Cultural Misunderstandings

Cultural Misunderstandings
Author: Raymonde Carroll
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Total Pages: 162
Release: 2012-07-31
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 022611189X

“Full of colorful anecdotes…tells us a lot about the French but even more about ourselves.”—Los Angeles Times This is an intriguing and thoughtful analysis of the many ways French and Americans—and indeed any members of different cultures—can misinterpret each other, even when ostensibly speaking the same language. Cultural misunderstandings, Raymonde Carroll points out, can arise even where we least expect them: in our closest relationships. With revealing vignettes and perceptive observations, she brings to light some fundamental differences in French and American presuppositions about love, friendship, and raising children, as well as such everyday activities as using the telephone or asking for information. “An entertaining, informative book…often witty…a vital source for learning how to establish amity not only between the U.S. and France but among all the world’s nations.”—Publishers Weekly

Managing Cultural Differences

Managing Cultural Differences
Author: Philip Robert Harris
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 613
Release: 2004
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0750677368

Publisher Description

The Culture Map

The Culture Map
Author: Erin Meyer
Publisher: PublicAffairs
Total Pages: 289
Release: 2014-05-27
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1610392590

An international business expert helps you understand and navigate cultural differences in this insightful and practical guide, perfect for both your work and personal life. Americans precede anything negative with three nice comments; French, Dutch, Israelis, and Germans get straight to the point; Latin Americans and Asians are steeped in hierarchy; Scandinavians think the best boss is just one of the crowd. It's no surprise that when they try and talk to each other, chaos breaks out. In The Culture Map, INSEAD professor Erin Meyer is your guide through this subtle, sometimes treacherous terrain in which people from starkly different backgrounds are expected to work harmoniously together. She provides a field-tested model for decoding how cultural differences impact international business, and combines a smart analytical framework with practical, actionable advice.

Understanding Cultural Differences

Understanding Cultural Differences
Author: Edward T. Hall
Publisher: Nicholas Brealey
Total Pages: 222
Release: 2000-07-27
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 9781877864070

Human resource management, at home and abroad, means assisting the corporation's most valuable asset-its people-to function effectively. Edward T. and Mildred Reed Hall contribute to this effort by explaining the cultural context in which corporations in Germany, France, and the United States operate and how this contributes to misunderstandings between business personnel from each country. Then they offer new insights and practical advice on how to manage day-to-day transactions in the international business arena. Understanding Cultural Differences echoes and elaborates on Edward T. Hall's classic studies in intercultural relations, The Silent Language and The Hidden Dimension. It is a valuable guide for business executives from the three countries and a model of cross-cultural analysis.

Managing Cultural Diversity in Technical Professions

Managing Cultural Diversity in Technical Professions
Author: Lionel Laroche
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 257
Release: 2012-06-25
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1136385193

'Managing Cultural Diversity in Technical Professions' provides managers of technical professionals with clear and tested strategies to improve communication and increase productivity among culturally diverse technical professionals, teams, and departments. Dr. Laroche outlines the differences in education and training, career expectations, communication styles, and management expectations in countries around the world. He explains cross-cultural concepts and presents his case for the importance of cross-cultural competence supported by hard data, including charts, tables, and readily accessible schematics. You'll benefit from the author's experience and expertise as a manager and consultant in this area, illustrated by numerous anecdotes, critical incidents, and mini case studies, centered around two central themes: * Most technical professionals do not recognize the impact of cultural differences in their work * Cross-cultural issues lead to a significant under-utilization of talent and affect productivity negatively 'Managing Cultural Diversity in Technical Professions' offers proven tactics for improving your personal effectiveness and the efficiency of your multicultural teams, breaking the communication barrier in the multicultural workplace.

Managing Cultural Differences

Managing Cultural Differences
Author: Robert T. Moran
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 726
Release: 2007-03-15
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1136385266

This new edition of a business textbook bestseller has been completely updated. In particular, the book presents a fuller discussion of global business today. Also, issues of terrorism and state security as they affect culture and business are discussed substantially. The structure and content of the book remain the same, with thorough updating of the plentiful region and country descriptions, demographic data, graphs and maps. This book differs from textbooks on International Management because it zeroes in on culture as the crucial dimension and educates students about the cultures around the world so they will be better prepared to work successfully for a multinational corporation or in a global context.

Cultural Differences

Cultural Differences
Author: Sabine Janach
Publisher: diplom.de
Total Pages: 123
Release: 2001-09-03
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 3832444572

