Book excerpt: Communicating Across Cultures is an innovative short course for learners of business English who want to function effectively in an international environment by developing their intercultural skills in English. Drawing on inspirational advice from leading figures in the world of cross-cultural communication, Communicating Across Cultures covers all types of oral and written communication, from meetings to negotiations, telephone calls to emails, and deals with situations ranging from working in international teams to managing conflict. Students are invited to analyse their own intercultural competence and helped to develop a personal action plan for further use beyond the classroom. The Student's Book comes with an audio CD that contains authentic interviews with people from the world of business and extracts from meetings that exemplify the communication strategies presented.