With Bilbao, Spain in mind, I would like to provide you with an idea of what I plan and hope to experience, along with various cultural aspects and how they might compare to those here in the United States. As I share my plans I will also share direct reflections on how those plans came to life while living in Spain. To preface, I will start by painting a broad picture of the overall business culture. Spain in general, is a very well structured and successful country, and one that plays significant roles in enriching the global economy. Bilbao is no exception to this. It has grown into a very prosperous and heavily populated coastal city in northern Spain. In fact, the Basque Country, which is the territory with which Bilbao falls inside, has a per capita income that is significantly above the Spanish average. In addition to information I gathered from my host family and professors, I was able to visually identify this difference as I took advantage of traveling to several other cities in Spain. When comparing major Spanish cities such as Madrid, Barcelona, and Valencia, I noticed a stark difference in architectural designs, age of buildings, and possibly most importantly, Spanish dialects. Bilbao is clearly the most modern city in every respect. While the Basque dialect is extremely unique, it is mostly spoken in the countryside of Bilbao, and not widely used in the city. With that being said, I think it is important to point out that in the other cities I listed, this is not the case. In fact, many people in those other cities refuse to speak anything other than their unique dialects that they have proudly carried on through generation after generation. I believe that this puts them at economic disadvantage as their global business ventures are not as prevalant as that of Bilbao. I shared this thought with my host father and professor and they confirmed that I had identified these diferences correctly, and that the unique dialects do in fact impact their per capita income.

        Due to the fact that I was a Language and International Business major for over a year before switching to Modern Languages and Business Administration, I have done several projects focused on Spain. More specifically, I have done projects focusing on the cultural differences of the business world in Spain versus here in the United States. The main thing that has stuck with me is how casual business is done in Spain. Typically, people prefer to conduct their meetings over a shared meal at a restaurant, and a casual alcoholic beverage is not uncommon. In addition to this, it is very normal and not considered rude for members of a meeting to arrive later than the designated start time. With that being said, I am sure you could infer the obvious fact that this norm of Spanish business is not at all one that we experience here in the United States. While I was there I wanted to try as many local cafes as possible. I noticed right away that this is where the majority of business meetings take place, and sure enough, most of these meetings included an alcoholic beverage, even if it was still early in the morning. I noticed that these meetings had a much more personal feel, and it was more of an experiencing life together feeling rather than a black and white office where the only conversations were focused on the business at hand. The residents of Bilbao are very familiar with what Americans refer to as “work-life balance”. However, they balance these things in a different way which leaves them more time to enjoy life how they want to. The casual aspect of their business culture allows them easier access to befriending their coworkers and superiors, and ultimately including them as lifelong friends. In addition to this, the afternoon siesta is still prevalent in Spain. Both of my host parents worked full time, however, at 1pm every work day they would come home for lunch and rest until 3pm when they would return to their work. This seemed to make their daily lives far more enjoyable and work objectives more attainable.  

        Overall, I would say that everything that I had previously researched and learned about the business culture and general lifestyle of Spain was extremely accurate. The one aspect of Spain as a whole that caught me off guard were the major differences in dialects. For example, when I visited Valencia I was shocked at how different the dialect was. In fact, I was not able to communicate with locals well in Spanish as they refused to speak anything other than their dialect of Valencian. They would understand my Spanish perfectly but I was not able to understand their response. This was the most extreme difference in dialects that I experienced but I do have a list of over 200 entirely new words that I learned while traveling around Spain. Moreover, the courses that I took while I was there were exceptional and my professors were some of the best professors I have had throughout my academic career. In conclusion, I feel that this experience has served as a great foundation for my continued interest in cultural differences in business along with my interest in language differences. I am very proud of how well I interacted with my host family, classmates, professors, and locals, and how those interactions have left a mark on who I am today. I am confident that I will stay in contact with my host family, classmates, and my International Strategic Management Professor, and am excited to have them as a valuable source of support going forward. 

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