The Department of International Business, National Dong Hwa University (abbreviated as Dept. of IB henceforth), under the leadership of Associate Professor Mohammad Shadab Khalil of the Dept. of IB, embarked on a field trip to India from December 9th to December 15th 2022. This field trip was to visit India, allowing students to experience firsthand the local culture of India and to learn about the cross-country management practices.

In these six days of overseas internship, we visited several firms in three cities of India, first landing in Delhi, then traveling to Agra and Jaipur. Kiera––a second year master’s student of the IB department––expressed that: “I was truly impressed by the ability of Indians in making creative designs and patterns, which I saw in ethnic Indian jewelry sold and used by local women. One of the vendors in a jewelry counter in a fair in New Delhi told me that Indian accessories are not only decorative but also carry symbolic patterns with them to keep some meanings”. Darron Rodan John––a first year master’s student of the Dept. of Information Management––expressed that: “The most valuable experience was visiting Agra Fort (Red Fort) and the Taj Mahal and learning about their history and rich culture. Visiting the observatory (Jantar Mantar) was also extremely valuable as we gained a better understanding of how the people of hundreds of years ago were so creative and knowledgeable, with the creation of such instruments that allowed for such accurate measurement time”. Hsin-Ping Kuo––a first year master’s student of the Dept. of IB ––expressed that: “In my trip to India, the most impressionable part was the culture country-of-origin effect, especially “curry”, though commonly seen in Taiwan, curry is not only a food to India, but it also represents India’s geographical location, climate, history, religion, and ethnic diversity.” Luis Hernández––a second year master’s student of the Dept. of IB––expressed that: “The trip to India was very enriching and it opened my eyes to a reality that I was unaware of, a country that struggles to be better every day along with the inexhaustible willpower that it entails”.

This field trip brought great fruition, as the students were able to witness the colorful and vibrant culture imbued in the people, food, environment, and management practices of India. All students expressed their gratitude for this invaluable chance, as it showed us a vastly different perspective from that of Taiwan, broadening the views of all that took part in this trip. In terms of learning and applying the frameworks and theories that was taught in class pertaining to cross-cultural management, simply sitting in class would be inadequate to fully understand the implications, barriers, challenges, and subtleties of cross-cultural management. Hence, this overseas visit allowed our fellow students to operate and ponder on the concepts that were taught in class, expanding their international perspectives, and leaving an unforgettable experience for all. Associate Professor Mohammad Shadab Khalil of the Dept. of IB expressed that: “The oversea course plan in India was a very crucial step towards giving students a first-hand experience in navigating cross-cultural differences and its management. The students got a chance to understand how a firm dealing with international clients from different countries is able to provide high standards of service in a market plagued by uncertainty, third-party service failures, and above all, the pandemic. The internship opens up opportunities for the students as they would be able to apply this practical knowledge into their academic and professional work, concurrently opening up academic-industry relations between Taiwan and India.”