Abstract: This thesis handles a topic which is of high importance for all companies doing business internationally . But nevertheless there are still less companies who make this a subject of everydaylife. What I am talking about is culture, cultural differences and cross cultural management. What makes it so difficult for people of different cultures to communicate, to work together, to live side by side in harmony without misunderstanding ? It is our culture and the difference between our cultures often mentioned not at all. But at the latest if there appear problems you will recognize the differences in understanding, thinking, behavior, ... This thesis should make a small contribution to get a better understanding that culture is something we must accept and that we can not neglect if we are doing business internationally. There is a short overview with demographical and economical data of the last thirty years of both countries. It continues with the main topic - the cultural dimension (theoretical background followed by some models of identifying different cultures, the cultural profiles of both countries, the Singaporean culture and its characteristics, behavior and problems as expatriate in Singapore, do's and don'ts. After this I explain the theory on a concrete example : a Business Reengeneering project realized in both countreis (Singapore and Austria) on which I have collaborated for altogether eleven months. At last I answer the question how culture influences the business culture, the implementation of Business Process Reengineering and the Management of Change. With a critical outlook concerning this topic I want to round off the thesis. Kurze Inhaltsbeschreibung : In der Arbeit wurden von mir Vorgangsweisen, Erfolgsfaktoren und Ergebnisse von Reenginering Prozessen vor dem Hintergrund zweier unterschiedlicher gesellschaftlicher Kulturen beschrieben und problematisiert. Bei den beiden Vergleichskulturen handelt es sich um die von Österreich und Singapur. Die Reengineering Projekte fanden dabei im gleichen global agierenden Unternehmen statt. Die empirische Arbeitsbasis war durch zwei Praktika innerhalb dieser Firma gegeben. Die Arbeit teilt sich sowohl in einen rein theoretischen Teil und eine praktischen Teil. Es wird erklärt worauf bei internationalen, interkulturellen Arbeiten und Projekten geachtet werden, wie sich Kultur auf Business Reengineering auswirkt und worauf ich in meinem Projekt achten musste.

Cross-Cultural Differences - Japanese and German Management Styles from the German Perspective

Cross-Cultural Differences - Japanese and German Management Styles from the German Perspective
Author: Markus Richwien
Publisher: diplom.de
Total Pages: 139
Release: 2002-08-07
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 3832457186

Inhaltsangabe:Abstract: As the idea of Japan as a leader in management styles and the mythos 'collectivism' as a key to high quality performance and productivity is still in mind of German managers, this work tries to compare actual leadership styles of Japanese and German managers on the level of cultural dimensions. In the study the sample consisted of 119 persons in middle management positions (82 male and 37 female), 60 persons with work experience in Japan and 59 without experience. Participants were asked to complete a questionnaire regarding 52 leadership characteristics (e.g. the ability to assert oneself, to cooperate or to delegate) within five cultural dimensions. Participants then rated the importance of this characteristic for the specific category. Findings of the study showed significant differences in experienced and estimated management styles between the countries as well as significances regarding management traits of the german culture after working in Japan. Inhaltsverzeichnis:Table of Contents: CHAPTER ONE9 1.1INTRODUCTION9 1.2STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM11 1.3RESEARCH QUESTION14 CHAPTER TWO15 2.1INTERNATIONAL MANAGEMENT AND ITS CULTURAL CONTEXT15 2.1.1Culture15 2.1.2Cross-cultural Communication22 2.2.2Cross-cultural Management25 2.2.3Significance for Organization29 2.3SUCCESS FACTORS OF INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS31 2.4CULTURALLY COMPARATIVE MANAGEMENT RESEARCH35 2.4.1Management-oriented Cultural Research36 2.4.2Cultural Dimensions according to Hofstede40 2.4.2.1Dimension of power distance41 2.4.2.2Dimension of collectivism versus individualism43 2.4.2.3Dimension of masculinity versus femininity44 2.4.2.4Dimension of uncertainty avoidance46 2.4.3The Dimension of the Confucian Dynamic47 2.4.4Further Dimensions of Culture51 2.4.4.1Basic dimensions of culture according to Adler52 2.4.4.2Dimensions of culture according to Trompenaars54 2.5THE SOCIO-CULTURAL BACKGROUND OF JAPANESE MANAGERS57 2.5.1Japanese Confucianism58 2.5.2Corporate collectivism: The uchi mentality60 2.5.3Consensus and participation in management63 2.6THE PRESENT RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN GERMANY AND JAPAN63 2.6.1General and political relationships63 2.6.2The Economic Relationships65 2.6.2.1Relationships to the European Union (EU)65 2.6.2.2Foreign Trade between Germany and Japan66 2.6.2.3Special Features67 2.6.3Cultural Contacts69 2.7LEADERSHIP STYLES70 2.7.1Definition and aspects of leadership70 2.7.2Differencies in the leadership [...]

Cultural Differences in Daily Business Life Between Germany and Sweden

Cultural Differences in Daily Business Life Between Germany and Sweden
Author: Yvonne Tornow
Publisher: GRIN Verlag
Total Pages: 23
Release: 2015-12-28
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 366811675X

Seminar paper from the year 2011 in the subject Business economics - Business Management, Corporate Governance, , language: English, abstract: This seminar paper deals with Sweden and Germany as negotiation partners from a German perspective. Although one would assume quite various similarities between these countries due to geographical proximity and same origin of language, they are indeed quite different – an issue also investigated by Eoro Vaara. The aim of this paper is to show that even slight or subtle differences in cultural patterns should be considered. Therefore only who can communicate without cultural misunderstandings can experience successful cross-cultural negotiations. Sweden has been chosen since there is a lot of research about cultural differences between American, Asian and Arab countries, but hardly any regarding inter-European. Another reason is also because of personal experiences in Sweden and with Swedish friends. It was challenging to investigate in a country, which does not seem to be culturally much apart from Germany. After a short introduction, the second chapter gives the reader a definition for culture and an overview of Hofstede’s model of dimensions. This chapter also presents the different kind of cultures from a German and Swedish perspective. Therefore the third chapter deals with negotiations between Germans and Swedes while doing business. This paper ends with the chapter “conclusion”.