that must be mastered, Franklin stated, “Working abroad is very challenging.”
Peter Franklin also explained about the concept of intercultural competence. Based on his presentation, intercultural competence includes several things such as intercultural communication skills, skills, and intercultural intelligence. Regarding the ability to interact between cultures, Franklin stated that it is not just the ability to communicate verbally and non-verbally. According to him, someone who will work abroad must be able to do it effectively and appropriately.
In this public lecture, Peter Franklin also involved the participants to be active. Franklin collects participants’ opinions about what things are needed to be able to work abroad well. He also added several important points to note, such as the desire to adapt to a new environment, stress management, and tolerance. At the end of the class, Franklin played a video related to working abroad for the participants to observe.