6.cross national differences communication negotiation

Cross Cultural Management Cross Cultural

Communication & Negotiations Session 6

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Cultural Differences in Selected Countries and Regions

Doing business in China1. The Chinese place values and principles above money

and expediency.2. Business meetings typically start with pleasantries

such as tea and general conversation about the guest’s trip to the country, local accommodations, and family.

3. The Chinese host will give the appropriate indication for when a meeting is to begin and when the meeting is over.

4. Once the Chinese decide who and what is best, they tend to stick with these decisions. Although slow in formulating a plan of action, once they get started, they make fairly good progress.

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5. In negotiations, reciprocity is important. If the Chinese give concessions, they expect some in return.

6. Because negotiating can involve a loss of face, it is common to find Chinese carrying out the whole process through intermediaries.

7. During negotiations, it is important not to show excessive emotion of any kind. Anger or frustration is viewed as antisocial and unseemly.

8. Negotiations should be viewed with a long-term perspective. Those who will do best are the ones who realize they are investing in a long-term relationship.

Doing business in China

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Doing business in Russia1. Build personal relationships with partners. When there are contract

disputes, there is little protection for the aggrieved party because of the time and effort needed to legally enforce the agreement.

2. Use local consultants. Because the rules of business have changed so much in recent years, it pays to have a local Russian consultant working with the company.

3. Ethical behavior in the United States is not always the same as in Russia. For example, it is traditional in Russia to give gifts to those with whom one wants to transact business.

4. Be patient. In order to get something done in Russia, it often takes months of waiting.

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5. Russians like exclusive arrangements and often negotiate with just one firm at a time.

6. Russians like to do business face-to-face. So when they receive letters or faxes, they often put them on their desk but do not respond to them.

7. Keep financial information personal. Russians wait until they know their partner well enough to feel comfortable before sharing financial data.

8. Research the company. In dealing effectively with Russian partners, it is helpful to get information about this company, its management hierarchy, and how it typically does business.

Doing business in Russia

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9. Stress mutual gain. The Western idea of “win–win” in negotiations also works well in Russia.

10. Clarify terminology. The language of business is just getting transplanted in Russia so double-check and make sure that the other party clearly understands the proposal, knows what is expected and when, and is agreeable to the deal.

11. Be careful about compromising or settling things too quickly because this is often seen as a sign of weakness.

12. Russians view contracts as binding only if they continue to be mutually beneficial, so continually show them the benefits associated with sticking to the deal.

Doing business in Russia

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Doing business in India1. It is important to be on time for meetings.

2. Personal questions should not be asked unless the other individual is a friend or close associate.

3. Titles are important, so people who are doctors or professors should be addressed accordingly.

4. Public displays of affection are considered to be inappropriate, so one should refrain from backslapping or touching others.

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5. Beckoning is done with the palm turned down; pointing often is done with the chin.

6. When eating or accepting things, use the right hand because the left is considered to be unclean.

7. The namaste gesture can be used to greet people; it also is used to convey other messages, including a signal that one has had enough food.

8. Bargaining for goods and services is common; this contrasts with Western traditions, where bargaining might be considered rude or abrasive.

Doing business in India

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Doing business in France1. When shaking hands with a French person, use a quick shake

with some pressure in the grip.

2. It is extremely important to be on time for meetings and social occasions. Being “fashionably late” is frowned on.

3. During a meal, it is acceptable to engage in pleasant conversation, but personal questions and the subject of money are never brought up.

4. Visiting businesspeople should try very hard to be cultured and sophisticated.

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5. The French tend to be suspicious of early friendliness in the discussion and dislike first names, taking off jackets, or disclosure of personal or family details.

6. In negotiations the French try to find out what all of the other side’s aims and demands are at the beginning, but they reveal their own hand only late in the negotiations.

7. The French do not like being rushed into making a decision, and they rarely make important decisions inside the meeting.

8. The French tend to be very precise and logical in their approach to things, and will often not make concessions in negotiations unless their logic has been defeated.

