Cross Cultural Differences And Their Implications For Managing Intercultural Differences In Business Contexts

Seminar paper from the year 2018 in the subject English Language and Literature Studies - Culture and Applied Geography, grade: 1,0, Fresenius University of Applied Sciences Hamburg, language: English, abstract: As a result of globalization, many firms have started to compete and work on a worldwide basis. This situation has required organizations to manage their workforces effectively in order to expand into global markets and target different consumer groups. Moreover, the process of globalization causes more exposure to diversity, not only in daily but also in business life. Managing diversity has therefore become a strategic focus of management in organizations which enables companies to gain competitive advantages on the global market. With increasing relevance of the outlined issue several frameworks for categorizing, analyzing and comparing cultures can be found in literature. Two frameworks that have received a great deal of research attention are Hofstede’s study of work values and Trompenaars’ broad-based studies of value orientations. This paper provides an insight into the existing conventional culture paradigms by giving a brief introduction to the term culture and exposing the two mentioned models. Subsequently, the last chapter outlines possible implications for managing intercultural differences in business contexts.

ÔPrimecz, Romani, and Sackmann provide managers and educators with a powerful framework that goes beyond simple categorization of national and cultural differences in business. Their framework of negotiated meaning systems, and the rich cases that illustrate the Òin-the-momentÓ experiences of global managers as they conduct business in culturally unfamiliar milieus provide managers and educators with a powerful tool for developing global managerial skills. This is a book every global manager and cross-cultural educator should have on his or her bookshelf.Õ Ð Mark E. Mendenhall, University of Tennessee, Chattanooga, US ÔThis is a unique, alternative view of culture that has both practical and theoretical significance. The creative analysis of cases from around the world moves the field beyond the sophisticated stereotyping that can result from relying solely on cultural value dimensions to decode interactions. The cases address significant cross-cultural issues, providing useful lessons and richer perspectives on culture.Õ Ð Joyce Osland, San JosŽ State University, US ÔThis book is an excellent collection of practical and useful cases in cross-cultural management, with some that are very different from what we would call ÒtraditionalÓ cases in cross-cultural management. They are excellent teaching material with an introduction and a conclusion that show students and practitioners how meanings are negotiated in diverse and complex cross-cultural situations.Õ Ð Marie-Therese Claes, Louvain School of Management, Belgium ÔA fascinating book for both the diversity of cultures that are touched upon (from Asia and Africa to Europe and America) and the cultural analyses that are made of various management situations resulting from the transfer of management techniques across countries or the encountering of those embedded in different cultures.Õ Ð Philippe dÕIribarne, CNRS, France ÔA group of multidisciplinary authors from various countries and cultures bring rich experience to this volume. The focus on real-life situations offers a fresh perspective on culture in organizations and management through in-depth case studies including both academic and pedagogical sides. It addresses multi-level cross-cultural issues of international strategic importance for globalizing workplaces. This insightful book is excellent reading for practitioners as well as scholars and students interested in applications in the field of cross-cultural management.Õ Ð Cordula Barzantny, Toulouse Business School, France ÔThis volume offers an insightful introduction to qualitative field research aiming to understand the dynamics in intercultural business interactions. Based on the findings provided in ten rich cases from Asia, Europe, North Africa, USA and Latin America, the editors also propose strategies for more effective collaboration in challenging multiple-cultures contexts. The authors and editors have succeeded in transforming the field studies into cases that are stimulating and thought provoking readings, both for practitioners and students of cross-cultural management.Õ Ð Anne-Marie S¿derberg, Copenhagen Business School, Denmark Based on the view that culture is dynamic and negotiated between actors, this groundbreaking book contains a collection of ten cases on cross-cultural management in practice. The cases draw on field research revealing challenges and insights from working across nations and cultures. Each case provides recommendations for practitioners that are developed into a framework for effective intercultural interactions as well as offering illustrations and insights on how to handle actual cross-cultural issues. This enriching book covers various topics including international collaborations across and within multinational companies, organizational culture in international joint ventures and knowledge transfer. Based on empirical fieldwork and qualitative analyses, this path-breaking book will appeal to graduate and postgraduate students in international management as well as practitioners.

All cultures appear to share the belief that they do things ‘correctly’, while others, until proven otherwise, are assumed to be ignorant or barbaric. When people from different cultures work together and cannot take shared meanings for granted, managers face serious challenges. An individual’s parsing of an experience and its meaning may vary according to several cultural scales – national, professional, industrial and local. Awareness of cultural differences and the willingness to view them as a positive are therefore crucial assets. This edited textbook sets itself apart from existing cross-cultural management texts by highlighting to the reader the need to avoid both ethnocentrism and the belief in the universality of his or her own values and ways of thinking: the success of international negotiations and intercultural management depends on such openness and acceptance of real differences. It encourages the development of ‘nomadic intelligence’ and the creative use of a culture’s resources, according to a symbolic anthropology perspective. Through the essays and case studies in the chapters, readers will become aware of the intercultural dimension of business activities and better understand how they affect work. Cross-Cultural Management will help interested parties – students of business management, international relations and other disciplines, and business managers and other professionals – develop their ability to interact, take action and give direction in an intercultural context.

