En esa empresa prefieren tutear a todo el mundo, incluso cuando el primer trato parece muy formal.

Tutear means to address someone using tú rather than usted. In Spain, this is a very common way to talk about using the informal second-person form with someone.

So:

• tutear a alguien = to use tú with someone
• opposite idea: tratar de usted or hablar de usted = to use usted

In this sentence, it suggests that people in that company prefer a less distant, less formal way of addressing others.

That a is the personal a. In Spanish, when the direct object is a person or refers to people, you often use a before it.

Here, todo el mundo means everyone, so it refers to people. That is why you get:

• tutear a todo el mundo

Compare:

• Veo la oficina = I see the office
• Veo a Marta = I see Marta

Even though todo el mundo literally looks like all the world, in Spanish it means everybody / everyone, so it takes the personal a here.

Yes. Although it literally looks like all the world, in everyday Spanish todo el mundo is a very common way to say everyone or everybody.

Examples:

• Todo el mundo lo sabe = Everyone knows it
• Saludó a todo el mundo = He greeted everyone

Grammatically, it is usually treated as singular when it is the subject:

• Todo el mundo prefiere... = Everyone prefers...

In your sentence, it is the object of tutear, so the singular/plural issue is less visible.

Because the subject is understood, not stated explicitly.

Prefieren is they prefer. The sentence begins with En esa empresa, which sets the scene as at that company / in that company, but it is not the grammatical subject.

So the meaning is something like:

• At that company, they prefer to address everyone with tú...

The hidden subject is something like they, referring to the people there, the staff, or the company culture in general.

If you said prefiere, that would suggest a singular subject, for example:

• Esa empresa prefiere... = That company prefers...

That is also possible in Spanish, but this sentence uses the more impersonal, people-focused prefieren.

Because en esa empresa means in/at that company, which describes the setting or context.

• En esa empresa prefieren... = At that company, they prefer...
• Esa empresa prefiere... = That company prefers...

Both can work, but they are slightly different in feel:

• En esa empresa focuses on the environment or customs there
• Esa empresa makes the company itself the subject

The original sentence sounds very natural when talking about workplace culture.

Incluso cuando means even when.

It introduces a situation where you might expect the opposite, but the same thing still happens.

So here:

• prefieren tutear a todo el mundo, incluso cuando...
  = they prefer to use tú with everyone, even when...

It emphasizes that this preference continues despite the first interaction seeming very formal.

Because this sentence is talking about a real or typical situation, not something hypothetical, doubtful, or merely desired.

• cuando el primer trato parece muy formal = when the first interaction seems very formal

Here, cuando refers to a repeated or general circumstance that does happen, so the indicative is natural:

• parece

You might see the subjunctive after cuando if the event is in the future or not yet real, for example:

• cuando el primer trato parezca muy formal = when the first interaction seems very formal

That would sound more like a future or hypothetical case. In your sentence, the speaker is describing a general habit, so parece is right.

No. Trato here does not mean medical treatment or anything like that.

In this context, trato refers to the way people deal with each other, especially in social or professional interaction. So el primer trato means something like:

• the first contact
• the initial interaction
• the first exchange
• the initial dealings

So the sentence is talking about how the first interaction may seem formal, but they still prefer to use tú.

Yes, though it is a bit more formal or abstract than some other options.

Trato often refers to dealings, interaction, or the way people treat one another. In professional or social contexts, it can sound very natural.

Some nearby ideas are:

• la primera conversación = the first conversation
• el primer contacto = the first contact
• la relación = the relationship
• el trato = the way people interact / deal with each other

So el primer trato parece muy formal gives a slightly polished or professional tone.

Here, formal describes the first interaction or the tone of that interaction, not necessarily the personalities of the people.

So:

• el primer trato parece muy formal
  = the initial interaction seems very formal

That could mean the setting, language, attitude, or business context gives a formal impression.

Yes, but tutear is more idiomatic and more compact.

Possible alternatives include:

• tutear a alguien
• hablarle de tú a alguien
• usar tú con alguien

But tutear is the standard verb for this idea, especially in explanations about formality and address.

It is understood everywhere, but it is especially useful in discussions of Spain Spanish, where the contrast between tú and usted is a very common topic in everyday life.

In Spain, using tú can be normal even in many professional settings, depending on the company culture, age, hierarchy, and context. This sentence reflects that kind of cultural point very well.

In some other Spanish-speaking places, the balance between formal and informal address may be different, and some areas also use vos.

In theory, yes: ustedear means to address someone with usted. But in practice, it is less common and can sound marked or less standard to some speakers.

More natural opposites are often:

• tratar de usted
• hablar de usted

So while tutear is very common, the opposite idea is often expressed with a phrase rather than a parallel verb.

In standard Spain Spanish, todo el mundo is the usual expression for everyone.

• a todo el mundo = everyone

In some varieties of Spanish, especially in parts of Latin America, you may also hear todo mundo without el, but todo el mundo is the most standard form for Spain.

Yes. Primer is the shortened form of primero used before a masculine singular noun.

So:

• el primer trato
• el primer día
• el primer paso

But if the adjective stands alone or comes after the noun, you use primero:

• Fue el primero
• el trato primero is not natural here

This shortening is very common with certain adjectives, especially primero and tercero:

• el tercer piso
• el primer contacto

Yes, in many contexts the meaning would be similar, but the nuance is slightly different.

• incluso cuando = even when
• aunque = although / even though

Your sentence with incluso cuando highlights a recurring situation:

• even when the first interaction seems very formal

If you used aunque, it would sound more like a contrast:

• En esa empresa prefieren tutear a todo el mundo, aunque el primer trato parece muy formal.

That version is less natural as written, because after aunque in this kind of general statement, speakers would often reshape the sentence a bit. The original incluso cuando fits very smoothly.

It sounds like a general tendency or company custom, not a one-time event.

Clues:

• prefieren = they prefer
• present tense
• no specific time reference
• incluso cuando describing a repeated type of situation

So the sentence suggests something like a workplace norm: in that company, people usually go straight to tú, even in interactions that initially feel formal.