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- 1. International Management: Managing Across Borders and Cultures Tenth Edition Chapter 3 Understanding the Role of Culture Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved
- 2. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Learning Objectives 3.1 To understand how culture affects all aspects of international management 3.2 To be able to distinguish the major value dimensions which define cultural differences among societies or groups 3.3 To understand the interaction between culture and the use of the Internet 3.4 To be able to develop a working cultural profile typical of many people within a certain society as an aid to anticipating attitudes toward work, negotiations, and so on 3.5 To gain some insight into different management styles around the world
- 3. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Opening Profile: Social Media Bring Changes to Saudi Arabian Culture (1 of 3) Map 3-1 Saudi Arabia comprises most of the Arabian peninsula. All of the countries bordering Saudi Arabia are Arab countries (meaning that the first language is Arabic), and all are predominantly Islamic.
- 4. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Opening Profile: Social Media Bring Changes to Saudi Arabian Culture (2 of 3) • As of 2017, social media penetration in Saudi Arabia included: – 90.2% Internet users – 52.6% on Facebook—-18 million – 3 million on Twitter—ranked 10 globally for cities in number of Tweets – 90 million videos viewed on YouTube • 70% of Saudis are under 30 and own smartphones • Many use Twitter and YouTube out of boredom with the lack of entertainment • Twitter represents an escape from the lack of social freedom
- 5. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Opening Profile: Social Media Bring Changes to Saudi Arabian Culture (3 of 3) • Social media used in all sectors of Saudi society – Government officials – Royalty – Sheikhs – Industry • Saudi government, an absolute monarchy, reviews online activity to gather intelligence and monitor public opinion • Social Media – force for modernity in Saudi Arabia – powerful interactions with cultural mores
- 6. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Learning Objective 3.1 To understand how culture affects all aspects of international management
- 7. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Culture and Its Effects on Organizations Culture A set of shared values, understandings, assumptions, and goals that are learned from earlier generations, imposed by present members of a society, and passed on to succeeding generations Cultural Sensitivity or Cultural Empathy? An awareness of and an honest caring about another individual’s culture
- 8. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Environmental Variables Affecting Management Functions Exhibit 3-1
- 9. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Organizational Culture 1. Exists within and interacts with societal culture 2. Varies a great deal from one organization, company, institution, or group to another 3. Represents those expectations, norms, and goals held in common by members of that group • Example: – Apple—informal organizational culture
- 10. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved The Effect of Culture on Organizational Process Exhibit 3-2 U.S. Culture Alternative Function Affected Individual influences future Life is preordained Planning, scheduling The environment is changeable People adjust to the environment Morale, productivity Hark work leads to success Wisdom and luck are also needed Motivation, rewards Employment can be ended Employment is for a lifetime Promotions, recruitment
- 11. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Culture’s Effects on Management • Convergence—the phenomenon of the shifting of individual management styles to become similar to one another • Self-Reference Criterion—the subconscious reference point of one's own cultural values. Many people in the world understand and relate to others only in terms of their own cultures • Parochialism—occurs, for example, when a Frenchman expects those from or in another country to automatically fall into patterns of behavior common in France • Ethnocentrism—describes the attitude of those who operate from the assumption that their ways of doing things are best— no matter where or under what conditions they are applied
- 12. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Influences on National Culture Subcultures Stereotyping • Many countries comprise diverse subcultures whose constituents conform only in varying degrees to the national character. Example: Canada • A cultural profile that tends to develop some tentative expectations— some cultural context—as a backdrop to managing in a specific international setting
- 13. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Under the Lens: Religion and the Workplace • Since the basis of a religion is shared beliefs, values, and institutions, it is closely aligned with societal culture • Religion and culture are inextricably linked • Religion underlies moral and economic norms and influences everyday business transactions and on-the-job behaviors • Foreign managers must be sensitive to the local religious context and the expectations and workplace norms • Failure to do so will minimize or negated the goals of the firm in that location
