Until recently, I did not understand or agree with the Carlson School’s “global enrichment” requirement. Much of my disdain for this requirement was admittedly the finance major in me thinking about the high costs involved. That being said, no excel spreadsheet could have calculated the return on investment I received during my time in Spain. The following are a things I learned from our program that I believe will have lasting effects on my future business endeavors.

Empathy is an important quality in my future employer

During our time at Quadpack and Sphera, I found that empathy was a value I appreciate in a company. While at Quadpack, they shared a story of the company coming together to support its workers from its flooded factory in Borgonyà. Quadpack’s response to this trying time demonstrated how crucial teamwork and the empathetic side of human nature can be in positively impacting the culture of a company.

In most of my finance classes, and even in business ethics, it was stressed that a for-profit business exists solely to make money for its shareholders. Sphera’s mission, instead, was to provide healthcare to remote communities with little resources, while still operating at a profit. This site visit fueled my desire to work for a company that’s strategy and mission incorporate empathy, and one that ultimately acts as a force for good.

Things I learned about myself in Spain

As a major homebody, I was not excited to visit a completely unfamiliar culture. Making matters worse, as I read through the work of Erin Meyer and Geert Hofstede, I realized that Spain was not only an unfamiliar culture but also one that is vastly different. I still remember how shocking it was to look at a comparison between the United States and Spain on Hofstede’s cultural dimensions and find that the they did not fall within fifteen points of each other on any of the dimensions.

To my surprise, our trip to Spain served as a refreshing departure from my “comfortable” US culture. Ironically, I even began to appreciate some of the biggest cultural differences I was so worried about being exposed to. In particular, I appreciated how the Spanish focus on quality of life over being the best, as expressed in the masculinity dimension. Our speaker at Sphera described her time working for an American business as “working with relentless sharks.” Upon hearing this, I realized that not only is our culture overly-competitive, but so was I.

I further appreciated how the Spanish placed a higher emphasis on “we” over “I,” as expressed in the individualist dimension. Coming from an extremely individualist culture, I realized that I should begin to think more with others at the forefront of my mind when making future personal and business decisions

Ultimately, our site visits in Spain and my overall experience abroad helped exponentially helped my growth in both self and cultural awareness. This is something I could not have put a price tag on.

Having never been to Europe I was only able to prepare myself for the culture shock through research and conversations with colleagues. I am a very punctual person influenced by the linear scheduling of my culture, which made the flexible time scheduling of Spain’s business difficult to understand and frustrating. Also, I have always been extremely competitive in everything I do. This mindset seemed rather foreign during some of our site visits in Spain. Lastly, I hear about high up corporate employees sitting at desks just like normal employees in the States; however, this concept was not reflected in one of the site visits we experienced.

Time is very flexible across Spain

Before our departure to Spain I had the privilege of researching La Boqueria. Upon our arrival in Spain we were fortunate enough to come across the market on our first day. Our group was given 15 minutes to take a quick look around before we went to dinner and what we found wasn’t what I had anticipated. There was 30 minutes left until the closing time that is posted on the website, but there were already many stalls closed and cleaned. This was strange; however, this is explained by the cultures flexible scheduling relative to what we are used to in the States. Another example of the flexible scheduling was shown when one of my fellow students had made a reservation for 8pm at a nice restaurant. Edward arrived at the restaurant on time for his reservation but it was still closed, and it wasn’t until 30 minutes later when they finally opened their doors wondering why he was their so early. 

Spanish entrepreneurship focuses on community rather than individual competition

One of the site visits during our time in Spain was at Tetuan Valley. Tetuan Valley is a pre-accelerator community that brings together and educates motivated teams with great ideas and even better attitudes. At Tetuan Valley they really emphasize the collectivism instilled in their culture with their focus on creating a community that is well connected and comfortable with each other. In the states the process seems more individualistic and I think there is something to be learned from the way Spain has leveraged their cultural norms in this space.

