Business Etiquette

Business Etiquette

Standard office hours are Monday to Friday 0900-1700. Punctuality is expected at meetings. Both men and women are expected to wear suits. It is common practice to shake hands when greeting a business contact and to use his or her surname until both parties agree to use forenames (although formalities are often dispensed with straight away).

Clients are usually well entertained by their Edinburgh hosts, most likely taken to lunch in a restaurant or pub (depending on the formality of the business) or to a restaurant in the evening. It is not usual for clients to be invited to one's home. If this is the case, however, visitors should take a gift of flowers, chocolates, wine or whisky, the latter single malt rather than a blend, and always Scotch.