- 14. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Learning Objective 3.2 To be able to distinguish the major value dimensions which define cultural differences among societies or groups
- 15. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Cultural Value Dimensions Values Society’s idea what is good/bad, right/wrong Determines how individuals will respond Communicate d and passed through generations Help managers anticipate likely cultural effects Allow for contingency management Varies across subcultures
- 16. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Project GLOBE Cultural Dimensions (1 of 2) Assertiveness • Low: Sweden, Japan, Switzerland • High: Greece, Austria, the United States Performance Orientation • Low: Venezuela, Argentina, Italy • High: the United States, Hong Kong, Netherlands
- 17. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Project GLOBE Cultural Dimensions (2 of 2) Future Orientation • Low: Russia, Argentina, Italy • High: Netherlands, Canada, Singapore Humane Orientation • Low: Germany, Brazil, France • High: Malaysia, Ireland, Philippines
- 18. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Cultural Clusters Exhibit 3-3: Geographic Cultural Clusters
- 19. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Hofstede’s Value Dimensions (1 of 5) Power Distance The level of acceptance by a society of the unequal distribution of power in institutions
- 20. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Hofstede’s Value Dimensions (2 of 5) Uncertainty Avoidance The extent to which people in a society feel threatened by ambiguous situations
- 21. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Hofstede’s Value Dimensions (3 of 5) Individualism The tendency of people to look after themselves and their immediate families only and to neglect the needs of society Collectivism The desire for tight social frameworks, emotional dependence on belonging to “the organization,” and a strong belief in group decisions
- 22. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Hofstede’s Value Dimensions (4 of 5) Masculinity The degree to which traditionally masculine values— assertiveness, materialism, and lack of concern for others—prevail
- 23. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Hofstede’s Value Dimensions (5 of 5) Long-term/short-term orientation The extent to which a culture programs its members to accept delayed gratification of their material, social, and emotional needs
- 24. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Trompenaar’s Dimensions (1 of 2)
- 25. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Trompenaar’s Dimensions (2 of 2)
- 26. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Critical Operational Value Differences • Time—differences in temporal values • Task versus Relationship Orientation—in making business decisions • Change—control and pace of change • Material Factors—physical goods and status symbols versus aesthetics and the spiritual realism • Individualism—“me/I” versus “we"
- 27. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Learning Objective 3.3 To understand the interaction between culture and the use of the Internet
- 28. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved The Internet and Culture • Over 92.6 percent of Korean homes have high-speed Internet service • Sweden requires all databases of personal information to be registered with the Data Inspection Board, their federal regulatory agency • About 75 percent of the world’s Internet market lives outside the United States: websites must reflect local markets, customs, languages, and currencies
- 29. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Under the Lens: Seoul Fights Back against Workaholic Culture: Labour Law • South Korea is one of the most overworked nations in Asia • South Korea—notorious for its workaholic culture • Maximum weekly work hours cut from 68 to 52 • New labor law puts a cap on working hours
- 30. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Management in Action: A Cultural Revolution is Changing India, One Open- Plan Office at a Time: Office Life Modernization • The business day used to be a formal affair—late starts early finishes • The decision was made to import an informal work culture • Out went office cubicles and in came open-plan seating • Some habits were impossible to change
- 31. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Learning Objective 3.4 To be able to develop a working cultural profile typical of many people within a certain society as an aid to anticipating attitudes toward work, negotiations, and so on
- 32. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Developing Cultural Profiles • Managers can gather considerable information on cultural variables from current research, personal observation, and discussion with people. • Managers can develop cultural profiles of various countries. • Managers can use these profiles to anticipate drastic differences that may be encountered in a given country. • It is difficult to pull together descriptive cultural profiles in other countries unless one has lived there and been intricately involved with those people.