Organizations in Spain are hierarchical as shown by office locations

Our last site visit took place at a specialized packaging firm called Quadpack. The presentation was well done and interesting to listen to. An element that was mentioned during the presentation was where certain employees were located. In the Barcelona office, there were three floors Quakpack occupied and the executives sat at the highest and most renovated floor. This can seem like a minor detail, but I believe this reflects the hierarchical culture of Spain relevant in the organization.

Culture is always better understood when experienced first hand

The amount of information that can be learned about a culture from online resources is great, but limited. Research I accumulated prior to our trip was accurate; however, it was only until after experiencing some of the cultural dimensions first hand that I could fully comprehend the reality of the everyday differences. This experience expanded my global intelligence and will aide in understanding the cultural backgrounds that drives the decision making of others.

Learning and reading about a different culture in a classroom setting simply doesn’t compare to being thrown into that culture and having to find your way. This could be a result of the euphoria stage of culture shock. Combining euphoria with the fact we had limited time to experience so many new things definitely made me focus on appreciating the details of everything around me. Overall I think getting to experience so much in so little time also put my overall global intelligence into perspective.

Day to Day Life in the United States is Comparatively High Strung

Throughout our trip, I noticed that the general attitude of Spaniards seems much more relaxed than your average US citizen. At multiple site visits, the underlying theme of the presentation was that a typical Spanish work environment puts an emphasis on relationships and work life balance. For example, our guest speaker at Abertis, Lorena Muñiz, mentioned that work lunches regularly last longer than scheduled and can be upwards of two hours. Ms. Muñiz pointed out the important role that these relationship building lunches can have on your overall experience at a company. I think I would strongly prefer this environment over the intense and competitive culture in the United States. Overall, I think this aspect of our trip improved my global intelligence because knowing that extremely different work environments can still function well will likely make me a better employee in a global company.

Seeing a New Side to Religion Through Spanish History

The role that religion played in Spanish history was fascinating to learn about. Prior to this trip, I didn’t fully appreciate how unique it was that so many religions were able to work in harmony throughout Spain’s history. I think this was most apparent in Toledo when we visited the Synagogue of Santa María la Blanca. This synagogue looks very similar to a mosque because it was built by Moorish architects. Today the synagogue is owned and preserved by the Catholic Church. As someone with limited exposure to religion, I was very surprised to learn about this intermingling because I had assumed that religions always had deep conflicts with each other throughout history. I think learning this has improved my global intelligence because it seems important to understand how religion has influenced a country’s history.

Bill George, former chairman and CEO of Medtronic, stresses the importance of the concept of “Global Intelligence” and notes how integral it is to successful leadership in our ever-changing and increasingly global economy. Worldview, self-awareness, and cultural curiosity are three of seven qualities he described that differentiate successful global leaders. After visiting Spain for two weeks, my worldview has changed, my self-awareness has increased, and I have become more open to exploring new cultures and geographies without fear or prejudice.

Life in Madrid and Barcelona is Extremely Different from America

I had visited the Dominican Republic, Paris, London, and Amsterdam before taking this class. However, I did not know anything about Spain. I never had any aspirations to go to Spain in my life so I enrolled in this course with an open mind and was curious to see what I got out of it. Before departing for Spain, our class learned a lot about Spanish culture and how different it is from ours here in America. However, I am someone who believes experience is the best teacher in life so I really got an understanding of Spanish Culture when I was out in Madrid and Barcelona. Despite the differences between the cultures, I was able to adapt relatively easy. I have never been in an area with as much tourist that were in Madrid and Barcelona so learning that personal space is something that is not really valued in these cities was not surprising to me. One of the smallest things I thought was really interesting is how people stand on the right side of the escalator if they are not walking up or down it. In our culture, people walk or stand on both sides of the escalator.

My Self-Awareness Increased While in Spain

This was my first time traveling to Spain and I did not know the diversity of either Madrid or Barcelona. Being an African American, I was curious to see what ethnicities and nationalities I would see when I got there. I did not think Madrid had that much diversity, but I saw and met people from a lot of different places around the world in Barcelona. Being someone that did not know how diverse either city was before traveling, I was curious to see how people would treat me in this part of Europe. Everyone I encountered treated me with respect and were really nice for the most part so I enjoyed my stay in both cities.

