Patterns of Cross-Cultural Business Behaviour

1. Patterns of Cross-Cultural Business Behaviour by Sigrid Brevik Wangsness 16 and 23 January 2013

2. Our textbook: R. Gesteland’s Cross-Cultural Business Behavior • What do we know about the competence of the author? (Why should we trust him?) • What kind of a book is this? His sources? • What are his two iron rules of international business? (Why do they make sense?)

3. Whypatternsof cross-cultural business behaviour? • What are the five major patterns that Mr. Gesteland emphasizes? • Explain his concept of the “Great Divide”. • How important/useful is this divide? • Outline the geographical distribution of D-F and R-F cultures.

4. 1st pattern: D-F cultures vs. R-F cultures • What does Gesteland mean by his statement that relationship building in business is “a question of degree”? (Does this to some extent undermine his insistence on clear categories?) • How are we supposed to make initial contact with RF cultures? • Explain the concept of “guanxi”.

5. The significance of the “Great Divide” • Case 2.1: What happened when a Singapore-based company used the same marketing strategies in Taiwan as they had done in Australia and New Z.? What should they do next? • According to Mr. G, how are strong personal relationships developed in business? (Cf. Cases 2.2 and 3.1)

6. The significance of the “Great Divide” • What are the major challenges for D-F business people in R-F markets? • To what extent have e-mails, mobile phones, video and Web-conferencing eliminated the need for international business travel and face-to-face meetings?

7. 2nd pattern: Communication-direct vs. indirect language • What are the most important elements of cross-cultural competence, do you think? • Explain the difference between direct and indirect language • Why do D-F and R-F business people communicate so differently? • Give examples of how Asian business people may say no without sayingno (E.g. Case 4.1)

8. The concept of face:Losing face vs. saving face • Explain the concept of face • Why do East and Southeast Asians tend to hide negative emotions? • Is the concept of face specific for Asian cultures? • What did a Nordic brewery do to cause their Vietnamese partners to abruptly stop negotiations on a joint-venture project?(CCBB,p.43)

9. The concept of context • Explain Edward T. Hall’s distinction between low-context and high-context communication. (How is this distinction related to the contrast between direct and indirect communication?) • Outline the geographical distribution of low-context and high-context cultures.

10. The concept of context • Give examples of distinctions within the groups of L-C and H-C cultures. To what extent is there room for nuances within these two categories? (CCBB: pp.45-46) • What could be the consequences of some Asian cultures’ reluctance to report bad news? (Case 4.2)

11. 3rd pattern:Formal vs. informal b. cultures • What is the main difference between formal and informal business cultures? Alternative terms? • Outline their geographical distribution. • Why is this a particularly important distinction for an international negotiator?

12. Formal vs. informal b. cultures • Where did an experienced Danish export manager go wrong when he unintentionally insulted a Mexican customer? (Case 5.1, pp. 52-53) • Which rules of protocol did a Canadian executive violate when he deeply offended a potential Egyptian customer? (Case 5.2, pp. 55-56)

13. Formal vs. informal b. cultures • What are the major status barriers in strongly hierarchical cultures, and how can these be overcome? (E.g. Cases 5.3 and 5.4) • To what extent are these barriers present also in more egalitarian cultures?

14. 4th pattern:Rigid-time vs. fluid-time cultures • Explain the difference between these two types of cultures. Which concepts does E.T. Hall use for the same distinction? • Explain how this contrast may cause conflicts in international business. • Outline the geographical distribution of R-T and F-T cultures.

15. Rigid-time vs. fluid-time cultures • The distinction between rigid time and fluid time can be a regional phenomenon rather than a national phenomenon • Recent changes: national cultures vs. business cultures • How can the concept of time come into conflict with the concept of respect?

16. 5th pattern:Expressive vs. reserved cultures • There are three types of interpersonal communication – which? Why is this important in cross-cultural communication? • Describe the communication gap between emotionally expressive and emotionally reserved cultures. • Outline the geographical distribution of expressive and reserved cultures.

17. Expressive vs. reserved cultures • Mention some non-verbal ways of showing respect. (CCBB, p. 57) • How can a loud, clear voice and enthusiastic gestures be a problem in cross-cultural communication? (Case 7.1) • Explain the concept conversational overlap.

18. Expressive vs. reserved cultures • What are the four key elements of non-verbal behaviour? (CCBB: p. 79) • Which cultures require the least personal space? Which cultures are high-contact c.? (How do you react to a softhandshake?) • Which cultures have the most intense eye contact? Mention examples of ambiguous gestures.

19. Overall perspectives:Gesteland’s “patterns” approach • How are Gesteland’s five patterns often connected? (Which patterns, generally, occur together?) • How does Gesteland indicate that his classification of cultural variables into opposites/ “logical patterns” may be too categorical?