- 33. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Comparative Management in Focus (1 of 2) Japan Germany • “Wa”-peace and harmony • A mix of authoritarian and humanism in the workplace • Emphasis on participative management, consensus, and duty • Open expression and conflict discouraged • Preference for rules and order, privacy • Dislike of inefficiency and tardiness • Assertive, but not aggressive • Organizations are centralized but still favor consensus decision making
- 34. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Comparative Management in Focus (2 of 2) Latin America • Not homogenous, but common similarities • “Being-oriented” compared with “doing-oriented” • Work and private lives are more closely integrated • Very important to maintain harmony and save face
- 35. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Learning Objective 3.5 To gain some insight into different management styles around the world
- 36. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Under the Lens: Doing Business in Brazil— Language, Culture, Customs, and Etiquette • Almost everyone has a combination of European, African, and indigenous ancestry • Individual relationships are important • Brazilians take time when negotiating • Brazilian business is hierarchical, and meetings are required • Brazilians avoid confrontations • They dress well and conservatively • Business cards are exchanged – Having your business card printed in Portuguese on the opposite side is a good idea
- 37. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Developing Management Styles and Ways of Doing Business: Saudi Arabia - See Exhibits 3-6 and 3-7 • Paternal sociability • Nepotism Tribal and family loyalty • People orientation • Theory Y management Close and warm friendships • Sensitivity to Islamic virtues • Access to employees and peers Islam and Arabic language • Conflict avoidance • Positive reinforcement Honor and shame • Right- and left-brain facility • Action oriented Polychronic use of time • Separation of sexes • Open work life; closed family life Male domination
- 38. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Developing Management Styles and Ways of Doing Business: Chinese Family Small Businesses • Small, family businesses predominate • “Guanxi” connections • People are put ahead of business—human-centered management style • Globalization has resulted in more competitive management styles: the new generation manager is more individualistic, more independent and takes more risks
- 39. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Conclusion • Each society has its own unique culture • Managers must develop cultural sensitivity • Researchers such as Hofstede and Trompenaar have created studies which help describe cultural profiles; GLOBE study created a body of data on cultural dimensions • Managers can use research results and personal observations to develop cultural profiles of countries
- 40. Copyright © 2021, 2017, 2014 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved Copyright This work is protected by United States copyright laws and is provided solely for the use of instructors in teaching their courses and assessing student learning. Dissemination or sale of any part of this work (including on the World Wide Web) will destroy the integrity of the work and is not permitted. The work and materials from it should never be made available to students except by instructors using the accompanying text in their classes. All recipients of this work are expected to abide by these restrictions and to honor the intended pedagogical purposes and the needs of other instructors who rely on these materials.
Editor's Notes
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- Why is Arabic the fastest-growing language of all time on Twitter and Riyadh ranked #10 globally of the cities with the most tweets? What is behind such a rapid growth of this increasingly tech-savvy population?
- Twitter represents an avenue of escape from the lack of social freedom and legal restrictions on freedom of assembly or association, especially for women. As a wealthy country, Saudis enjoy wearing high-end fashions, even though women must wear their clothes under abayas. Saudis also have become accustomed to foreigners holding most lower-level jobs—so much so that it made the front page of the newspaper when a Saudi accepted a bellboy job. These examples illustrate how understanding the local culture and business environment can provide competitive advantage. Managers must alter their approaches according to the host-country environment. Unfortunately, many mangers underestimate the importance of culture—they lack cultural savvy.
- Clearly, social media have presented a virtual world as a force for modernity in Saudi Arabia and cause powerful interactions with cultural mores; it is a matter of personal judgment whether those changes are viewed as progressive, but it is also clear that there is no turning back.
- Clearly, it is important for anyone wishing to be successful when working with people in other countries to be able to plan how to relate to and adapt to people from different cultures. Managers have often seriously underestimated the significance of cultural factors. Cultural sensitivity, or cultural empathy, is the awareness of and an honest caring about another individual’s culture. Such sensitivity requires the ability to understand the perspective of those living in other (and very different) societies and the willingness to put oneself in another’s shoes. International managers can benefit greatly from understanding the nature, dimensions, and variables of a specific culture and how these affect work and organizational processes. This cultural awareness enables them to develop appropriate policies and determine how to plan, organize, lead, and control in a specific international setting. Globalization, in all its forms of personal and business contacts and information crossing borders, brings about changes that result in cultural diffusion. When immigrants adopt some aspects of the local culture while keeping aspects of their culture of origin, this process is called creolization.
- Culture is the shared values, understandings, assumptions and goals that are learned from earlier generations, imposed by present members of a society and passed on to succeeding generations. It often results in shared attitudes, codes of conduct, and expectations that subconsciously guide and control certain norms of behavior. As shown in this figure, national and socio-cultural variables provide the context for cultural variables, which in turn determine attitudes toward work, time, materialism, individualism, and change. Attitudes affect behavior and, thus, individual’s motivation and expectations regarding work and workplace relations. Long Description: The diagram is shown as nested rectangles with individual and group employee job behavior at the center, then attitudes, then cultural variables, and finally national variables and sociocultural variables in the outermost rectangle. Individual and group employee job behavior Motivation Commitment Productivity Ethics Attitudes Work Individualism Time Change Materialism Cultural variables Values Norms Beliefs National variables Economic system Physical situation Legal system Technological know-how Political system Sociocultural variables Religion Education Language.
- Compared to societal culture, which is often widely held within a region or nation, organizational culture varies a great deal from one organization, company, institution, or group to another. Organizational culture represents those expectations, norms, and goals held in common by members of that group. For a business example, consider Apple, whose organizational culture is very organic, or loose and informal, with its employees typically wearing casual clothes and interacting informally.
