“bridging the difference between cultures”

1. To understand the worldwide political, cultural &business environments.

2. To develop many cultural approaches to the way we conduct business.

3. To become inter-culturally skilful because of the need to work with people from any different cultures simultaneously.

4. To learn how to adapt to living in other cultures successfully.

5. To give up our ethnocentricity i.e. to give up our belief that our culture is superior when working with colleagues from different cultures.

CROSS CULTURAL COMMUNICATION

ERRORS

MASCULINITY

52

HIGH POWER DISTANCE

80

HIGH UNCERTAINTY AVOIDANCE

68

LIMITATIONS OF

HOFSTEDE’S DIMENSIONS

•GENERALISES

• NOT ALL INDIVIDUALS OR EVEN REGIONS WITH SUBCULTURES FIT INTO THE MOULD

•THE DATA HAS BEEN COLLECTED BY QUESTIONNAIRES, WHICH HAVE THEIR OWN LIMITATIONS

•CONTEXT OF THE QUESTION ASKED IS AS IMPORTANT AS THE CONTENT IN SOME CULTURES

•THE CULTURE OF A COUNTRY CHANGES OVER TIME

•EMOTION DOMINATES IN AN AFFECTIVE CULTURE

•FEELINGS WILL FIND AN IMMEDIATE OUTLET

•ARGUBLY RESULTING IN FEWER MISUNDERSTANDINGS OF FEELINGS AND EMOTIONS THAN A NEUTRAL CULTURE

LIMITATIONS OF TROMPENAAR’S

DIMENSIONS

•FAILS TO RECOGNISE THE INFLUENCE AN INDIVIDUAL’S CHARACTERISTICS CAN HAVE ON BEHAVIOUR

•DOES NOT PROVIDE RECOMMENDATIONS WITH HOW TO WORK WITH SPECIFIC CULTURES

•OHMAE (BORDERLESS WORLD) AND LEVITT (GLOBALISATION OF MARKETS) ARGUE THAT NATIONAL BORDERS ARE DIMINISHING, THEREFORE THESE HAVE NO USE

OUR RECOMMENDATIONS

FOR CROSS CULTURAL BUSINESS

IN QATAR

Thank you for listening

ma'a salama