You will never know a man till you do business with him

(Scottish Proverb )

Cultural Influences on Context: The Business

SettingBook 1, Ch. 8

Culture and Context

Rule in interacting and communicating

Different rules applied for different culture

Problem when cross-culture communication occurred

3 basic assumptions about human communication:

1. Communication is rule governed2. Context prescribes appropriate

communication rules3. Communication rules are culturally diverse

Communication and Context

Verbal & non-verbalWhat & how it should be saidNon-verbal includes touch (who & how),

facial expression (where & when to smile), eye-contact (appropriate to staring), paralanguage (when to whisper, shout)

Verbal includes turn taking, voice volume, formality of language

Depending on: context/event, the person you talk with

1. Communication is rule governed

Context (place) specifies appropriate rulesE.g. in classroom, church, mosque, wedding,

funeralExtreme deviation leads to social sanctions

Being ignored, asked to leave

2. Context prescribes appropriate communication rules

Cultures have many same social setting and context

Frequently abide by different rulesDifferences on Concepts of time, dress,

language, manners, nonverbal behavior, control of the communication flow

Aware of your own & other culture’s rule

3. Communication rules are culturally diverse

3 communication variables woven in and out of every communication setting:1. Formality & informality2. Assertiveness and interpersonal harmony 3. Status relationships

Assessing the context

The forms: how to dress, posture, addressing someone, type of speech used

US informal & direct dress code for office, posture when talking to

teacher/superior in the office, directness in delivering the message, the used of ‘hi’, calling the first name, disregard someone’s title

Egypt, Turkey, Japan formalStudent - teacher relationship (Egyptian proverb:

whoever teaches me a letter, I should become a slave to him forever)

Addressing someone with the title and surname Affected by culture, number of friends you have, your

closeness to friends, what you tell those friends

1. Formality vs informality

The manner in which people present themselves to others

Directly influence the intercultural settingAmerican known as assertive communicator

Encouraged and taught to be frank, open and direct when dealing with other

American individuals expected to stand up for their rights, and often involves confrontation

2. Assertiveness and interpersonal harmony

Northeast and Southeast highlighting harmonious relations

Filipinos’ two terms for harmony: amor propio (harmony) and pakikisama (smooth interpersonal relations)Prefer being treated as person than objectVulnerable to negative remarks affecting the image in

societySeldom criticize and verbally confront others

Japanese , maintain harmony in personal and professional settingDislike deviation, accept and adopt normative

expectations

Cont...

Egalitarian (low level of concern for social differences) vs. Hierarchical (emphasize on status & rank)

Egalitarian Informal interaction between subordinates and seniors, minimizing

formality Motivate every individual to increase his social status Eg. US, Australia, NZ

The use of first name rather than title Easy access to the superior President activities outside oval office

Hierarchical Eg. Japan, Spain

Language style use for someone in a higher position Protocols governs interpersonal and organizational activities Formal interaction between superior and subordinates

Eg. China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan Teachers get the utmost respect

3. Status relationship

1. Business protocol Initial contact, greetings behavior, personal

appearance, gift giving, office spatial design

2. Management3. Negotiations4. Decision making5. Conflict management

Multinational Business Context

Initial ContactsWhen?

Latin America (LA), appointment made at least a month in advance & verified a week before

Select an appropriate date, pay attention on national holidays

How?LA: Email, telephone

Who?LA: Person in a high

position as possibleUse intermediary

LA, Egypt, Africa, China,

US; informal & friendly, shake hands, use first name, business card exchange in business settings but not in social gathering

Saudi; handshake, often embrace and kiss on both cheeks, titles are important

China; the use of titles reflecting the hierarchy; eg. Lao tse, jaio shou, yi shen, shi fu

Eye contact

Greeting Behavior

Personal appearance

In international business where language barriers may impede the ability to fully express yourself, personal appearance is important

Dress code: color Japan, German formal

dress in dark color Indonesia, Malay,

Philippines more relax; omits tie and suit

Latin America dresses fashionably

View Greek: Sustain relations,

repay past favors, ensure preferable consideration in the future

US: Bribery What

China should not give handkerchief

WhenHow

Giving Moslem should in right hand

Gift Giving

Group affiliation vs individualismBusiness meeting

When, how long, what to discussUS: for disseminating information & making decision,

conducted when absolutely needed, start – end on timeFrench: forum for exchanging information, validate

decision that has been made by senior manager. Presentation at meeting

US, UK; provide conciseness, well-organized presentation related to the topic

Italians: speak expressively , don’t feel constrained by scheduled time

Business contractWritten vs. spoken

Management Style

1. Participant perspective People view on the negotiation process as a whole,

perception of their counterparts, conduct the bargaining sessionsUS enters directly, quick result – max. profit, short term

perspective, long term relation is secondaryJPN & CHN: build the relation, establish level of trust,

enter the extended association with other org. Russian: negotiation = forum for debate

Age of the negotiators CHN: great respects to elders US: competency

Gender Sensitive in Arabic countries

Negotiation Style

2. External factors Formality vs informality Status of members View of time Role of government Ethical standards Display of emotion Communication style

3. Expected outcomes Agreement vs long-term relation

Negotiation Style

International executives are enforced to make decision internationallyConcern on ‘who’ and ‘how’

Individual vs collectivePower distance (centralize vs decentralize)Accepting and dealing with confrontation vs avoid

conflictEg. French, few high-level individuals made all

decision; others, groups are actively following the processed

Eg. Japan, group consensus are important for avoiding conflict

Eg. Mexican relies on an individual to make decision

Decision making

Conflict can not be avoidedIf not manage properly, it will lead to

irreparable breakdowns Collective vs individualist

Collective has an aversion to open, direct conflict seen as a threat for group harmony and stability; criticism expressed indirectly, in passive, accommodating style since it carries the potential loss of face

Individualist seeing disagreement as natural and valued part of life; openly express to the top management, fight it through arbitrary

Conflict Management

Visit several ATMs in different areas (write down the bank name and location). Check how many different languages available in every ATM. Why those machines use more than one language? If the languages vary between locations, try to decide why.

To be discussed on the next meeting!

Group work [1]

Try to go to a supermarket selling imported snack (Ranch / Hokky / Papaya). Check several snacks, how many language available on the packaging. Why they are using more than one language and why most of the snacks choose different languages to be written down. Try to decide factors influencing the decision in choosing those languages!

Group work [2]