- The extent to which culture affects organizational processes is a subject of debate. Some say that convergence is leading management styles to become more similar to one another due to issues such as industrialization and worldwide coordination. This slide is a condensed version of the information in Exhibit 3-2, and suggests ways that differences between U.S. and other cultures might influence organizational functions.
- The self-reference criterion is the unconscious reference point of one’s own cultural values. It means people often understand and relate to others only in terms of their own culture. An example of the need to overcome the self-reference criterion is when Japanese workers must put courtesy aside and interrupt conversations with Americans when there are problems. Parochialism occurs when a person expects those from another culture to automatically fall into patterns of behavior common in his/her own culture. Ethnocentrism describes the attitude of those who operate from the assumption their ways of doing things are best under all conditions. P & G demonstrated ethnocentrism when they ran a popular European ad for Camay soap in Japan. The ad depicted a man walking in on his wife in the bath. The commercial backfired in Japan because the Japanese viewed the man’s behavior as bad manners.
- Managers should recognize, of course, that generalizations in cultural profiles will produce only an approximation, or stereotype, of national character. Many countries comprise diverse subcultures whose constituents conform only in varying degrees to the national character. In Canada, distinct subcultures include Anglophones and Francophones (English-speaking and French-speaking people, respectively) and indigenous Canadians. Above all, good managers treat people as individuals, and they consciously avoid any form of stereotyping. However, a cultural profile is a good starting point to help managers develop some tentative expectations—some cultural context—as a backdrop to managing in a specific international setting. It is useful, then, to look at what cultural variables have been studied and what implications can be drawn from the results.
- Managers in the home country or abroad must recognize both the legal religious rights in the workplace and the value of such diversity in the workplace. Days off for religious holidays, accommodation for prayers, dietary requirements, and so on, are the more obvious considerations. In addition, foreign managers abroad must be particularly sensitive to the local religious context and the expectations and workplace norms of employees and others because those managers will be immersed in that context in dealing with employees, clients, suppliers, and others. Failure to do so will minimize or negate the goals of the firm in that location.
- Values determine how individuals probably will act in given circumstances. They are communicated via the eight subsystems just described and are passed down through generations. Contingency management requires managers to adapt to the local environment and people and to adjust their management styles accordingly. Value dimensions and resulting cultural profiles provide only an approximation of national character. There may be variations in national culture—i.e., subcultures may exist as well. For example, American tend to think of the Chinese as culturally homogenous, but distinct ethnic groups within China have their own customs and dialects.
- The GLOBE (Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness) dimensions are based on data gathered by 170 researchers over seven years. The data were collected from 18,000 managers in 62 countries. There are nine dimensions that distinguish cultures from one another and have implications for managers: assertiveness, future orientation, performance orientation, humane orientation, gender differentiation, uncertainty avoidance, power distance, institutional collectivism vs. individualism, and in-group collectivism. Only four are discussed in the text because the other five overlap with Hofstede’s dimensions. Assertiveness concerns how much people are expected to be tough, confrontational, and competitive versus modest and tender. Low assertiveness countries have sympathy for the weak and emphasize loyalty and solidarity. Performance orientation concerns the importance of performance improvement and excellence and refers to whether people are encouraged to strive for continued improvement. Low performance orientation countries place priority on things like tradition, loyalty, family, and background. They associate competition with defeat.
- The Future Orientation dimension measures the importance of performance improvement and excellence in society and refers to whether people are encouraged to strive for continued improvement. The Humane Orientation dimension measures the extent to which a society encourages and rewards people for being fair, altruistic, generous, caring, and kind.
- GLOBE research also indicates the existence of geographic clusters of countries that are culturally similar. This figures shows the 10 clusters that were found. The GLOBE research suggests companies may find it easier to expand into more similar cultures than into those that are dramatically different. Long Description: The details of the map are as follows: Anglo: Australia, Canada, England, Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa, and United States. Latin America: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, and Venezuela. Latin Europe: France, Israel, Italy, Portugal, Spain, and Switzerland (French speaking). Eastern Europe: Albania, Georgia, Greece, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Poland, Russia, and Slovenia. Germanic Europe: Austria, Germany, Netherlands, and Switzerland (German speaking). Nordic Europe: Denmark, Finland, and Sweden. Sub-Sahara Africa: Nigeria, Zambia, Malawi, South Africa, Namibia, and Zimbabwe (Black spots). Arab: Egypt, Kuwait, Morocco, Qatar, and Turkey. Southern Asia: India, Indonesia, Iran, Philippines, Malaysia, and Thailand. Confucian Asia: China, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, Taiwan, and South Korea.
