Business Communication and the Global Context

• Culture
• Background To Intercultural Communication
• National Cultural Variables
• Individual Cultural Variables
To know myself

• ”To know how other people behave

takes intelligence, but to know myself
takes wisdom.”
• John Heider, The Tao of Leadership,
1988
Cultural Metaphor

How is culture like a computer program?

The Communication Process
Managers roles

• Managers spend 50% to 90% of their

time in talking people coordinate
to :
• Coordinate activity
• Disseminate information
• Motivate people
• Negotiate future plans
What is culture?

• Culture is an abstraction, a set of ideas, norms, customs,

traditions, symbols and assumptions about life.
• Culture is taken for granted; it is an accumulation of all the
unspoken aspects of daily life.
• We are confronted with culture when we experience deviations
from what we are used to.
• It is hard to articulate your culture because you do not need an
categorical knowledge of it to function in society.
Characteristics of Culture

1. Culture is learned.
2. Cultures are inherently logical.
3. Culture forms our self-identity and
community.
4. Culture combines the visible and the
invisible.
5. Culture is dynamic.
Selected Dimensions of Culture

Context
• High-context cultures (in Japan, China,
and Arab countries) tend to be relational,
collectivist, intuitive, and thoughtful.
• Low-context cultures (in North America,
Scandinavia, and Germany) tend to be
logical, linear, and action-oriented.
Cultural Context

Low Context High Context

• Linear Logic • Spiral Logic
• Direct • Indirect
• Literal • Figurative
• Action-oriented • Contemplative
• Individualistic • Group-oriented
Selected Dimensions of Culture
Individualism
• High-context cultures prefer group values,
duties, and decisions.
• Low-context cultures tend to prefer
individual initiative, self-assertion,
personal achievement.
Selected Dimensions of Culture

Formality
• Other cultures may prefer more
formality.
• North Americans place less
emphasis on tradition, ceremony,
and social rules.
Selected Dimensions of Culture

Communication Style
• High-context cultures rely on nonverbal
cues and the total picture to
communicate. Meanings are embedded at
many social levels.
• Low-context cultures emphasize words,
straightforwardness, openness. People
tend to be informal, impatient, literal.
Selected Dimensions of Culture

Time Orientation
• Time is unlimited and never-ending in
some cultures. Relaxed attitude toward
time.
• Time is precious to North Americans. It
correlates with productivity, efficiency,
and money.
High-Context and Low-Context Cultures

High
Japanese
Arab
Latin American
Spanish
English
Italian
French
North American
Scandinavian
German
Swiss

Low
Comparative Management Focus:
Communicating with Arabs
Achieving Multicultural Sensitivity

• Avoiding Ethnocentrism
Ethnocentrism is the belief that one’s
own cultural background is superior to
that of others.

To overcome ethnocentrism,
– Avoid assumptions
– Avoid judgments
Nonverbal Communication

Understanding non
verbal
communication is
difficult when
people are from
different cultures
Nonverbal Communication

Gestures can
create
different
reactions in
multicultural
environments
Improve Your Oral Skills

• Learn foreign phrases.

• Use simple English.
• Speak slowly and pronounce
clearly.
• Observe eye messages.
• Encourage accurate
feedback.
• Check frequently
for comprehension.
• Accept blame.
• Listen without interrupting.
 Typical Data Formats