Doing business in France

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Doing business in Arab countries1. It is important never to display feelings of superiority,

because this makes the other party feel inferior. Let one’s action speak for itself and not brag or put on a show of self-importance.

2. One should not take credit for joint efforts. A great deal of what is accomplished is a result of group work, and to indicate that one accomplished something alone is a mistake.

3. Much of what gets done is a result of going through administrative channels in the country. It often is difficult to sidestep a lot of this red tape, and efforts to do so can be regarded as disrespect for legal and governmental institutions.

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4. Connections are extremely important in conducting business.

5. Patience is critical to the success of business transactions. This time consideration should be built into all negotiations.

6. Important decisions usually are made in person, not by correspondence or telephone. This is why an MNC’s personal presence often is a prerequisite for success in the Arab world. Additionally, while there may be many people who provide input on the final decision, the ultimate power rests with the person at the top, and this individual will rely heavily on personal impressions, trust, and rapport.

Doing business in Arab countries

Cross-Cultural Communication and Negotiation

The specific objectives of this chapter are:

1. DEFINE the term communication, examine some examples of verbal communication styles, and explain the importance of message interpretation.

2. ANALYZE the common downward and upward communication flows used in international communication.

3. EXAMINE the language, perception, and culture of communication, and nonverbal barriers to effective international communications.

Cross-Cultural Communication and Negotiation

4. PRESENT the steps that can be taken to overcome international communication problems.

5. 5. DEVELOP approaches to international negotiations that respond to differences in culture.

6. REVIEW different negotiating and bargaining behaviors that may improve negotiations and outcomes.

The specific objectives of this chapter are:

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Communication Process and Verbal Communication Styles

Communication The process of transferring meanings from sender to receiver

Verbal communication styles Context is information that surrounds a communication and

helps convey the message Messages are often highly coded and implicit in high-context

societies, such as Japan and many Arab countries The message is explicit and the speaker says precisely what

he or she means in low-context societies such as the United States and Canada

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Explicit and Implicit Communication

High-context/implicit communication

cultures

Low-context/explicit communication

cultures

Germans

Swiss Germans

Scandinavians

North Americans

French

English

Italians

Latin Americans

Arabs

Japanese

Adapted from Figure 7–1: Explicit/Implicit Communication: An International Comparison

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Table 7–1Major Characteristics of Verbal Styles

Phases of Multicultural Development

Adapted from Table 7–1: Major Characteristics of Verbal Styles

Indirect vs. direct

IndirectDirect

Implicit messagesExplicit messages

Collective, high contextIndividualistic, low context

Succinct vs. elaborate

Elaborate High quantity of talk

Moderate uncertainty avoidance, high context

Exacting Moderate amount of talk

Low uncertainty avoidance, low context

Succinct Low amount of talk High uncertainty avoidance, high context

Cultures in WhichMajor Interaction Focus Characteristic It

Verbal Style Variation and Content Is Found

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Table 7–1Major Characteristics of Verbal Styles

Phases of Multicultural Development

Cultures in WhichMajor Interaction Focus Characteristic It

Verbal Style Variation and Content Is Found

Adapted from Table 7–1: Major Characteristics of Verbal Styles

Contextual vs. personal

Contextual Focus is on the speaker and role relationships

High power distance, collective, high context

Personal Focus is on the speaker and personal relationships

Low power distance, individualistic, low context

Affective vs. instrumental

Affective Language is process oriented and receiver focused

Collective, high context

Instrumental Language is goal oriented and sender focused

Individualistic, low context

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Indirect and direct styles In high-context cultures, messages are implicit and indirect

question: Who will be at meeting? Voice intonation, timing, and facial expressions play important

roles in conveying information In low-context cultures, people often meet only to accomplish

objectives and tend to be direct and focused in their communications Question: What is the meeting going to be about?