- Hofstede’s research, which was conducted prior to the GLOBE project, is based on 116,000 people in 50 countries. Nonetheless, all of the research was conducted in a single firm—IBM. As such, the result should be interpreted with caution. Power distance is a society’s acceptance of unequal power distribution. In high power distance cultures, formal authority and hierarchy are very respected. Thus leadership tends to be autocratic and centralized. In low power distance cultures, superiors and subordinates are more likely to view one another as equals, leading to more cooperation. Long Description: Countries listed from high to low: Malaysia, Arab countries, Mexico, India, France, Italy, Japan, Spain, Argentina, U.S., Germany, UK, Denmark, Israel, and Austria.
- Uncertainty avoidance is the extent to which people feel threatened by ambiguous situations. High uncertainty avoidance cultures are very uncomfortable with ambiguity and tend to have strict laws and closely followed procedures. In businesses, managers tend to make low-risk decisions, employees are not aggressive, and lifetime employment is common. Low uncertainty avoidance cultures are more comfortable with ambiguity. In these cultures, company activities are less formal and structured, managers take more risks, and employees have more job mobility. Long Description: Countries listed from high to low: Greece, Japan, France, Korea, Arab countries, Germany, Australia, Canada, U.S., UK, India, Denmark, and Singapore.
- Individualism is the tendency for people to look after themselves and their immediate families only and to neglect the needs of society. Democracy, individual initiative, and achievement are valued. Collectivism entails tight social frameworks, emotional dependence on the organization, and strong belief in group decisions. Countries scoring higher on individualism tend to have higher GNPs and freer political systems. Social loafing is more common in individual than in collective cultures.
- Masculinity refers to the degree to which traditionally masculine values (e.g., assertiveness, materialism, and lack of concern for others) prevail. Femininity emphasizes the traditionally feminine values of concern for others, relationships, and quality of life. In more feminine cultures, one tends to find less work-family conflict, less job stress, more women in high-level jobs, and a reduced need for assertiveness.
- Hofstede developed a fifth dimension, long-term/short-term orientation—also called Confucian dynamism in which a culture programs its members to accept delayed gratification of their material, social, and emotional needs.
- Trompenaar’s research gathered data from 15,000 managers from 28 countries, representing 47 national cultures. Some of these are similar to other dimensions already discussed, and are not addressed here. Universalistic cultures apply rules and systems objectively, without consideration of individual circumstances. Particularistic cultures tend to put more emphasis on relationships and apply rules more subjectively. Affective cultures tend to express emotions openly, whereas neutral cultures do not.
- People in specific cultures compartmentalize their work and private lives, and they are more open and direct. In diffuse cultures, work spills over into personal relationships and vice versa. In achievement-oriented cultures, individual achievement is the source of status and influence. In ascription-oriented cultures, status and influence come from class, age, gender, etc.
- To Americans, time is money and schedules are strictly kept. In Latin America the word for tomorrow is used to mean “sometime in the future.” Task versus relationship orientation Schuster and Copeland developed a Culture Classification Model based on time, task orientation, and relationship orientation. They contended that the importance placed on tasks versus relationships in making business decisions affects how time is used. See Figure 3-2. Many non-Western societies believe in destiny of the will of their God and, thus, tend to be passive and hostile toward change. For example, to a Chinese worker, the change to power machinery might suggest dissatisfaction with his father’s way of life. Americans tend to value physical goods and status symbols. Many non-Westerners value the aesthetic and spiritual realm instead. In the United States, individual achievement takes precedent. There is a focus on “I.” In countries like China, there is more emphasis on conformity and cooperation.
- With over 4.2 billion Internet users across the globe as of June 2018, there is an increasing use of the Internet in society which seems to affect the social variables such as associations, education, the economy, and politics. From 2000 to 2018, English Internet user growth increased by 649 percent to 1.055 billion users. However, Chinese Internet use growth increased 2,390 percent over the same time period to 804 million users. Spanish Internet users experienced a 1,758 percent increase (to 337 million users) while Arabic Internet users increased by 8,616 percent to 219 million users. Culture also is changing how technology is used. The United States collects a great deal of information from consumers. In Sweden and many other European countries, the use and sharing of consumer data is closely monitored by the government. The Swedish airline example illustrates the extent to which privacy is protected and suggests some degree of uncertainty avoidance. The fact that so much of the internet market lives outside the United States indicates the need for e-commerce to take local approaches to markets, customs, languages, and currencies to be successful.