I’m Open to Exploring New Cultures

Before traveling to Spain, I was not someone that was really open to exploring new cultures and geographies. After visiting Spain and enjoying my stay, I no longer have a fear of exploring what I do not know. As humans, I think we too often allow the opinions of others or things we see to cloud our judgement. Experience is the best teacher in life and because of this trip, I will be more open to exploring new cultures whenever I get an opportunity.

Allianz Field is a soccer-specific stadium in Saint Paul, Minnesota, home to the Minnesota United FC of Major League Soccer. The 19,400-seat stadium opened April 13, 2019, during the club’s third Major League Soccer season. Camp Nou is a soccer stadium in Barcelona, Spain. With its current capacity of 99,354, it has been the home stadium of FC Barcelona since its completion in 1957.

Camp Nou is Largest Stadium in Spain

When our class was in Madrid, I visited Santiago Bernabeu stadium, the home stadium of Real Madrid. Santiago Bernabeu has a current capacity of 81,044 and is the second largest stadium in Spain. However, Camp Nou has a current capacity of 99,354 and is not only the largest stadium in Spain, but the largest stadium in Europe. It’s currently the third largest soccer stadium in the world.

Camp Nou Stadium Tour is Amazing

When I visited Santiago Bernabeu stadium, the tour was cheaper but the line to get in the stadium was longer. The price of the Camp Nou stadium tour is a little more expensive, but I was able to get in the stadium relatively fast. The first leg of the tour was getting a panoramic view of the stadium. I really enjoyed the view, but this is not even one of my favorite parts of the tour. The second leg and one of my favorite parts of the tour was experiencing the club room. The club room displays the history of the team dating back to the origins of the club. I was able to see the first jerseys and cleats the club wore. I saw the first soccer balls that were being used during games and I was able to see all the trophies the team has won.

After experiencing the club room, I was able to go on the pitch and walk across different parts of the field. Another part of the tour I really enjoyed is the tunnel, benches, and coaching area. In team sports, fans often see players run out onto the court or field before games, but rarely ever get an opportunity to see where they are before the game. Being able to stand and see the stadium from the coaching area was a really cool experience for me. People were able to sit on the team benches and take pictures if they wanted to as well.

The last part of the tour I really enjoyed is the press room. This is where the players and coaches answer questions from journalists either before and/or after games. It was cool to be able to sit in the chair and at the table the players and coaches actually sit at.

Once in a Lifetime Opportunity

I am not the biggest soccer fan in the world and never had any aspirations to go to Spain. Being able to tour Santiago Bernabeu and Camp Nou stadium while visiting Madrid and Barcelona is an experience I truly will never forget.

It’s now been a few days since our flight back to MSP, and I think enough time has passed to give a reasonable review of our trip managed by CIEE. Overall, I really enjoyed the trip and I thought seeing Spain was a fantastic experience. There were a lot of unique companies that were able to visit, and Paco and Ray were great resources for any questions about the cities. However, I would recommend some improvements to make next year’s trip even better.

The CIEE Classroom was Depressing

After talking with some of my peers, I think it’s safe to say that JohnRyan and Recyclia were the low points of the trip. The guest speakers were really nice people, but the content and delivery of their presentations was mediocre. Regardless of the language barrier, it was sad to see so many of my classmates treat the lectures like a scheduled nap time. I’ll be honest, the ‘principles-first’ Spanish style and poor audience interaction even made me lose attention half the time. I didn’t know what the Recyclia representative was talking about until the final 5 minutes. There was only so much the presenters could do, and I think any sort of corporate site visit would be more interactive and fresh for the students. It’s an understatement to say that there was a mutual dread when we walked up those 6 flights of stairs in the morning.

