Advantages to sell your business note include: • Walk away from a business you didn't want without having a financial anchor still attached to you for next several years • Use balance owed to you to fund a new business, pay off debts or finance education for yourself or your loved ones- now! • Avoid risk that buyer will default on loan • Avoid risk of buyer going bankrupt • No need to wait for monthly payments

If you are going to sell your business, following criteria should be structured into your note so that it will be more attractive to investors for purchase: • Down payment of 30% or more • Personal guarantee from buyer • Short term financing - shorter term better • Minimal seasoning of note is needed - usually two months at least, depending on type of business.

A note for a business that has substantial tangible assets will be easier to sell compared to one that does not - example: machine shop versus a coffee stand.

Foreign Languages

These days, offices may have native speakers of over 50 languages all under one roof. It is important that main language of office is established, whether it be English, French or Spanish. Once this is constituted all employees should only converse in main language. This avoids exclusion of staff who can not understand other languages. In addition, a company should ensure that all its employees are fully conversant in main language. Language tuition should be seen as a necessity not a luxury.

Culture

International businesses with a highly diverse workforce in terms of nationality and cultural background face challenges from differences in language, values, belief systems, business ethics, business practices, behaviour, etiquette and expectations.

Cross cultural differences can negatively impact a business in a variety of ways, whether in team cohesion or in staff productivity. As we have seen above, different methods of communication are just one area in which cross cultural differences are manifested.

In such multicultural companies, objective help may be needed through a cross cultural consultant who will show teams and individuals how to manage communication and work together more cohesively and productively.

Company Culture

Company culture pertains to internal culture of a company in terms of how it is managed. For example, does company view its different departments such as sales, production, administration and HR as closed or open systems? A closed system is one in which a total lack of synergy exists between a sales and production department due to structure and communication lines between two. A consequence of such compartmentalization is that managers of departments have a tendency to become territorial. It is vital that team work, team building and team spirit are encouraged in order to create open systems.

Such measures are especially valid in joint ventures and mergers whereby co-operation between two or more companies requires their total commitment to an open system.

Understandably many companies are primarily focused on financial and strategic side of company operations. International businesses are now realising that many of their business problems have roots in man-management and communication.

In summary, we can conclude that biggest hurdle to effective cross cultural communication is a reluctance to invest in expertise and resources needed to overcome problems as outlined above. Cross cultural hurdles are easily negotiable with some objective and well-qualified assistance.

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