Verbal communication styles (continued)

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Elaborate and succinct styles Three degrees of communication quantity— elaborate, exacting, and

succinct. The elaborating style is more popular in high-context cultures that

have a moderate degree of uncertainty avoidance ex arab countries The exacting style (england, germany, sweden) focuses on precision

and the use of the right amount of words to convey the message and is more common in low-context, low-uncertainty-avoidance cultures

The succinct style (asia) is more common in high-context cultures with considerable uncertainty avoidance where people tend to say few words and allow understatements, pauses, and silence to convey meaning.


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Contextual and Personal styles Contextual style (Japan, India, Ghana) is one that

focuses on the speaker and relationship of the parties Contextual style is often associated with high-power

distance, collective, high-context cultures (speakers choose words that relate status compared to others)

Personal style focuses on the speaker and the reduction of barriers between the parties (USA, Aus, Canada: using first names and addressing informally and directly on equal basis)

Personal style is more popular in low-power-distance, individualistic, low-context cultures


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Affective and Instrumental styles Affective style (Middle East, Latin America and Asia) is

common in collective, high-context cultures and is characterized by language that requires the listener to note what is said and to observe how the message is presented

The meaning is often nonverbal and requires the receiver to use his or her intuitive skills to decipher the message

Instrumental style (Swiss, Denmark & USA) is goal oriented and focuses on the sender who clearly lets the other party know what he or she wants the other party to know.

The instrumental style is more commonly found in individualistic, low-context cultures


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Summary of Verbal Styles

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Communication Flows

Downward communication Transmission of information from manager to subordinate Primary purpose of manager-initiated communication is to

convey orders and information Managers use this channel for instructions and performance

feedback The channel facilitates the flow of information to those who

need it for operational purposes

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Communication Epigrams

Adapted from Figure 7–2: Communication Epigrams

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Communication Barriers

Language barriers (knowledge of home country’s language) Cultural barriers

Suggestions that can be of value to American managers who are engaged in international communications include:

Be careful not to use generalized statements about benefits, compensation, pay cycles, holidays, or policies in your worldwide communications.

Since most of the world uses the metric system, be sure to include converted weights and measures in all internal and external communications.

Keep in mind that even in English-speaking countries, words may have different meanings. Not everyone knows what is meant by “counterclockwise,” or “quite good.”

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Communication Barriers

Remember that letterhead and paper sizes differ worldwide. The 81⁄2 by 11-inch page is a U.S. standard, but most countries use an A4 (81⁄4 111⁄2-inch) size for their letterhead, with envelopes to match.

Dollars are not unique to the United States. There are Australian, Bermudian, Canadian, Hong Kong, Taiwanese, and New Zealand dollars, among others. So when referring to American dollars, it is important to use “US$.”

Language barriers Cultural barriers

Suggestions that can be of value to American managers who are engaged in international communications include:

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Nonverbal Communication

Nonverbal communication The transfer of meaning through means such as body

language and use of physical space Kinesics

The study of communication through body movement and facial expression

Eye contact Posture Gestures

Chromatics The use of color to communicate messages

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Proxemics The study of the way that people use physical space to

convey messages Intimate distance is used for very confidential communications Personal distance is used for talking with family and close

friends Social distance is used to handle most business transactions Public distance is used when calling across the room or giving

a talk to a group

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Personal Space in the U.S.

Intimate distance 18”

Personal distance 18” to 4’

Social distance 4’ to 8’

Public distance 8’ to 10’

Adapted from Figure 7–3: Personal Space Categories for Those in the United States

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Chronemics Monochronic time schedule

Things are done in a linear fashion (US,UK,Aus Canada). Manager addresses Issue A first and then moves on to Issue B Time schedules are very important and time is viewed as

something that can be controlled and should be used wisely Polychronic time schedules

People tend to do several things at the same time (Latin America, Middle East)

People place higher value on personal involvement than on getting things done on time

Schedules are subordinated to personal relationships

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Achieving Communication Effectiveness

Improve feedback systems Two basic types of feedback systems between

home office and affiliates Personal (e.g., face-to-face meetings, telephone

conversations and personalized e-mail) Impersonal (e.g., reports, budgets, and plans)