The Corporate Site Visits Could Have Used Improvement, Too

Even beyond the classroom, relative to the rest of the business visits, it seemed like there was a general lack of preparation. For instance, we sat around in the HP Barcelona lobby for a decent 25 minutes before anything happened, and I thought it was a dry presentation on top of that. Tetuan Valley was supposed to be presented by the CEO, and we didn’t even go to Castellet Castle like it said in the pre-departure scheduling. For the logistics and planning of the program, I would recommend venturing out to site visits as much as possible, and communicating with future representatives what has worked and what hasn’t in the past. Again, while Paco and Ray were great guides for herding us around the city, it was obvious that we weren’t as much of a priority to CIEE as originally planned.

I would advise future students in Spain to allow time to wander through the streets. Of course, you should take safety precautions and travel with a small group, but I found this was the best way to be surprised and find something new.

Take the long way to lunch and be surprised.

Wandering during the day can be fun, but I recommend having a destination in mind such as a historic site, or a place to eat. The best part of wandering during the day is that most stores are open (though many stores may be closed on Sunday). This allows you to find anything from a great new pair of shoes to the perfect souvenir for your family. You might also find a park, restaurant, or street performer that you were not expecting. However, make sure you do not follow any strangers offering to take you to a coffee shop, and as always keep track of your belongings.

Go on an ice cream adventure.

Wandering early in the night (always with a group!) was another experience I enjoyed while in Spain and would recommend. Our destination was always an ice cream shop. When you are looking for ice cream shops, make sure you do not stop until you find the right one. The perfect ice cream shop should be busy but not priced too high. You should be able to find one scoop for 2.50 euros. A great place to go after ice cream is to the nearest busy park. Day or night, it is always interesting to sit on a bench and people watch.

A little Spanish goes a long way.

While visiting small shops and restaurants I enjoyed the challenge of communicating with people who don’t speak fluent English. I would recommend using many hand motions and finding a menu so you can point to what you want when possible. Also, taking the leap to try explaining yourself is Spanish sometimes goes better than you expect, once you get over that fact that you are probably making a fool of yourself with your pronunciation. Overall, I would advise future students to explore small shops and restaurants and not be afraid to try speaking a little Spanish.

The lectures weren’t lies; there was a plethora of cultural differences between Minneapolis and Spain. In particular, I noticed the interactions we had were definitely focused on the relationship aspects between people. We can use Erin Meyer’s The Culture Map as a guide for our abroad experience.

El Corte Inglés Emphasizes Relationship-Building in Its Stores.

During our site visits, I think it was obvious to see this cultural difference between the USA and Spain. We can look to our very first tour over at El Corte Inglés as a prime example. During the Q&A section, the presenters gave more honest and less-scripted insights into how the stores are operated. Just like any retailer, El Corte Inglés has to compete with Amazon, and they offer a full-on experiential visit to any customer. We saw numerous examples on our walk-around, like the Personal Shopper service, the number of friendly, multilingual employees standing next to merchandise, or the tapas restaurant at the top of the store. Conversely, while there are plenty of retail workers willing to help in the American malls, most customers that walk in the door say, “I’m just looking” so that they can shop on their own.

 

The Cultural Differences are Prevalent in Younger Generations.

I also found this cultural aspect of relationship-prioritization prevalent in the activities that our group did with our free time. My teammates and I took a day-trip over to Segovia to see the aqueduct and check out a new city. The bus was full, and I ended up sitting next to a local Spaniard for the trip. In typical American fashion, I plugged in my earbuds and stared at my phone deciding which playlist I wanted to listen to for the next hour. After a minute or two, the guy sitting next to me started talking and we conversed. We talked about normal icebreaker things, and I was able to hear first-hand what he thought about the cultural differences. While this isn’t a direct dimension that Erin Meyer or Hofstede wrote about, David Garcia talked about the superficialness of American relationships when he studied over in California for a semester, just like your lecture back at Carlson. We ended up becoming facebook friends with each other, and David Garcia joined us for a drink after our trip to Toledo on that Monday. David created our relationship out of thin air, and it was nice to talk to someone outside of the Carlson clique while we were abroad.