- Overworked South Koreans are set to get a break from this week when a new labour law imposing a cap on working hours comes into effect, in an effort to improve employees’ work–life balance. “Worabael”—a portmanteau of work–life balance—has become a buzzword in South Korea, one of the most overworked nations in Asia, as companies with more than 300 employees and public institutions are forced to cut the maximum weekly work hours from 68 to 52. South Korea is notorious for its workaholic culture, which has contributed to its rapid industrialization over the past half a century and transformed the once war-torn country into the world’s 11th-largest economy. The country is home to the longest working hours and highest suicide rate in the developed world. South Koreans put in an average of 2,024 hours in 2017.
- MANAGEMENT IN ACTION A Cultural Revolution Is Changing India, One Open-Plan Office at a Time: Office Life Modernisation The business day used to be a formal affair, with late starts and early finishes for senior staff. But when Gaurav Chopra set up IndiaLends, his Delhi-based financial services company, he was determined to import some of the relatively informal work culture he had encountered during the eight years he spent in the UK. Out went office cubicles and in came open-plan seating arrangements. Out went communicating with bosses only via their assistants and in came regular face-to-face meetings. That was three years ago. But no matter how hard he has tried to encourage colleagues to adopt a more relaxed, western-style of working, he has found some habits impossible to change.
- Though profiles have their limitations, managers can use them to anticipate differences in the level of motivation, communication, ethics, loyalty, and individual and group productivity that may be encountered in a given culture. This Comparative Management in Focus section illustrates how to synthesize information from Hofstede and others to gain a sense of the character of a society.
- Much of Japanese culture and working relationships can be explained by the principle of wa. Wa is embedded in the value of indulgent love, which leads to mutual confidence, faith, and honor necessary for business relationships. As such, the workplace is characterized by a mix of authoritarianism and humanism—much like a family. Management systems stress rank and looking after employees. There is devotion to work, collective responsibility, and a high degree of employee productivity.
- Latin Americans are typically being-oriented—with a primary focus on relationships and enjoying life in the present—as compared with the doing-oriented German (and mostly Western) culture discussed earlier. For Latin Americans, work lives and private lives are much more closely integrated than those of Westerners, so they emphasize enjoying life and have a more relaxed attitude toward work; because of that, Westerners often stereotype them as lazy rather than realizing that it is simply a different attitude toward the role of work in life. Connected with that attitude is the tendency to be rather fatalistic—that is, a feeling that events will be determined by God—rather than a feeling of their own control or responsibility for the future.
- Language is one of the strongest elements of Brazil’s national unity. Nearly 100 percent of the population speaks Portuguese. The only exceptions are some members of Amerindian groups and pockets of immigrants, primarily from Japan and South Korea, who have not yet learned Portuguese.
- Islam permeates Saudi life—Allah is always present, controls everything, and is frequently referred to in conversation. Employees may spend more than two hours a day in prayer as part of the life pattern that intertwines work with religion, politics, and social life. Outsiders must realize that establishing a trusting relationship and respect for Arab social norms has to precede any attempts at business discussions. Honor, pride, and dignity are at the core of shame societies such as the Arabs. As such, shame and honor provide the basis for social control and motivation. Circumstances dictate what is right or wrong and what constitutes acceptable behavior. See Exhibits 3-6 and 3-7.
- The predominance of small businesses means that they are likely to become part of the value chain for most foreign firms. Guanxi refers to the network of relationships that the Chinese cultivate, and it entails the exchange of favors and gifts to provide an obligation to reciprocate favors. Leadership tends to be centralized and autocratic, but leaders feel a responsibility for their employees. As such, caring for people is put ahead of business concerns and efficiency. Because organizations tend to be centralized, most have only two primary hierarchical levels. The highest level includes the boss and a few family members. The second level includes all of the employees. Today, younger Chinese managers are integrating both Western and Chinese management styles to some extent.
- This chapter has explored various cultural values and how managers can be prepared to understand them with the help of some general cultural profiles. The following chapters focus on application of this cultural knowledge to management in an international environment (or, alternatively in a domestic multicultural environment)—especially as relevant to cross-cultural communication (Chapter 4), negotiation and decision making (Chapter 5), and motivating and leading (Chapter 11).