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“Global mindset,” “cultural intelligence,” “intercultural competence” … no matter how you want to call the skills that are necessary to successfully interact with people who might not see the world like you due to culture, geography, background, age or other factors, they are paramount in the industry.

Engineers need to be experts in their field (hard technical skills) but without the ability to influence, negotiate, build trust, lead, communicate ideas to different audiences (soft skills, also referred to as power skills in a recent report), projects have a much smaller chance of succeeding. When in an intercultural setting, have you ever struggled with your peers’ style of communication, wondered why some people seem to use more formal language, be more direct than others or perhaps less flexible with time than you are accustomed to? Culture plays a big part in how we communicate and enhancing communication is so much more than choosing to speak the same language.

In addition, remote learning mode brings further complications to the equation. The challenges of video conferencing such as the ‘zoom fatigue,’ the caveats of written communication (emails or text messages), or practicalities of working together across different time zones, add some extra pressure on the already vulnerable intercultural communication.

Did you know that long before we developed languages, humans relied exclusively on non-verbal signals to understand each other? Even today, our unconscious brains are finely tuned to these cues, shaping our first impressions within seconds. Whether you're presenting, interviewing for a job, or working in a team, becoming aware of how you come across can be the key to success.

Join our workshop to:

• Gain a deep understanding of the fundamentals of non-verbal communication.
• Explore how non-verbal cues vary across cultures and discuss different preferences.
• Discover the art of using body language to project confidence, build rapport, and increase your presence-both in physical and virtual interactions.

This is not a webinar. This is an interactive workshop and you will be expected to contribute to the session.

To participate you must have your webcam switched on.

The way we present ourselves influences other people’s perceptions of our effectiveness, trustworthiness, and credibility.

Nonverbal behaviour varies according to our gender. And both men and women are bound by specific expectations around the way they present themselves.

Men are traditionally expected to be more competitive, confident, and powerful. Stereotypically male nonverbal behaviours, which project a lot of strength, serve men well in the workplace.

Strength gets things done. Strength commands respect. Strength speeds up career progression.

But strength alone isn’t enough. To lead, you need to gain other people’s trust, build rapport, and connect with others. In other words, you need warmth. Leaders who are strong but lack warmth are perceived as intimidating, inspire resentment, and struggle to get commitment - rather than mere compliance - from their teams.

While men are expected to be strong, women are expected to be kind, cooperative, and nurturing. Stereotypically female nonverbals, which signal warmth, help women connect with others, build rapport, and gain trust.

But warmth on its own isn’t enough for effective leadership. People who are warm but lack strength are not taken seriously and are rarely seen as “leadership material”.

To be effective leaders, women and men need to learn how to balance the qualities of strength and warmth. In this workshop, you will learn how to translate the intangible concept of authority and approachability into observable behaviours.

This course is intended for non-native speaker second and third-year graduate students who wish to improve their Presentation Skills.

This is a TWO-WEEK COURSE focusing on YOUR OWN DRAFTS of thesis, dissertation, first-year projects or research papers. WEEK 1 comprises five 2-hour whole class lessons and concentrates on writing abstracts; literature review; discussion and conclusions and preparing successful posters plus one individual supervision* of 30 minutes which will take place on one of the afternoons (Monday-Thursday)

In WEEK 2 there will be one 2-hour whole-class lesson (Thursday afternoon) based on points arising from students’ work-in-progress plus one individual supervision* of one hour. The time of this will be arranged with the teacher at the start of the course. • Please note that drafts need to have been received by the teacher well in advance in order for feedback to be given during the individual supervision slots.

WEEK 2 Content: 1 whole-class session of 2 hours (Thursday) plus one individual supervision of one hour. Time for individual slots to be arranged between Monday-Wednesday 2.00-6.00 and Friday 11.30-1.30 Individual Slots: Monday, 15th July 2.00-6.00p.m. Tuesday, 16th July 2.00-6.00p.m. Wednesday, 17th July 2.00-6.00p.m. Friday, 19thJuly 11.30-1.30p.m. Whole-Class Teaching: Thursday, 18th July 2.30-4.30p.m.