Israel

=DOING BUSINESS IN ISRAEL =
 * __**Geography of Israel **__
 * Israel is a relatively small country 262 miles in length and just 65 miles wide
 * Its geography is as diverse as the cultures that live in this country
 * You can find the 8900 ft snow covered Mt. Hermon at the north end of Israel and a tropical oasis at the southern border like the red sea resort of Eilat
 * Between these borders you the geography ranges from the lowest point in the world (The Dead Sea) to olive tree studded hill sides and fertile volcanic valleys
 * There are four major cities in Israel
 * These include Jerusalem which is the capital of Israel, Tel Aviv which is where Israel's industrial, commercial and cultural lives is focused on, Haifa which is a Mediterranean port city and industrial center of the north and finally Be'er Sheva which is [[image:Israel_Mt_Hermon_israeli_flag.jpg width="167" height="170" align="right"]]the largest population center of the south


 * __**Population and Religion **__
 * In 2006 the total population of Israel was 6.991 million people
 * Of these people the following percentages represent the total percentage of people who represent these religion
 * 76% are Jewish, 16.3 % are Muslim, 2.1% are Christian and 1.6% Druze
 * __**Economy **__
 * Currency
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The National Currency of Israel is the New Israel Shekel or NIS
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Since the 1990's the Israeli economy has been focused on technology
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Many technological advance were designed in Israel including the early PC microprocessors and the Internet Chameleon Browser
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Impact on Foreign Markets
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Free trade agreements with EU and United States has allowed Israel to play [[image:israeli_currency.jpg width="261" height="133" align="right"]]an important role in the importing and exporting of goods from the Western Market


 * __**<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">﻿Communicating with Israelis **__
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">How to communicate more easily with Israelis
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In order to avoid an Israeli feeling a loss of focus in a conversation you should speak more slowly and allow for pauses for conversational redirect
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Also if you want to understand what your Israeli business counterparts are saying feel free to request that the conversation be kept in English

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 * __**<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Appointment Information and Guidelines **__
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The normal business hours for Israeli businesses are 8 AM to 5PM
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Friday’s are typically reserved for private activities such as shopping and family activities but Israelis will accommodate business activities during Friday mornings if necessary.
 * **<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">WHAT YOU SHOULD DO **
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Provide an agenda to your hosts, clearly outlining your objectives and timetables.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">It is always good to reconfirm pre-planned appointments since Israelis tend to multitask according to hurried, tumultuous sometimes diffuse schedules
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Plan for heavy traffic when commuting[[image:traffic.jpg width="196" height="121" align="right"]]
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Always provide your business card early on, and courteously request one in return if important and not offered
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Being moderately late is common and accepted but you may forfeit some positional leverage in the process
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Test the language skills of your hosts.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Adjust speech flow and content accordingly
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In any case use simple sentences and repeat complex ones in several explanatory ways
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Addressing by first names is common and important for creation of a comfortable communicative atmosphere
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Shift to a first name basis as soon as situation allows
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Thank you letters are very much appreciated by Israelis who view them as Foreign Graciousness
 * **<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">WHAT YOU SHOULD NOT DO **
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Do not shy away from asking if something is clearly understood if it involves complexity
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Do not use idioms or acronyms - Israelis are notoriously under-equipped to comprehend such language
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Refrain from word plays that may not be understood and sensitive issues such as race, religion and politics (that have to do with Israel)
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Do not make disrespectful comments about the Torah or Judaism
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Do not discuss the Arab-Israeli situation
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Do not discuss the Holocaust


 * __**<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Business Dress **__
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The dress for most Israeli Business are Euro-American is classified as casual and non-religious Israelis are very tolerant[[image:business-attire2.png width="187" height="178" align="right"]]
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Israelis expect foreign guests to dress in higher quality, visibly branded items that reflect their own country’s standards for high-end business-casual attire
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In the banking, financial, legal and political sectors, day to day men’s wear is mainly jackets, open collared long sleeve shirts and slack

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 * __**<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Business clothes for Religious Israeli's **__
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Women in the traditional religious communities typically wear modest non-revealing clothing with elbow length sleeves and dresses that must extend past knees and sometimes their ankles
 * Men usually wear dark jackets, white, open-collared long-sleeved shirts, dark slacks and black shoes
 * __**Gift Giving**__
 * Israelis are extremely into business gifts and the Israeli promotion/incentive gift category is a thriving and energetic industry
 * When choosing a gift you should modest gifts and Isralis appreciate gifts that deal with their foreigners countries because they are a testament to the host's global <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">acquaintance
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif;">When attending a family or social activity a person should bring a bottle of wine, chocolates or a bouquet of flowers [[image:wine-gift-delivery.jpg width="198" height="144" align="right"]]
 * Do not spend more than 20 U.S. Dollars on a gift
 * __**Public Behavior**__
 * Behavour for most Israelis match European or the United States Standards
 * When interacting with Israeli Muslims refrain from using the left hand for handshakes and gift giving
 * Follow the lead of your host
 * If his wife is introduced a visitor can respond – otherwise consider traditional women as having lower social stature when in the presence of business guests
 * Western offensive hand gestures are just as offensive in Israel
 * **TABLE MANNERS**
 * Assume that your hosts keep kosher unless they tell you otherwise
 * Keeping kosher means that pork and shellfish are completely off limits, and mixing dairy and meat is not allowed[[image:IM000659.jpg width="250" height="225" align="right"]]
 * Eat only what you want off your plate
 * It's not customary to eat everything off your plate unless you want to
 * __**Time Zone**__
 * Israel does not use day light saving time
 * The time zone for Israel is GMT or Greenwich Mean Time

Sources

Dr. Gad Cohen, M.D.: [] Columbus Travel Media Ltd.: [] Airtrade International Inc.: [] []