Language training Cultural training Increase Flexibility and Cooperation

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Flexibility Cooperation: Intercompany Interaction and Negotiation

Table 7–7Negotiation Styles from a Cross-Cultural Perspective

Adapted from Table 7–7: Negotiation Styles from a Cross-Cultural Perspective

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Flexibility Cooperation: Intercompany Interaction and Negotiation

Table 7–7Negotiation Styles from a Cross-Cultural Perspective

Adapted from Table 7–7: Negotiation Styles from a Cross-Cultural Perspective

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Managing Cross-Cultural Negotiations

Negotiation: The process of bargaining with one or more parties to arrive at a solution that is acceptable to all

1. identify the objectives negotiators would like to attain and explore the possible options for reaching these objectives

2. Set limits on single-point objectives

3. Divide issues into short- and long-term considerations and decide how to handle each

4. Determine the sequence in which to discuss the various issues

PlanningPlanning

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• Get to know the people on the other side

• “Feeling out” period is characterized by the desire to identify those who are reasonable and those who are not

PlanningPlanning

Impersonal Relationship Building


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• Each group sets forth its position on the critical issues

• These positions often change later in the negotiations

• Participants try to find out what the other party wants to attain and what it is willing to give up

PlanningPlanning



Exchanging Task-Related Information


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• Success of the persuasion step depends on

• How well the parties understand each other’s position

• The ability of each to identify areas of similarity and differences

• The ability to create new options

• The willingness to work toward a mutually acceptable solution

PlanningPlanning




Exchanging Task-Related Information PersuasionPersuasion

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PlanningPlanning




Exchanging Task-Related Information PersuasionPersuasion AgreementAgreement

• Grant concessions and hammer out a final agreement

• This phase may be carried out piecemeal, and concessions and agreements may be made on issues one at a time.

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Cultural Differences Affecting Negotiations

1. Do not identify the counterpart’s home culture too quickly. Common cues (e.g., name, physical appearance, language, accent, location) may be unreliable.

2. Beware of the Western bias toward “doing.” Ways of being (e.g., comportment, smell), feeling, thinking, and talking can shape relationships more powerfully than doing.

3. Counteract the tendency to formulate simple, consistent, stable images.

4. Do not assume that all aspects of the culture are equally significant.

5. Recognize that norms for interactions involving outsiders may differ from those for interactions between compatriots.

6. Do not overestimate your familiarity with your counterpart’s culture.

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Negotiation Tactics

Location (neutral site have advantages viz: away from home so less interference, cost of staying high builds pressure to finalize fast, don’t want to return empty handed)

Time limits (duration of stay, closing deal before departure) Buyer-seller relations (USA negotiators tend to walk away after deal,

Japanese believe in reciprocal favors and Brazilian work best when they are deceptive and self interest then their opponents)

Bargaining behaviors Use of extreme behaviors (Chinese, Arabs) Promises, threats and other behaviors (Japanese rely on

commitment, recommendations Brazilian on rewards, commands , self disclosure and US middle of the two.

Nonverbal behaviors (Japanese used silence, Brazilian facial gazing, touch & conversational overlaps

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Effective Negotiation Characteristics

Adapted from Table 7-10: Culture-Specific Characteristics Needed by International Managers for Effective Negotiations

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Effective Negotiation Characteristics

Adapted from Table 7-10: Culture-Specific Characteristics Needed by International Managers for Effective Negotiations

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© 2006 Prentice Hall 3-44

Negotiations across Cultures Americans - linear, fact driven and numbers oriented - impatient and the contract is their central focus Asians - avoid conflict - express opinions indirectly and maintain a face of surface harmony when too direct can be seen as rude French - enjoy emphasising distinctions and differences - blunt and logical approach to conflicting points of views that can seem antagonistic to people from other cultures Middle Easterners and Latinos - passionate expression of differences - save face and preserve dignity Russians a great deal of posturing and theatrics

6.cross national differences communication negotiation

Documents

regionsdoing business

cultural differences

business meetings

language of business

rules of business

selected countries

regionsin negotiations

chinese host