Though we experienced many cultural differences in Spain, I was most struck by collectivism and power distance. I noticed these differences when experiencing a traditional meal, during multiple site visits, and when observing Spanish architecture.

Spain’s collective dining culture builds relationships.

During our welcome dinners I noticed it is common to share tapas or a pan of paella. In addition, these dinners usually lasted multiple hours, leaving plenty of time to talk to everyone else at the table and build relationships. Investing time in strong relationships is necessary to maintain a collectivist culture, and this was very visible while dining.

Codorniu relies on collectivism to survive.

I also noticed collectivist themes while visiting Codorniu. In order to survive 460 years, the family has remained committed to the same goal – the family business. It was clear that this was important, as the original name has stayed intact and there has always been someone willing to carry on the business instead of going to try something new for themselves. In this case, the family is the collective and even after the Cordinou name died out it is carried on by the descendants. More information on the history of Codorniu can be found here.

Power means more presentation time.

Another cultural piece I found quite interesting was Power Distance. This was exemplified at multiple site visits, and through the monarchy that exists in Spain. For example, at Hewlett Packard (HP), Emili mentioned the lack of a hierarchy at HP, but continued to talk throughout the presentation since she was higher up in the company than her accomplice. This was also the case at Quad Pack, where David did most of the presentation since he was above Ana in the corporate hierarchy. However, Ana had been with the company much longer and was more knowledgeable in answering questions.

Architecture is used to display power distance.

Power Distance was also shown in Spanish architecture. Visiting the cathedral in Toledo, our guide explained that Queen Isabella built the cathedral to celebrate overtaking the city. She wanted to use Catholicism to gain power and set herself apart above everyone else. This same strategy was used when designing grand places of residence and warfare, such as castles and palaces. I was very struck by the grandeur of the decorations inside and out and thought about how awe-inspiring they must have appeared to the “common” people throughout the centuries that Spain has been in existence. Site visits to these grand, historic places helped me to understand where the power distance in Spain likely began and have a much greater appreciation for the layers of Spanish culture.

Coming into this study abroad program, I had every intention that this was going to be a two-week vacation and less of a learning experience. That could not have been any further from the truth. I doubted that two weeks would give me enough time to gain a “global perspective” that the Carlson School requires all students to have, but I can honestly say I have learned so much from my time in Spain. Two aspects of Global Intelligence that I have a deeper understanding of are Empathy and Self-Awareness.

Understanding What it Means to Stand in the Shoes of a Foreigner

Before this trip, I had never left the country, much less to a country where I barely speak the language. Language quickly became one of the hardest aspects for me throughout this trip, but I actually learned a lot because of my lack of knowledge. Almost every time that I had to communicate with someone who didn’t speak English or didn’t speak it well, I thought of what it would be like if the roles were reversed? Would I be as understanding or patient? In all honesty, I can’t say that before this trip I would have been. I now know what it feels like to be the foreigner where I don’t understand what is going on, and I am grateful for that. It has given me a much better perspective as well as empathy for those people who go through these same situations here in the United States.

Fitting the American Stereotype

One thing that I never really thought about before this trip was what an American looks like, and in all honesty, I didn’t really think Americans looked a certain way. Again, this assumption couldn’t be further from the truth. Without saying a word, waiters, store clerks, and strangers would know to speak English to us. There’s a number of obvious things that I can think of, as displayed in the picture below, like cowboy hats, matching floral T-shirts, and khaki shorts. But there were other behaviors that I became self-aware of that set us apart from others. At the dinners, both in small groups and large, we were the loudest people there whereas others were having quiet and intimate conversations. This aspect of culture relates to collectivism. Spanish people value time with each other, so having real conversations at dinner without distractions from cell phones or even waiters is important. Americans are usually talking over one another to be herd which is much more of an individualistic behavior.

The biggest surprise of all that I had this trip was learning so much in so little time. It really doesn’t matter the amount of time you spend in a new place, it’s the experiences that you have there that help mold your perspective.