This textbook explores the reasons for intercultural differences and their effects on the behavior of individuals and organizations within the context of management. The text embraces the presence of ambiguity and complexity and encourages critical thinking when it comes to intercultural relations in order to avoid ethnocentrism, stereotyping and prejudice, as well as overly simplistic solutions. Integrating findings from management, but also the humanities and social sciences, as well as politics and popular culture, intercultural management is understood as a phenomenon that transcends disciplinary boundaries and includes questions around identity constructions, power relations, and ethics. This makes intercultural management a fascinating and rewarding subject to study. Throughout, the author encourages an analytical approach to intercultural management built upon strong methodological foundations, and draws on examples from a wide range of different contexts and cultures to help reflectively translate research and concepts into practice in a way that is lively and engaging. This textbook is essential reading for students taking university courses related to intercultural management. Lecturers can visit the companion website to access a Teaching Guide and PowerPoint slides that can be adapted and edited to suit teaching needs. Dirk Holtbrügge is Professor of International Management at the School of Business, Economics and Society, Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany.

This new eighth edition provides a leading edge text that provides insight for interacting with other cultures, working on cross-cultural teams and provides a framework for building long-lasting relationships in a diverse global business environment.

Now called Cross-Cultural Management to more clearly reflect the content, the Second Edition has been refined to build on the strength of the earlier edition for a stronger emphasis on understanding of the most current research on culture in organizational settings. The text examines cross-cultural management issues from a psychological or behavioural perspective. It focuses on the interactions of people from different cultures in organizational settings and helps the reader gain an understanding of the effect of culture that can be applied to a wide variety of cross-cultural interactions in various organizational contexts.

This new edition of a business textbook bestseller has been completely updated to reflect the numerous global changes that have occurred since 1999: globalization, SARS, AIDS, the handover of Hong Kong, and so forth. 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 remains 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.

The world of business for all organizations in the twenty-first century is global, interdependent, complex, and rapidly changing. That means sophisticated global leadership skills are required more than ever today. Individual and organizational success is no longer dependent solely on business acumen. Our ability to understand, communicate, and manage across borders, countries, and cultures has never been as important as it is now. The understanding and utilization of cultural differences as a business resource is a key building block as companies rely on their global reach to achieve the best profit and performance. For this reason, international business and cross-cultural management are key topics in undergraduate business, MBA, and executive education programs worldwide as companies and institutions prepare current and future business leaders for the global marketplace. This exciting new edition of the highly successful textbook, Managing Cultural Differences, seeks to guide students and any person with global responsibilities to understand how culture fits in a changing business world, how to gain a competitive advantage from effective cross-cultural management, and gives practical advice for doing business across the globe. With updated content, new case studies, and a new author team, Managing Cultural Differences is required course reading for undergraduates, postgraduates, and MBA students alike, as well as being of significant value for anyone who sells, purchases, travels, or works internationally.

And, as multinational corporations (MNCs) and Transnational Corporations (TNCs) spread their wings across nations with numerous employees of different nationalities, with their different cultures, different mores and different behaviours, organizations have to reconcile these differences and have to forge a unified organizational culture to achieve their mission, vision and objectives. This book eminently suits as a text to address these goals. Divided into 14 chapters, this comprehensive and well-organized text discusses in detail the many cultural issues facing organizations. Professor Bhattacharyya, with his expertise and wealth of experience, provides a masterly analysis of the subject, harmoniously blending the theory and practice of cross-cultural management, making it a unified whole. Not only does the text give a thorough understanding of culture, showing that it is an amalgam of shared values and behaviours of groups as well as a phenomenon applicable to individuals, it also delineates the many facets of corporate culture. The text discusses the entire gamut of organizational culture, cultural differences, diversity management, cross-cultural management, globalization, impact of culture on globalization, and the impact of technology and culture on organization. In addition, it focuses on cross-cultural communication, cultural issues in mergers and acquisitions, resource management, cross-cultural decision making, and ways and means of managing cross-cultural teams.

"Communicating Globally: Intercultural Communication and International Business" provides students with a cultural general awareness of diverse world views, valuable insights on understanding and overcoming cultural differences, and a clear path to international business success. This text integrates the theory and skills of intercultural communication with the practices of multinational organizations and international business. The book discusses the implications of these approaches and the new competencies needed for conducting international business and entering the world marketplace. It examines intercultural transitions and cross-cultural relationships as well as how virtual groups or teams and constant change influence multinational organizations. "Communicating Globally: Intercultural Communication and International Business" provides further insights into doing business abroad by examining significant geographic regions and emphasizing cultural themes and patterns, business conduct and characteristics, and emerging trends. Also included is a regional resource guide that establishes a sensible foundation for readers to continue their own cross-cultural or international business research, personally transforming their understanding into individually instructive significance