How To Book Meetings In Brazil
Meetings in Brazil, as the Brazilian way of doing business, are pretty peculiar. In this article we will outline the main particularities of the Brazilian way of booking meetings.
Before the meeting
Dropping in without an appointment is frowned upon in Brazil, as it is in many other countries. As Brazilians do not usually plan their appointments in advance, it is recommended that you start trying to schedule important meetings at least two weeks in advance. This is especially important for first meetings. It is also advisable to confirm the meeting, via e-mail or phone call the day before it takes place. However, be prepared to have the meeting re-scheduled as the person may have booked another conflicting appointment.
The best periods for scheduling meetings in Brazil are between 10:00 and noon and between 15:00 and 17:00 in the afternoon. If you do book meetings before noon, do not extend the appointment much past this time, unless the conversation is flowing well: Brazilians tend to consider the period between noon and 14:00 their lunch time, thus distracting them.
Duration of the meeting
The main reason that meetings with Brazilians taking longer than they have to is because Brazilians do not strictly follow their schedule and are often late for their appointments but, as in all countries, regional differences may apply. For example, Southerners in Brazil tend to be more punctual. This is not to be considered as a lack of commitment or lack of interest from the Brazilian party, because showing up late is not considered such a big deal for those who are hosting the meeting, although the person who asked for the meeting should not be late.
In addition to this, Brazilians tend to establish friendly relations with whoever they are talking to, and this is even more accurate in business, especially when one or more meetings are foreseen. The result of these friendly relations is that productivity in the meeting can sometimes be affected. Thus, the duration of the meeting is often overextended, as non-business topics may arise in the discussion.
So, if you book an hours business meeting in Brazil you need to be prepared that it might overrun by up to 30 minutes or more due to unexpected delays caused by other topics that were addressed in the meeting or simply because the meeting started later than expected.
Moreover, it is not recommended to book more than one hour for the first meeting with a business counterpart in Brazil, even though the meeting will probably last longer if all goes well, as meetings that are overtly scheduled to last more than one hour are considered draining.
Meeting format
Business lunches tend to be even lengthier than normal business meetings, as they are expected to address other more vague topics besides business. It is advisable to book business lunches for small groups, and the business topics should only be approached after the Brazilian counterpart mentions it.
Finally, as Brazilians much prefer talking face-to-face, it is in your best interest, where possible, to avoid booking conference calls for business meetings. Moreover, when booking meetings that are not face-to-face, Brazilians tend to feel less committed to them, so in the case of a no-show or showing-up-late there will be even less commitment.