Dates May 15, 2000 15th May 2000 15 Mai 2000

5/15/00 5/15/00 5.15.00

Time 10:32 p.m. 10:32 PM 22.32

22 h 32
Currency $123.45 123.45 123F45
US$123.45 GB123.45 123,45F
123.45 euros

Large 1,234,567.89 1,234,567.89 1.234.567,89

Numbers 1 123 567
Phone (205) 555-1234 (081) 987 1234 (15) 61-87-34-02
Number
Comparing U.S. and Foreign Views
How Many U.S. Persons View
Themselves
Informal, friendly, casual
Egalitarian
Direct, aggressive
Efficient
Goal- and achievement-oriented
Profit-oriented
Resourceful, ingenious
Individualistic, progressive
Dynamic, identify with work
Enthusiastic, prefer hard sell
Open
How Many Foreigners View
U.S. Persons
Undisciplined, too personal
Insensitive to status
Blunt, rude, oppressive
Opportunistic, obsessed with time
Promise more than they deliver
Materialistic
Deals more important than people
Self-absorbed
Driven
Deceptive, fearsome
Weak, untrustworthy
 Cultural Difference
Behaviour Attribution
American "How long will it take you to finish American I asked him to participate.
this report?"
Greek His behaviour makes no sense. He
is the boss. Why doesn't he tell
me?
Greek "I don't know. How long should American He refused to take responsibility.
take?"
Greek I asked him for an order.
American "You are in the best position to AmericanI press him to take responsibility
analyze time requirements." for his actions.
Greek What nonsense: I'd better give him
an answer.
Greek "10 days." American He lacks the ability to estimate
time; this time estimate is totally
inadequate.
American "Take 15. Is it agreed? You will do American I offer a contract.
it in 15 days?"
Greek These are my orders: 15 days.
 Cultural Difference (cont.)

In fact, the report needed 30 days of regular work. So the Greek worked day and night,
but at the end of the 15th day, he still needed to do one more day's work.

Behaviour  Attribution 
American "Where is the report?" American I am making sure he fulfills his
contract.
Greek He is asking for the report.
Greek "It will be ready tomorrow." (Both attribute that it is not ready.)
American "But we agreed it would be ready American I must teach him to fulfill a
today." contract.
Greek The stupid, incompetent boss! Not
only did he give me the wrong
orders, but he doesn't even
appreciate that I did a 30-day job
in 16 days.
The Greek hands in his resignation. The American is surprised.
Greek I can't work for such a man.
Intercultural Communication Model

• A message encoded in one culture must

be decoded in another culture
• Culture shapes the individual
communicator
• Different cultures lead to communication
difficulties
• Through the study and understanding of
IC, we can overcome these difficulties
Intercultural Communication Model
• Factors
– There are other factors besides culture shaping the individual
– People vary from each other within any one culture
• Process
– When a message reaches a culture where it is to be decoded, it
undergoes a transformation in which the influence of the
decoding culture becomes a part of the message meaning
– The meaning content of the original message becomes
modified during the decoding phase of intercultural
communication BECAUSE
– The decoder and the encoder possess different sets of cultural
meanings
– "Have you had you lunch?" (Politeness or invitation?)
– "Where are you going?" (Showing concern or intruding into
privacy)
Variables

National Variables Individual Variables

Education Time
Laws/Regulation Space
Economics Food
Sender Receiver
Politics Dress
Message Message
Social Norms Manners
Language Decision Making
Religion

Cultural Overlapping Variables

National Variables

• Education
• Law
• Economics
• Politics
• Religion
• Social Norms
• Language
Individual Variables

• Time
• Space
• Food
• Dress
• Manners
• Decision Making
Improving Communication

Oral Messages
• Learn foreign phrases.
• Use simple English.
• Speak slowly and enunciate clearly.
• Observe eye messages.
• Encourage accurate feedback.
• Check frequently for comprehension.
Improving Communication With
Intercultural Audiences

Oral Messages
• Accept blame.
• Listen without interrupting.
• Tell speakers if you don’t understand.
• Remember to smile!
• Follow up in writing.
Improving Communication
With Intercultural Audiences

Written Messages
• Adapt to local formats.
• Use short sentences and short paragraphs.
• Avoid ambiguous expressions.
• Strive for clarity.
• Use correct grammar.
Improving Communication With Intercultural
Audiences

Written Messages
• Cite numbers carefully.
• Accommodate reader in organization, tone,
and style.
High-Context and Low-Context

High-Context Culture Low-Context Culture

•Establish social trust first •Get down to business first

•Value personal relations and •Value expertise and performance

Good will.
•Agreement by specific, legalistic
•Agreement by general trust Contract.

•Negotiations slow •Agreement by specific, legalistic

As possible.